Creating an intense demand for energy, the third world is waiting to be filled with the light of solar energy resources.

It’s more common in many areas of third world countries to have no electrical power than it is to have it. Even though solar energy is more than plentiful, most rural residents live in small one-room homes that have no source of electricity whatsoever. They survive with kerosene lamps for light and minimal heat. For those who have a little extra money, or bartering material, a car battery may be purchased to power a small lamp or heater. When the battery is depleted, it either has to go to a nearby village for recharging, or sit until there is money or someone to go into the village with it. Such meager resources create economic impoverishments of various kinds. Probably the most notable of the unavailable resources (especially light) is felt by the children, who are attempting to study, learn, and grow in order to have a better future.

A conventional energy supply grid just costs too much for the government or a local entity to install, especially in remote areas. Solar energy, however, both at individual sites and in larger arrays for communities in rural areas can provide a real opportunity for both “on-the-grid” and “off-the-grid” living. It’s not only a viable solution; it’s something that makes good sense.

There are a number of United States charities, including the Oprah Winfrey Foundation, that are contributing heavily to worldwide efforts to bring clean, renewable energy to third world residents. The focus is bringing solar energy that will be used for access to water, as well as light and heat.

Another very involved partner is SELF, Solar Energy Light Fund. Their mission is to “provide solar power and wireless communications to a quarter of the world’s population living in energy poverty.” It’s a daunting mission…one they’ve not only taken on, but have been very successful at. Bringing solar power in western China to 1,000 households in fourteen villages, they have worked in many areas with local governments and agencies to help self-fund the building and distribution of small-scale photovoltaic systems. They have worked to help scattered Masai herder tribes acquire solar-powered telephones in Tanzania. They have installed photovoltaic systems in schools and clinics in many third world countries, and are currently very involved in a project in Haiti that will help bring solar-powered medical clinics across the country into being.

One of the primary ways third world residents obtain fuel and build shelter is by stripping their trees. This uses up with minimal foliage they have, and results in a loss of natural shade and shelter, as well as the forest’s filtering capabilities. They also burn animal dung for fuel, creating toxic fumes, and diminishing this source of natural fertilizer. With just one or two PV panels connected to a battery pack, and properly located to maximize capture of the sun’s energy, they can have year-around heat and lights in many locations, as well as small televisions or radios, without using trees or animal dung.

Walking many miles daily to the nearest village for water, rural residents have spent valuable hours that they can use more productively. Adding pipes and solar energy power pumps to homes or central village locations brings water directly to rural residents for both drinking and irrigation. This allows them to grow more crops and to create a more sustainable lifestyle.

Solar energy is making a difference in third world countries…for some the difference between living in poverty and living in abundance. With solar panels, many are now producing enough electricity for computers, radios and televisions. And they have the basics…water for drinking and irrigation, heat and lights.

To help individuals and communities in those countries build an infrastructure that will support solar energy use…and production…will make it not only a better world for them…but for us.

As all of us rely less on fossil fuels to support our basic needs, and more on renewable energy like solar, we will have more and more freedom…from energy barons…and from our own self-destruction through pollution and global warming.

Looking to find out all you can about solar power information then visit www.HomeSolarPowerExplained.com to find the best advice on home solar power for you.

Receiving without resistance is the definition of passive. It is also the main component of passive solar energy as a home receives the sun’s energy and does not resist. True passive solar energy means no moving parts…fans, pumps, mechanical or electrical elements are not required. In a solar passive home you will sometimes find fans to help distribute air evenly throughout the building space, but expect it to be solar powered.

No photovoltaics (PV’s) are part of the passive solar energy design. Instead, walls windows and floors are used to collect solar energy during the winter, and to make sure it’s evenly dispersed. The design elements generally include large south-facing windows for solar energy collection when the sun hits them. As the sun is collected, it’s then distributed and stored in some type of thermal mass…usually the concrete, tile, stone or brick in the walls and floors…or sometimes it’s stored in water. When the sun goes down, or it clouds over and gets cool, heat that’s been stored in the thermal mass will dissipate into the building, maintaining the same even temperature. Roof overhangs and awnings are used in passive solar design to reject heat from coming into a building during the summer.

Coming from Roman and Greek cultures, our passive solar home designs today very much mimic their work in calculating the best use of the sun’s energy.

Taking advantage of passive solar design made sense then, and it makes even greater sense now. Driven by diminishing wood supplies, upon which they had relied greatly for heat, the Greeks and Romans began to design passive solar energy homes to reduce their reliance on wood for heating. We can certainly learn and take advantage of what they discovered, and allow it to help us eliminate or supplement our need for non-renewable energy sources.

Passive solar energy is extremely clean. It’s also totally renewable and doesn’t emit greenhouse gases. By design, a passive solar energy home will maintain an even temperature throughout, and generally touted by homeowners as much cleaner and more comfortable than a comparable conventional system.

Passive solar hot water heaters are another way most passive solar home owners further decrease their energy bill, and their reliance on non-renewable resources. There are three basic types of passive solar water heaters: flat-plate, batch heaters, and evacuated tube heaters. Of these, batch heaters are the most prevalent and popular. Perhaps that is because batch heaters are fairly easy projects for the do-it-yourselfer. If you want to build your own, you’ll need to find an electric hot water tank…generally you can purchase either a salvaged one or find one that’s been disposed of in the dump. It will need to be thoroughly cleaned and sealed, and then painted black. Then, add new fittings and pipes to make sure you won’t have leaks later on. Construct a well-insulated plywood box, drill holes for the pipes to fit through, add aluminum foil or other metal for a reflectant, and place the tank inside, fitting the pipes through the holes. Cover the front of the box with glass or plexiglass, seal it, add water, and you’re ready go to. You may want a more detailed explanation, and there are a variety of plans available, but those are the basics.

Batch heaters, sometimes called breadbox heaters because of their design, can be used in stages as well. Utilizing more than one tank, and then taking advantage of the sun’s angle at various times of the day, the home owner can take advantage of the hottest water created by the sun’s rays. Flat plate and evacuated tube are also often found in solar passive homes, but their designs normally call for professional installation, and they can be less effective.

So…still looking for a few more benefits of going solar? Solar energy doesn’t contribute to global warning. Solar energy doesn’t won’t spill into the ocean and create miles and miles of oil slick to kill wildlife, pollute and damage fragile environmental ecosystems. There’s no acid rain, no smog that comes from using solar energy.

There are many “pros” to solar energy, as we are increasingly discovering…or should I say re-discovering?

Looking to find out all you can about solar passive homes then visit www.HomeSolarPowerExplained.com to find the best advice on home solar power for you.