SUSTAINABLE SOLAR BUILDINGS BY USING SOLAR PANELS

Solar energy is a clean energy capable of generating electricity and heat for homes and industries. However, to effectively utilize solar energy, solar panels have to be installed to make solar buildings

design, especially at the rooftop. Solar panels, PVs, require large surface areas in order to accumulate enough solar power that would be used in powering the building when there is no sunlight. The intensity of sunlight varies and can be affected by a number of factors. This is why solar energy is not really a reliable source of energy but in some regions of the world prone to the high intensity of sunlight, solar energy comes handy. Moreover, solar PVs store solar energy to be used when it is mostly needed in solar buildings.

If supplying electricity and energy to the building is the only function of solar panels installed on rooftops, it would have been enough. However, solar panels do much more by reducing the amount of heat reaching the roofs by about 38%. This is especially useful in regions of the high intensity of sunlight. Studies have shown that the amount of heat reaching a building ceiling can be reduced by about five degrees Fahrenheit or three degree Celsius. Larger solar panels such as tilting panels, which provide a gap between the building and the solar panel making it possible for air to circulate, have even higher levels of cooling effects than flush solar panels.

Moreover, the cost can be saved as a result of the energy saving potential of solar panels. The cost that would have been spent on cooling the home or building can be saved. It is interesting to note that the cost saving the potential of solar panel is up to five percent discount of its cost. Cooling the building is not the only advantage of solar panels. During winter, solar panels come handy as they can be very helpful in holding heat at night in the building to help warm up the home. This is also an energy saving benefit of solar panels. The heat that accumulates in the building during the day is kept from escaping and, therefore, the home is warmed up.

Solar panels come handy as it offers benefit to the buildings and the environment. The energy saving potential of solar panels cannot be overstated. Moreover, they supply energy to the home. Solar energy is one of the best plans of actions on reducing the use of fossil fuels in homes and automobiles. Although the cost of solar PVs is high, their benefits are often commensurate to the cost or even surpass the cost. However, with the advancement in technology, the costs of solar PVs are expected to fall while their efficiencies in storing solar energies are expected to rise. If the expectations on solar energy is come through, it might as well effectively replace fossil fuel as a source of energy or perhaps go a long way to serve as an alternative. However, at the present most homes in the UK, up to half a million buildings, use solar panels.