The benefits of residential solar power are huge. With domestic power bills increasing at an alarming rate it won't be long before the average electricity bill for our homes will be hundreds a week. With residential solar power you have a few options. Ranging from large scale solar cell arrays on your roof or garden to the super cost effective homemade solar panels that you can build in a weekend.

Whatever your requirements are, whether it's reducing your carbon footprint and power bills or going to the extreme and moving totally off grid and having the power company pay you we've got it covered.

So How Does Solar Power for Homes Work?

Solar power works by harnessing and converting the suns rays into electricity, which we can then use to power our appliances at home.

It begins with the solar cell. Solar cells contain one or more semiconductor materials that are able, through their makeup and positioning, to convert sunlight into electricity. Solar cells are then combined together and solar panels are born. These panels are either installed on to your rooftop, or into a sunny positions in your yard. If you are planning on getting a large installation dones then it makes sense to get a professional in to do the work. However, it's really easy to make your own solar panels these days and there are some amazing videos and guides online that can be downloaded to show ou how. It's possible to power you whole house by simply making your own panels.

Once installed, the solar panels are combined in series to form an array. The current that the array produces then must pass through an inverter, where the DC electricity is changed to AC, so it can be used in the home. Additional electricity generated can be stored in a battery for less sunnny periods and you can also wire you panel array into the grid system and any surplus supply can be sold back to the power companies - How's that for savings?