As solar energy becomes a more familiar topic in the news, and as energy costs increase, it’s only natural that people are wondering if they can break free from the local electric company and save money doing it by making their own solar panels. And if you are good with your hands and enjoy building and repairing things around your home, homemade solar panels may sound like a worthy project to take on. But building a few solar panels to power your computer is a much smaller project than building a larger solar electric system that would make you energy independent.

First of all, consider how many solar panels you would need in order to provide power for your entire household. It is not unusual for a residential solar electric system to require 20, 30 or more solar panels for complete energy independence. While it’s possible to build a system of that size using homemade solar panels, consider the time, tools, materials and skills that you would need in order to do it. Do you really have the resources for a project of that size?

Next, your homemade solar panels will not be approved by any Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratories (or NRTLs in the United States) . For people who don’t care about traditional safety resources and who want to get as far away as possible from anything that has to do with government, this will not be an issue. But for anyone who wants to have homeowner’s insurance that covers loss from fire, you should know that your house will probably not qualify for coverage if you build your own solar panels.

Also, there will be no manufacturer’s warranty if something goes wrong with your solar electric system. Most solar panel manufacturers provide a warranty for 25 years or longer. The cost to troubleshoot problems will be significantly higher if you have to pay for them all out of your own pocket. So if you really want to go off grid with homemade solar panels, just be sure you are aware of all of the possible consequences.

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Most people think only in terms of the price of the materials when they consider a DIY solar panel project for producing electricity. There are plenty of places online that suggest a “basic” materials list that includes buying broken solar cells on EBay at what seem to be bargain basement prices. But while it’s certainly possible to build solar panels by soldering broken solar cells together, it may not be as cost effective as it first appears, especially if the instructions are not complete.

One thing that many of the online instructions leave out is the “cost” associated with the time that you spend on your DIY solar panel project. Sourcing the materials, learning what to do with them, doing the actual assembly work, troubleshooting the unexpected things that will arise (and there is always something that doesn’t go exactly as planned) then finally installing your final product all take time that adds up. Of course, if you have more time than money at the moment, building your own solar panels may be a good choice.

But do you already have all of the tools that you will need, or will you have to “invest” in more tools? If you have to buy new tools, add them to the cost of your project. If you buy a soldering iron on EBay, add that to your cost, and remember to include the shipping charges.

You may have access to free salvage materials that you think would be perfect for your project. Many do-it-yourself articles online suggest using old windows, shower doors or scrap pieces of Plexiglas for the top layer of your solar panel. It seems like using these kinds of materials will save you money. But they are actually not suitable for any solar panel project that is intended to provide reliable power. The wrong kind of Plexiglas will turn yellow with continued exposure to sunlight. And glass that is not thick enough to withstand hail will also not withstand a stray baseball or fallen tree branch, so should not be used for a solar panel.

The bottom line is that DIY solar panels are not an automatic way to save money on your solar electric system. You need to make sure you have the right tools and that you’re using the right materials for the job. And you also need to make sure you have a good set of instructions that will produce a reliable product.

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If you would like to be able to use solar energy to power your household, but are concerned about the expense, you may be thinking about buying cheap solar panels to decrease the cost. But just as when buying a car, cheaper is not always better. A cheap car may turn out to be an older but mechanically sound vehicle that solves your transportation problems by getting you to work and to the grocery store. Or it may turn out to be loaded with mechanical problems that end up costing you more than you paid for the car to begin with. Cheap solar panels can also be a great bargain or a budgetary nightmare.

If you are considering building your own solar panels from broken solar cells as a way to save money, think again. The electrical output from your batch of broken cells will be unpredictable because you won’t know how many of them are useless. And you may have to spend even more money in copper wiring and solder flux to wire together all of the various bits and pieces to generate enough electric power to make the solar panel useful. It’s better to use broken solar cells as a learning experiment than a solar solution.

But you might want to consider using blemished solar panels for our project. Brand name manufacturers often offer deep discounts on solar panels that have cosmetic defects that don’t affect how well the panels produce electricity. When these kinds of solar panels also come with the manufacturer’s warranty, they are worth considering for your project. But you should check with your insurance carrier to make sure your homeowner’s insurance will cover your house if you use these panels. Sometimes they have not gone through the UL (Underwriters Laboratories) approval process, which may void your insurance.

More on how to build your own solar panels

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After you have done the preliminary planning for building solar panels at home, it’s time to gather the necessary tools and materials. Here is a basic overview of the equipment and materials you will need. You may already have some of them on hand.

Your basic tool kit will consist of solder, a low-wattage soldering iron, a small screwdriver, tabbing wire to connect the solar cells to each other, bus wire to connect the series of cells and a voltage meter to test the power. You’ll also need a jigsaw to cut the backing to size, some UV resistant paint to seal it and a paintbrush to apply the paint. If you need to make the frame, you may need a drill and some screws or a staple gun.

