Building Solar Panels - Where To Buy Solar Cells

One of my biggest problems when I was building my very first solar panel was where to find solar cells at a reasonable price. I had recently learned that you could build a solar panel for hundreds of dollars less than buying them the only problem was I couldn't find any solar cells.

After I could days of searching I found a couple websites that sold solar cells... the only problem was they were in the /watt range which definitely isn't cheaper than buying a brand new panel! I was pretty depressed at that point.

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We had just recently built a wind generator and I had been wanting to upgrade the hub so I went to our favorite place (eBay) and was looking around for one. After I found what I was looking for I figured I should try a shot in the dark and see if anyone on eBay was selling solar cells. It was probably the happiest moment of my life! There were over 50 auctions of people selling solar cells for under .50/watt (the price has since gone down to under /watt). I quickly ordered 36 so I could start building our first solar panel. The great news is these guys usually throw in a couple extra just in case a couple break during shipping (solar cells are pretty fragile).

Building Solar Panels - Where To Buy Solar Cells

How is it that eBay was offering such cheap prices on cells? Well, cells have a grading system (Grade "A", "B", "C" etc.). The cells I had been looking at were Grade "A" cells which means they are perfect. The auctions on eBay were for Grade "B" cells. Before you start thinking these aren't that great you should know that Grade "B" simply means there's tiny defects in the cell. Nothing major and it doesn't affect the power output. Once your solar panel is built you can't even notice these defects.

If you're just starting your journey to building your first solar panel I strongly suggest you check out eBay. They've got the best prices and you can't even tell the difference when the panel is finished.

Building Solar Panels - Where To Buy Solar Cells

I built my own solar panels and a wind generator and saved well over ,000. I get a cheque from the power company because I produce more energy than I use. If you'd like to learn how you can do the same check out Buy Solar Cells.

Types of Solar Panels - Size, Shape, Color, & Efficiency

Solar panels come in all shapes and sizes. How do you tell which one you're dealing with? This is a great question -- one I didn't know the answer to when I first got acquainted with solar moduels

Let's start off and discuss the three main types of photovoltaic (PV) panels:

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1. Monocrystalline Solar Panels - Monocrystalline cells are cut from a block of silicon that has been grown from a single crystal.These tend to be the most efficient, but also the most expensive solar modules. They have been considered the go-to panels for the last couple decades, and also boast being the oldest and most dependable.
2. Polycrystalline Solar Panels - Polycrystalline cells are cut from multifaceted silicon crystal. They don't come from a single piece of silicon crystal, but rather from many different crystals. These solar panels tend to be less efficient than monocrystalline solar panels of the same size. This means a 200 Watt Monocrystalline panel will usually be smaller than a 200 Watt Polycrystalline panel.
3. Thin Film or Amorphous Solar Panels - These panels are not made up of any crystals. They are actually a thin layer of silicon deposited on a substrate or base material like metal or glass. Thin film solar panels tend to be the least efficient per square foot, but they are also the cheapest. The best application for amorphous panels is if you have a large amount of surface area and space doesn't matter.

I talk a lot about efficiency above. I want to note that I am referring to efficiency per square foot. A 200 Watt Monocrystalline panel will generate as much electricity as a 200 Watt Polycrystalline panel or four 50 Watt Thin Film Panels. The main difference would be size.

So how can you tell which solar module is which? It's easy to tell the difference between monocrystalline and polycrystalline panels versus thin film panels. Monocrystalline and polycrystalline modules are rigid and much thicker than thin film. Thin film modules are flexible and they are, well, "thin." Thin film also has a mostly uniform color.

Now let's talk about the visual differences between monocrystalline and polycrystalline solar panels. Polycrystalline usually have a shattered glass look. This is because polycrystalline panels are made up from many different crystals put together. Monocrystalline panels tend to have more of a one-color look to them because they come from a single crystal.

Types of Solar Panels - Size, Shape, Color, & Efficiency

For more information on solar technologies, please go to http://www.brightstarsolar.net

Thanks To : Energy Efficiency