Solar power offers a variety of advantages in the fields of environmental impact, on-going cost, flexibility, and self-reliance, although there are some disadvantages regarding its initial cost and the effects of weather conditions.

ADVANTAGES: The advantages of solar include the fact that no pollution is created in the process of generating electricity, there is no on-going cost for the power it generates, it can be flexibly applied to a variety of stationary or portable applications, and it offers much more self-reliance than depending upon a power utility for all electricity. Unlike most forms of electrical generation, the panels can be made small enough to fit pocket-size electronic devices, or sufficiently large to charge an automobile battery, power attic fans, or supply electricity to entire buildings.

DISADVANTAGES: One of the major disadvantages of solar power is the initial cost of purchasing stand-alone panels or devices with built-in panels. However, it is possible to reduce the impact of this cost by starting with one panel and expanding over a long period of time, or buying one solar-powered device (fan, radio, battery charger, outdoor light, etc.) at a time as extra funds become available. Another one of the disadvantages is that electricity won’t be generated during some types of weather conditions, like snow or rain, and snow-covered outdoor solar panels will need to be cleared.

Overall, solar generally offers more advantages than disadvantages, and is one of the few realistic options for home and small business owners to generate their own electricity.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 12th, 2007 at 12:53 pm and is filed under Solar Power. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.