Almost sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? I mean, the idea of having a fully functional DIY solar panel supporting your house’s electricity consumption. Well… if you think about it, so does the whole idea of drawing electricity from solar energy! And yet, we know for a fact it’s very much possible… actually, we know for a FACT that’s a big step in the right direction, if we want to save our planet and avoid the pitfalls associated with depletion of natural resources. Right?

First and foremost, you can rest assured it’s indeed possible to build a homemade solar panel at a fraction of the cost of an equivalent commercial solar panel. The question remains though, if such thing is feasible for non-technical hobbyists who don’t have big renewable energies knowledge. As you might know, there’s a big product getting increasingly popular lately – massively popular, in fact – which is essentially a solar panel do-it-your-self for dummies toolkit. I’m talking of course about the infamous Earth4Energy.

Simply put, Earth4Energy is a digital guide which details everything a novice needs to know to build a solar panel in his backyard. This guide comprises 300 pages of information with detailed diagrams, along with several videos showcasing all the stages in building a solar panel. The instructions are sufficiently detailed for anyone to follow, and the earth4energy kit comes with some nice bonuses: from an extra section on building a wind turbine to detailed information on how to get IRS rebates from having installed a solar panel in one’s home.

This is a massive amount of information! And the skeptics and engineers out there may argue this inforation may be found elsewhere for free (as opposed to paying $47 for an ebook), but let’s face it: pretty much all kinds of information can be found online for free these days. But sometimes spending some money on a digital guide is best because you’ll get ALL the information you need rounded up for you so you can focus on the actual building. Besides, for hobbyists like myself, buying a DIY solar panel guide also represents a commitment that I’ll really build a solar panel, rather than just think about it and daydream while reading webpages on the science behind solar panels.

To each his own, I say! Earth4Energy can either be a scam or an awesome DIY guide: it’s all a matter of who you are and where you’re standing.

Harry Best