A few years ago, i bought a lego mindstorms set. This was the basic set, 2 motors, 2 touch sensors a light sensor…the basics. Anyway, some parts are missing, and other parts would be nice to have. I was wondering if there’s a site that sells stuff for the old (NXT 2.0) model.

I remember seeing some other parts like solar panels.

You can buy them from
http://www.amazon.com/gp/search?ie=UTF8&keywords=lego%20mindstorms&tag=search0d8-20&index=toys-and-games&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325
Good luck!

I saw an episode in extreme makeover home edition were they built a house for a family and they used solar energy to power the house I like that not just because is good for the envirorment but because I think is better for us too, If we take care of the Earth we live in I think is going to last more.

Hurray for caring about Mother Earth. The cool thing about converting to solar energy is that you can do it a little at a time if you want to. One of the best sources in checking out all the options is the magazine Mother Earth News. This magazine has been around for as long as I can remember and have hundreds if not thousands of articles about solar energy projects. A good library will probably have back issues and I imagine you can go on line and get some article straight from the source if you are so inclined. As with any project it is the proper installation that is key in making the project worthwhile. So you either do it yourself, right, or hire people who have many years of experience in doing these types of installations. You might also be interested to know that the government gives very nice tax right offs for folks who convert to solar energy and some states can be very generous indeed. So check out all your different sources both on line and at the library to get the best information you can. Enjoy the process it is really fascinating overall.

Is it really possible for me living in Denver to build and install and setup my own solar panel to help make electricity for my home?

It’s possible, but not as easy or cost-effective as the sites selling information suggest.

You can build your own solar panels from individual cells or broken cells. Possibly you would end up with a panel that costs less than a commercial one, but it would not have the UL safety certification, and thus would not legally be allowed to be connected to the grid in any place that I know. So you would have to go with charging a battery, and that alone doubles the cost of the system. It could be a fun and educational thing to do, but would not be a money saver.

You could also build a solar water heater - plans and videos abound on the web. However, Denver gets hard freezes in winter, so you would need to drain your home built system during those months. There are solar water heaters designed to take sustained freezing temperatures, but unless you’re an engineer, that type would be really hard to make.

The site http://www.nlcpr.com/Deceptions6.php has something to say about various scams, including solar.

I really want to loose a little extra weight, I’ve been running 3 miles every other day all summer. And I think this tea can help me reach my weightloss goal. Please do not post any insults or critisism unless it is benifitial. If anyone knows another good weight lose plan please post! Thank you!

There is no miracle diet beverage.. Just keep up eating healthy and exercising. Try adding an extra mile each run to increase weight loss.

Right im meant to describe the diffrent between solar pannels and solar cells so far i put a solar pannel collects energy, in a solar pannel there are lots of cells wired together….., a solar cell is a single cell that stores energy and is a single solar converter and it absorbs sunlight and converts it into elecrticity..

I need to put more description for solar panel and a bit more for the cell part what can i put i cant think of anything help

The solar cell is one small (approx. 4"x4") area on the surface of a solar module. The module is made up of many solar cells set into a frame for support. A solar panel is several solar modules installed together on a rack. Put some racks together and you have a solar array.

Taking light energy and converting it into electrical energy, the solar cell is an ecological device. The light absorbing material of a solar cell will lead to photogeneration of charge carriers and a conductive contact will carry off the electrons into another wire or circuit.

Solar cells are made up of thin layers of silicon, and when sunlight strikes a cell’s light absorbing material, chemical reactions release electrons, generating an electric current.
Components

Taking light energy and converting it into electrical energy, the solar cell is an ecological device. The light absorbing material of a solar cell will lead to photogeneration of charge carriers and a conductive contact will carry off the electrons into another wire or circuit.

Solar cells are made up of thin layers of silicon, and when sunlight strikes a cell’s light absorbing material, chemical reactions release electrons, generating an electric current

For example, they can be constructed with sequential layers of thin film semiconductor materials, which are usually only micrometers thick. According to Sharp Electronics, a specialist in this area, such thin-film technologies account for around 12 percent of all solar modules sold worldwide.
AdTech Ad

The manufacturers of solar cells boast that they are cost-effective, quiet, safe, and reliable, and only require minimal maintenance over a long operational life.

