So you have decided to utilize solar panels to consume the energy that was produced on your roof top. With this decision you are not only doing something good for the environment, but also saving around 80 % on your electricity bills while at the same time increasing the value of your property. Good deal.

Then comes the decision whether to buy the panels from somewhere and hire someone for installation or to do it yourself. If you want to cut on the installation costs, which are basically THE cost of turning to solar power, you can prefer building your own panels in a Saturday afternoon.

You might have some questions in your mind. I will try to clarify them in this article so that you can be sure whether building your own solar panels is the thing for you, or not.  Here we go.

1 – How can I build a solar panel? Don’t you need expertise?

On the contrary, any average Jane and Joe can build theirs. You are not going to start with a rigorous literature review trying to understand the basics of It is just like fixing the table you got from IKEA. You don’t need to know what to to, just follow the instructions of the guides you can find anywhere.

2- What materials will I need?

The complete list may change according to the guide you follow, but in order for you to have an idea they are all some basic materials you can find in your hardware store. Maybe you already have some in your attic.

3- How much will it cost to me to build residential solar panels?

The whole think often costs around 150 dollars when you do it yourself. Otherwise, it costs more, a 1-kilowatt home solar system costs around US$7,000 – 10,000.

4- How much watts of electricity will my home built solar system produce?

Following the instructions you can make a solar panel that produces up to 120 watts. You can then join these panels together in an array to produce over 1KW of power.

5- Which guide do you recommend?

There are many DIY guides for sale on the internet. You can make a quick google search and read reviews. I got many of those to check for myself and review. Among those my favorite is by far Earth4Energy DIY Solar Panels Guide. Its easy to follow instructions, videos and illustrations make it all very simple and fun. Bonus DIY Wind Turbines Guide is a plus and if you are not satisfies you can charge your money back. Quite enough to give it a try.

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