Thousands of people every day decide to approach solar-energy as a way to contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gasses and as a way to reduce their dependece on non-renewable resources. It is important to understand that solar-energy is actually most-effective on smaller-scale applications, so a creative and motivated person can actually do pretty well if the application is right.

Think of this page as a table of contents for the various resources on the internet that can get you closer to understanding how to build and use solar energy in your life

Building Your Own Solar Collector from Used Solar Cells on eBay

We found this website in our travels and, although it's simple in terms of presentation, it is a pure case study on how to build yourself a solar collector from recycled materials. Mike Davis is an astronomer who often spends time on his property in a remote area of Arizona. Given that he had both sun and wind available in abundance, and a need for electricity while he was staying on the property, he decided to build his own wind turbine and solar panel.

The upside is that Mike has laid out exactly how he built his recycled solar collector from parts he found on eBay, for about $100.

The downside is that Mike has written this for free, so he doesn't really have the time to answer every question he gets (his site has obviously become very popular!). The other downside is that he has made his solar collector for a very specific application, so if you aren't an astronomer with untouched land out in Arizona and some electrical wiring skills, it may not work as well for you.

Energy2Green: Solar and Wind Power System Kit

Ignoring for a moment the sales-pagey website, let's talk about what you actually get with this kit. The important piece of the pie is that this kit includes not only a written manual but instructional videos as well. If Mike's project above leaves out too much information for you to be able to "whip something up" then you might consider purchasing this guide.

Maybe most important is that there is a 60-day money back guarantee offered by the publisher. If you check out all of the vidoes and diagrams and don't think this is for you, you can request a refund in full.

And in the spirit of sustainability, all of this material is in e-book and digital video format.

Other Options...

GreenDIYEnergy.com

Why pay thousands of dollars for solar energy ($27,000 average cost) when you can build your own solar panel system for just a fraction of the retail cost.

Solar Power Your Home

Featuring ten of the easiest and cheapest do-it-yourself solar projects, Solar Power Your Home For Dummies is the fun and easy way to meet your energy needs with this clean power source!