For the past decade or so, the United States has increasingly put a focus on so-called ‘green’ sources of energy. These energy sources are renewable, consisting of solar, wind, geothermal and other natural sources of energy, contrasting with fossil-fuel based energy sources such as coal, oil and natural gas.

Solar energy is in many ways the most prominent of the green energy sources – after all, the sun is constant presence every day, and in fact provides (directly or indirectly) the energy for all life on earth to exist. In theory, solar energy if harnessed correctly could be a major source of power for both commercial and personal use.

However, the solar energy industry remains very much an immature industry. We’re a long way from seeing a fully realized set of tools and solutions to fully harness the power of our sun. This can be seen as both good and bad – On the bad side, it means that current methods of implementing solar power have some inefficiencies, while on the good side it means the industry is growing by leaps and bounds.

It’s virtually certain that the future will see technological advancements make solar energy a strongly viable source of energy in a number of domains. The question now, though, is how effective solar energy is today.

Photovoltaic Cells

When most people think of solar energy, they think of photovoltaic (PV) cells, often referred to as solar panels or solar cells. PV cells are panels of semiconducting material placed in an area where the sun directly shines. When the sun shines on a PV cell, a direct current is generated, which can be used to power any electrical device.

PV cells are typically made of silicon, and can be applied to windows, roofs or any part of a house or building which isn’t obstructed by the sun. The current best models of PV cells harvest up to 22% of available solar energy when conditions are perfect. Better still, they’re capable of operating at 80% efficiency even during cloudy or otherwise occluded conditions, meaning that they aren’t fully dependent on the vagaries of weather for their effectiveness.

You may be wondering as to how many solar panels to power a house. While it would theoretically be possible to entirely power a house via PV cells, it’s more likely that you’d want to use PV cells to supplement traditional power sources in powering the house. PV cells would be able to harvest energy during the daytime hours, which fortunately tend to be peak energy usage hours. In the event that the solar energy collection doesn’t fully meet the needs of the household at any given time, traditional energy sources make up the deficit.

Solar Water Heaters

While most people are familiar with solar panels, they may not be as aware of another viable source of personal solar energy – the solar water heater. Solar water heaters operate on a similar principle as the PV cell, although the mechanism is slightly different. Solar water heaters use a solar collector to gather the sun’s energy and a storage tank in which the heated water accumulates.

Depending on the climate, a solar water heater can be direct or indirect, but they’re a viable source of energy in any environment. In fact, solar water heaters are one of the best current applications of solar energy technology due to their relatively low cost and ease of installation. Solar water heaters can provide up to 75% of water-related energy needs, and can pay for the cost of installation in around seven to ten years after installation.

Both photovoltaic cells and solar water heaters are viable choices for home installation, provided a household is able to cover the initial cost of installation. At this point, solar isn’t an energy source ready for universal adoption, but it’s slowly getting closer to that point. The next decade will be exciting when it comes to further developments in optimizing solar energy.