THE BEST OF SOLAR ENERGY is a compilation of dozens of resources:

Solar Products and Companies
Solar Energy Videos
Solar Technical and Introduction Guides
Solar Case Studies,
Weekend DIY solar projects
Solar Software and Calculators
New Solar technologies
Solar News
Solar Maps and Resources
Solar Organizations
How to find Solar Contractors.

The information involves many of the best web's solar resources and tools. Enjoy!

Solar Best Products and Companies (photovoltaic)

The best is always relative, and recent awards may not mean much.

Anyway, here is a small list of manufacturers of photovoltaic products recently awarded: Sharp Solar (Japan), Sanyo Solar (Japan), SunPower (USA, solar panels), Schott Solar (Germany, solar panels), Solar World (Germany, solar panels), Suntech (China: product/price relation), Kaco (Germany, solar inverters, OutBack (USA, solar inverters), Mastervolt (USA, solar inverters), Unirac (solar mounting), Zomeworks (USA, solar trackers).

See also: Solar Dealers and Companies

Solar Best thermal products and Companies

Solar thermal products involve solar water heating, solar pool heating, solar space heating and solar cooling, and contrary to what happens with solar electricity (photovoltaics) the market is not controlled by some large and well known companies. There are hundreds of them, acting mainly on a regional scale - something that makes choosing the best products or companies a rather impossible task.

To choose the best solar thermal products choose a good installer, build your own solar guide (with the questions you should put) and stay informed (see: Solar Solutions).

Anyway here is a small list of some important companies: SiliconSolar, Fafco and Apricus Solar (solar water heating solutions), AAA Solar Supply (in USA, space heating), Yazaki in the absortion chiller technology for solar cooling and Lennox (cooling solutions involving air conditioners or heat-pumps ready to be integrated with a solar photovoltaic systems).

The best in New Solar technologies

The future of the solar energy seems to be in the photovoltaic technology and in concentrating solar (large-scale solar energy production).

For a good introduction to photovoltaic technology, see: Abengoa Solar PV.

As to concentrating solar: the largest solar power plant in the world is being built near Phoenix, Arizona, by Abengoa Solar and APS. For more information on this project and other information on concentrating solar, see Solana and Abengoa Solar Concentrating Power.

Best solar videos

There isn't many introductory or technical solar videos in the Net, but most are part of brand promotion strategies or involve some prior publicity. That's the case of some introductory videos to solar energy from National Geographic, Discovery or Times (click the links to see the videos).

For solar home applications, the UK's Energy Saving Trust organization offers a video on water heating systems and another on photovoltaic systems for homeowners in cold climates.

For those interested in large-scale production (concentrating solar), see some videos from Abengoa Solar or that of NRL.

For a technical view of the solar photovoltaic manufacturing and research see the NRL video in NRL PV. For discussions on solar energy see ASES or SEI Video.

Solar Technical and Introductory Guides

There are many good introductory guides to solar energy. You may use these links to governmental sites National Renewable Energy Laboratory or Florida Solar Energy Center or Your Home (Australia) to get it.

Some commercial sites of some big solar companies also offer excellent information on solar issues: see for instance the SolarWorld USA site.

For technical information on solar thermal systems (hot water and space heating and cooling), see: Florida Solar Energy Center (FSE) and FSE water systems.

For basic information on solar power for kids, see: EIA Solar power for kids

For some good solar case studies see: ASES, Sanyo Solar, Kyocera Solar.

Solar News

Some organizations offer good solar news in a daily base. See for instance The Solar Foundation, ASES or The Solar Electric Power Organization.

Best weekend DIY solar solutions

There is a lot of videos and information in the NET for DIY solar solutions involving solar water heating or some simple photovoltaic systems.

Many manufacturer's have detailed literature on how to install their solar products (see, for instance, Home Depot How to Install a 60 watt solar power backup kit).

Home Depot, Lowe's or even Amazon are selling kits for DIY and solar weekend projects.

But be aware. Most solar do-it-yourself projects aren't easy to implement. If the solution isn't simple in their design, or if you haven't time and high motivation, or if your skills and know-how aren't high enough, it's best to hire a solar professional.

Solar Installers, dealers, suppliers

Larger solar manufacturers work with solar installers and dealers, and they are the most straightforward way to get addresses and names of certified solar professionals in your region... Just contact them or take a look at their sites.

You may also use databases held by some solar and energy organizations. In USA, see: NABCEP, Resnet solar installers or Find Solar.

Solar software and calculators

There is many solar calculators and software tools in the Net... Many are too simple and inutile. But there are also some good and useful solar tools, and we list some of them here.

Solar Photovoltaic systems

Many of the solar tools we indicate below deal with the American climate zones, but they can be used for other parts of the world as long as you match your particular climate with a similar one in USA (defined by a zip code).

Some of the tools will give you estimations on the cost of a solar solution, the electricity usage, your future electric bills, the output, the payback... See, for instance:

Infinite Power PV Calculator
Mitsubishi solar calculator
Kaco PV calculator
Kyocera PV calculator

Other sophisticated tool to calculate the electricity you can produce with a solar photovoltaic system (or a wind turbine) is In My Backyard (IMBY), from the NREL.

Solar thermal solutions (water heating, air heating, pool heating)

The Infinite power calculator is a solar water heater calculator. It gives an estimate of the size your system should have, based on the number of people using hot water.

The Natural Resources Canada site has also several software tools that can be used worldwide to evaluate the costs, the production, the savings, the payback and the risk of solar hot water projects and solar air heating and passive solar projects. These tools require a lot of data...

Solar water heating (including pools): Solar Water Heating Model
Solar air heating projects: Solar Air Heating Model
The impact of the building envelope on energy performance: Passive solar projects.

Two other good - and simpler - software tools:
Solar Water heater calculator (from Energy Works) and...
Vortex Solar Pool Heater Calculator

Solar Maps and Resources

Pondering the solar resources in your site can be very important. To get it, you should estimate the impact of the shade of trees and walls and other landscape variables next to your site, or the impact of local weather patterns (morning fog, haze, cloudy periods, etc.).

Another more general tool you may consider is solar maps. They will give you a broad estimation of the solar resource and performance in your climate zone...

See:
World Solar Map
US Solar Maps
Europe Solar Maps
Australia Solar Map

Solar Organizations

There are many dozens of solar organizations, mainly national ones. Here is a small list of some important solar organizations:

EPIA: European Photovoltaic Industry Association, the world's largest industry association.
ESTIF: European Solar Thermal Industry Association
Australian solar energy society
Solar Energy Society of Indian
USA organizations:
American Solar Energy Society (ASES): publishes Solar Today magazine in USA.
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL): fundamental research and technology development.
Solar Energy Business Association of New England (SEBANE): PV business association of solar energy companies based, or doing business, in New England.
Solar Energy International (SEI)
Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA): 200 utility, electric service provider, manufacturer, installer, government, and research members.
Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA): North American association of manufacturers, dealers, distributors, contractors, installers, architects, consultants, and marketers.
Solar Rating and Certification Corporation
The International Solar Energy Society

 

 

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