Note that the term photovoltaic cell is sometimes used when the cell’s light source is not explicitly sunlight. Also, the study of solar cells is known as photovoltaics.

Im fresh out of high school and am not sure what education i should be seeking next. I have heard that renewable energy is a fast growing field and would like to know what education a good job in that field would require. By a good job i mean anything from installing solar panels or repairing wind turbines. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Look into electrical, electronic, and mechanical engineering. I would say the best thing that anyone could tell you is to stay versatile. Things are changing so fast in the green industry that by the time you learn one thing very well, it has become obsolete, or close to it.

If you are a self help type of person and are really interested in installing or consulting, check out a program ‘RETScreen’. This is a program that the Canadian government has put out to help consultants and estimaters plan for renewable energy conversions

does anyone know of a good website that can show me how to rig up a solar panel, battery and inverter to power a few energy saver light globes (say 10-15 watt each), in my house? thanks
and i was thinking of using a car battery for power storage, is this appropriate? what are the possible limitations of doing this, are there any hazards?

Depending on your knowledge you may buy a kit and observe the parameters.
You will need about 25 square inch per watt
You may need a battery to store the energy
You will have to calculate the size based on your requirements target.

You have to engineer the whole thing; it is fun and very educative.
Autoparts and camping stores have small affordable panels.

Electronic stores have the rest.

Or you can buy a small solar lantern take it appart and reverse engineere-it!

Hope this properly answers your question

Guru

Back to 150 a barrel or more

Depends. Some solar panels, like the ones in those spinning toys, are actually powered by the impact of photons on the panels.

The ones that generate electricity are made with silicon and phosphorus, which have a negative charge (one extra electron). When the photon hits the silicon/phosphorus molecule, the extra electron is given a boost out of the electron shell and becomes available. So if you hook up a circuit, off it goes. It goes to another part of the circuit, where silicon is bound to boron, which has holes in its electron shell.

Well, I am looking for a cheap way on building a solar panel, instead of buying by the manufacturing stores. I would like to stay in the budget up to 1,000 dollars. I want to have Solar Energy for my house because the sun is always shining. Is there a way I can make the Light power some of my house? What would I need? How much time would it take?
Where can I get the items I need?

You have a couple of options.

The first option is to put together a flat plate collector to generate hot water. If you live in a cold climate, you might have to use evacuated tubes and this will probably blow your budget. The hot water could be used as a pre-heater for your existing hot water system. Complete systems for domestic hot water will not likely fit into your budget.

The second option is a small solar panel to generate electricity. In order to fit into you thousand dollar budget, you will need something like this:
1) an 80W panel. This will set you back about $400. You can’t make the solar cells yourself, so it is just as well to buy a complete panel.

2) A small solar charge controller for about $100. This will take the power from the panel and make sure your storage battery is properly charged.

3) An inverter. This will take power from the battery and generate 120 volt AC power (like your wall sockets). A 120W unit will be less than $200.

4) A 12 volt deep cycle battery, perhaps $120.

5) A transfer switch to cut the power when the battery gets discharged and transfer to 120 volt utility power.

You should be able to put it all together for $1000. However, you need to treat this as a hobby. The power you will generate is worth less than $10 a year, and is about enough to power a DSL modem and router (i.e. your internet connection). If it lasts 25 years, your investment (or loss in this case) will be about minus 9%. Of course, the battery won’t last that long, but the other parts could.

The actual power you can generate can be estimated from solar insolation maps. I will post a link below to a few that might help.

Collecting heat is probably more valuable (e.g. using a heat collector rather than a photovoltaic collector for electricity).

You can probably find plans on the internet for do-it-yourself flat plat collectors using plumbing parts, and electronic circuit diagrams for things like solar charge controllers, but I think this will be too complicated for your first project unless you really like tinkering. Buying components and integrating them yourself (figuring out how that get everything interconnected) will be loads of work for you first project.

Don’t be discouraged by the economics. You will learn countless things in the process and knowledge is always a good thing. Someday as prices come down on silicon cells (perhaps a new thin film technology) and evacuated tubes are made by the hundreds of millions you will be able to use your skills to make a much larger and cost effective system.

Have fun.