Originally posted by intrepid
With all the natual gas we have available, why do people still heat their houses with oil? It cost us about $500 to heat our place this winter.
Solar energy is supposed to be expensive but well worth it. It will light your house and heat your house, let me find a link.
Solar collectors trap the sun's rays to produce heat. Most solar collectors are boxes, frames, or rooms that contain these parts: (1) clear covers
that let in solar energy; (2) dark surfaces inside, called absorber plates, that soak up heat; (3) insulation materials to prevent heat from escaping;
and (4) vents or pipes that carry the heated air or liquid from inside the collector to where it can be used.
Covers
Many clear materials can be used as covers for solar collectors, but glass is the most common material. Glass can be made quickly and easily. The
special glass used in solar collectors resists breaking and scratching.
When sunlight passes through glass and hits a surface inside a solar collector, it changes into heat. Although glass allows sunlight to pass through,
it also traps the heat produced inside the collector.
Absorbers
The heat produced inside a solar collector is soaked up by metal sheets or containers filled with water, rocks, or bricks that have been painted black
or another dark color. These dark-colored objects that soak up heat are called absorbers. Without absorbers, solar heating systems would not produce
enough heat to warm rooms inside your house.
www.eere.energy.gov...
Now if they only had something like this for transportation....