Next, you will need solar cells — usually crystalline silicon or indium copper selenide. Although it is possible to build a solar panel using broken solar cells, opinions vary as to how much money you really save over using solar cells that are intact and have been voltage rated. Broken solar cells may seem inexpensive when their prices are advertised in terms of pennies on EBay or other websites. But when you factor in the cost of receiving pieces of cells that don’t work and the additional cost of solder and wire to assemble more pieces, not to mention the additional time, you really may be better off buying solar cells with a predictable voltage output. Of course, if you are just experimenting anyway, broken cells could still provide a useful learning experience.

For the top of the solar panels, you will need glass or Plexiglas. But you need to make sure to use tempered glass that will not break during a hailstorm or when a tree ranch breaks and lands on it. And the Plexiglas you use must be resistant to the sun’s ultra violet rays, or it is likely to discolor from prolonged exposure and reduce the electrical output of your solar panel.

You can use plywood for a rigid backing to mount your solar cells on. And you an easily make wooden or metal frames to encapsulate the backing, cells and top layer of glass or Plexiglas. If you are making small solar panels, you might even be able to use a picture frame if it is deep enough to accommodate all of the layers.

But the good news is that after you have finished building solar panels at home the first time, it only gets easier. You won’t have a learning curve to slow you down. And you will know the best ways to organize your tools and materials, and to set up your work space.

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If you are considering building solar panels at home, it will pay to do some preliminary planning. You will need to determine the scope of your project, as well as your available time and space. Your experience level and the size of the project will affect the success of your project, too. In order to plan a successful project, you will need to define your goals, prepare your workspace and allocate your time.

First decide how many solar panels you want to build at one time. If you have never built any before, it might be smart to start with a small project building one or two small panels to trickle charge your car’s 12 volt battery. Part of the process will be learning about your own resources and the best way to handle them in your work space.

Next, what kind of space do you have available to store your tools and materials, and to spread them out during the manufacturing process? Few people have ready-made solar panel workshops in their homes. So you will probably need to convert a section of your basement, garage or a spare room into your work area. You will need access to an electrical outlet for the soldering iron. And your work area should be well ventilated to disperse the fumes created by the hot soldering flux. Many people set up a workspace on a concrete patio or driveway, using saw horses and plywood to provide a work surface.

Of course, you will also need time. Not only will you need to arrange for the time to build the solar panels, but you will need to allow extra time for your learning curve, which is tough to estimate when it’s your first time. A safe guess would be to double your initial time estimate. It’s also smart to add time for troubleshooting mistakes and surprises (like running out of wire or needing to replace a pane of glass that breaks).

Now that you have defined the scope of your project and your work area and scheduled your time, you can start gathering your project materials. In part 2 of this article, you will get a basic overview of the tools and equipment you will need to build your own solar panels.

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There is no better way to learn how something works than to experience the complete process or system from start to finish.  So the best way to learn about solar electric systems is to build your own solar panels.  If you are an experienced electrical contractor, this will probably be a piece of cake for you.  But if you have never before picked up a screwdriver or soldering iron, you may want to start on a much smaller project instead — like a solar powered toy car — to see if you even enjoy the processes involved.  But if you’re ready, and if you have children who are interested in solar energy or who are learning about it in school, it is a perfect opportunity to build solar panels together as a family.

You have a few options to choose from for your solar panel project.  You can start from scratch and build a primitive solar cell from copper sheeting , glass and a frame. While this process might be fun from a scientific standpoint, the solar panel you end up with is not very useful or practical because the voltage it produces will hardly be high enough to illuminate a light bulb, let alone power appliances.   Still, you will learn something about the photovoltaic process if that’s your goal.

But if your goal is to produce solar panels that you can actually use to power appliances, like a laptop or a television, you won’t be making your own solar cells.  In order to generate the power you need, you will have to buy solar cells that are much more powerful for their size than the copper sheeting cell.  You’ll need silicon-based solar cells, which would be much too expensive to manufacture individually at home.

You will also need to make sure you use the proper materials for the tops, backings, frames and wiring.  The glass or Plexiglas that you use must be able to withstand the abuse it might have to take from hail storms, falling tree branches and prolonged exposure to direct sunlight.  Also remember that your solar panels will be subjected to high temperatures during the hottest days of the year, so you will need to take precautions to ensure that the panels you build are fireproof.

Find a good set of instructions that addresses all of these issues.  Or find someone with electrical experience who is willing to coach you when questions arise.  And enjoy the process of learning more about solar energy.

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Having lived in a apartment for many years we were looking forward moving to our own home and having our own garden. One of the first project we did when we moved in was to put in a totally new landscape that was designed to flatter the way our new house looked. Not only did it look great during the day but thanks to solar powered flood lights it looked also great during the night. The solar flood lights accentuated some of our trees and provided also beautiful lighting on the sides of our home . Thanks to solar lights we have now a nicely lighted garden we can be proud of.

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When building a deck area you also have to plan for the lighting of the deck. Beware of too white and strong illumination because it can attract insects and other bugs. Solar deck lighting can be a great solution.
Well designed deck lighting emphasizes the edges of the deck and creates a very nice effect.
The main advantage of solar deck lights is that they don’t need electric work or cabling. As a result your deck lighting can be installed in minutes.

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