As many of us are struggling with rising energy costs, we are starting to look at alternative ways of producing energy for our homes. Solar panels have been around for many years, but their slow uptake has been caused by the fact that solar panels produce power during daylight hours. The technological improvement with the development of home storage batteries has meant households using solar panels can now store the energy generated during the daylight hours, to be used in the evening once the sun has gone down. Due to this, it has now become much easier to set up a home energy system so that you can generate your own energy and reduce your reliance on the grid.
Is it possible to generate your electricity at home?
It is possible to generate your own electricity at home and has become far easier with the rise of home battery storage systems. The main limitation to generating electricity at home has previously been how to store the energy generated. Renewable power sources such as the sun or the wind, can produce energy which can then be used to power a household.
Different Ways to Generate Your Electricity
There are different ways to generate electricity. The best choice for your household will depend on your location, and what resources are available for you. Most homes have sunlight, though some homes are surrounded by trees, which can limit the effectiveness of the solar panels. Whereas rural or isolated properties may have access to other sources of renewable energy such as wind power.
Solar power
Solar power is an easy, affordable and practical energy source that can be used by the majority of households. Solar panels can be installed on most households’ roofs and the power can then be stored in a home battery storage system to be used when it is needed.
Wind energy
While we may think of wind power as being limited to huge commercial wind farms, it can in fact be used in a domestic setting. The situation of your property is crucial. A standard town property will be unlikely to be able to successfully use a wind turbine, whereas an isolated rural property may be in an excellent situation to be able to use a wind turbine to generate energy.
Ground/Air Source Heat Pumps
Ground and air source heat pumps use the natural heat from the ground and the air to create energy. They are more commonly used on the Continent, but are becoming more common in the UK, and work well with underfloor heating systems to maintain a consistent household temperature.
Biomass systems
Biomass systems use wood to generate heat for your home. These can use wood pellets, or logs, and can be used to run whole heating and hot water systems, or simply to heat one room in your home. Biomass systems are normally used in rural or large properties, as you need space to store the fuel needed to run your system.
Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity uses the power of water to generate energy. If your home is situated by a running water source such as a river or a stream, you could tap into this renewable energy source. There are only a limited number of properties that have the set-up to be able to utilise this source of energy.
What is the Best Way to Generate Electricity?
For most domestic properties solar is the best to create energy for your home. Solar panels can be easily installed on the majority of properties, and even properties with partial shade can still generate a reasonable amount of energy. If you have a rural property with space and different options, you may find that other ways of creating energy will work best for your situation.
What is the Cheapest Way of Generating Electricity?
Solar panels are now considered the cheapest way of generating energy, with wind power coming in a close second. The improvement in technology and wider scale uptake of solar panels has brought the installation costs down. As home battery storage systems have improved, their price has also come down which has made solar energy a sustainable, practical and affordable way to create energy for your home.
What is the Most Efficient Way to Generate Electricity?
Solar energy is a reliable and efficient way to create your own energy. Solar power is very reliable, other than the changing day length throughout the year, sunlight is a constant source of renewable energy. Even on a cloudy day, the light from the sun is still sufficient to create energy.
Is it legal to Have Your Own Source of Electricity?
You can have your energy source for your home. You do not have to use the National Grid to power up your home. You can choose to have a mixed system where you can use the grid for backup, or you can go completely off-grid and produce all your own energy.
Invest in Battery Storage To Optimise Your Energy Generation
Duracell Energy home batteries are designed and developed to give you a practical and affordable way to store the energy that you have generated. Our home batteries, EV chargers, and inverters all work together with our impressive app to give you complete control of your entire household energy system. Embrace a greener tomorrow, simply use our online quote calculator to help you choose the best solar battery storage set-up for your home.