This is an amazing how-to on building your own solar panel. It’s incredibly cheap as well at only $104.85, much cheaper than pre-built models. Let’s hear it for DIY!

How I Built and electricity producing Solar Panel

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 This is the CIS Photovoltaic system, a huge leap forward in home solar systems.

The CIS has uses new battery and solar technology to reach an unprecedented 0.9 year payback. That means this system will pay for itself in less than a year!

This is less than half of traditional solar systems.

In addition to a quick payback, the CIS system is much more eco-friendly than other systems. Yes, it does does produce 100% green power, but the system itself uses 1/100th the materials used in traditional batteries.

This means much more green manufacturing.

The CIS system uses a stepped design, modeled after traditional Japanese roofs.

Unfortunately CIS is a Japanese company, and their product website is also in Japanese. We’ll let you know if this system gets picked up by english retailer so you can get more information.

via Good Design Awards

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The Windspire is is a practical, quiet green energy device, and could just get a shot as mass consumer adoption.

It’s a 1 kW, vertical-rotating, bird friendly wind turbine. It super quiet at 25 db, “the average noise of a residential neighborhood at night”, which is great for residential uses.

It’s a bit expensive at $4,000, but it can produce up to 2,000 kWh per year. It’s a great way to offset some of your grid-power with all-natural, sustainable wind power.

Bird friendliness is also important to this design. You’re not going to hurt any animals using this, and in a residential environment with lots of birds, that’s crucial.

All-in-all this is a brilliant design that could really get some consumer attention if it was a bit cheaper. The low noise is great for a residential environment, and it’s small enough to fit in an average backyard as well. Most importantly, it’s bird friendly so you’ll take care of your local wildlife as well as the global climate.

Windspire

via Treehugger

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A new green company in California, Sun Run Generation, is providing an innovative way to reduce your emissions.

Instead of buying expensive solar panel systems to generate your own power, Sun Run will sell you power from a system they own. It’s a bit like renting solar panels.

You do not have to purchase the panels, and the one-time installation fee is far less than installation on your system. You will pay a monthly bill to Sun Run, so you’re not seeing the full cost-savings of your own system, but it saves you the big upfront cost of purchasing an entire solar system.

What’s more is you’ll be off the grid, and generating your own power. No more blackouts or rising electricity costs!

All in all this is a great, and cheap, way to switch to green electricity. The company takes care of setting it all up, and you’ll be green in no time!

via ENN

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