Passive Solar Energy  

Passive Solar energy is an alternative energy that uses heat from the sun to produce renewable electric power. Passive solar energy is utilizing heat an object which releases it at a later time when the sun is no longer available without using electrical and mechanical means such as fans and pumps. Passive solar energy solutions work for the office, home and recreational vehicles (RV) or motor homes.  Passive solar energy uses the roof, walls, windows and other panels that are placed in optimal places to gather the sun’s energy.

How does  passive solar energy work? Solar energy is captured from the sun and works in different ways.   It may be captured from the sun by a liquid panel for heating water, gas filled panel for heating the interior of the building, photovoltaic cells for generation of electricity, and passive solar heating which acts to store heat.

Passive solar energy works by converting the heat into electrical energy through the use of photovoltaic cells and stored in batteries or by directly storing the heat for distribution to places when it is needed.  Therefore, passive solar energy utilizes highly efficient materials, design, and earth sheltering to collect and distribute heat.
 
For motor homes, the use of solar panel energy is highly recommendable.  Here, heat from the sun collected by efficient solar panel energy or photovoltaic cells is converted into electricity by chemical means. 

There are solar flexible panels built for recreational vehicles and motorboats.  They are lightweight, portable and versatile so they are very popular for campers and outdoors persons.  Moreover, they are flexible and can be rolled up, which makes them suitable for camping, vacation and fishing trips.

Dry camping is not having an alternating current (AC) flowing through the motor home and using only appliances and amenities which do not require AC. So, when they are dry camping RV owners can either go with limited use of their appliances or they can still use them fully if they have solar panels installed in their vehicles. 

Solar panels can be as thin as 0.66 mm and mounted on the roof. Panels are mounted with brackets that are designed to fit the vehicle’s roof. There should be 2 – 6 inches space between the panel and the RV roof.  This is for ventilation purposes. 

The space needed for solar panel energy actually depends on the number of appliances that will be used and for how long.  The energy requirements should be considered before buying a solar panel.  For example, the power requirement needs to operate an electronic device as simple as a laptop is different from that as operating a fan.

With today’s improved solar panel design and materials, there is no limit to the places where you can spend your vacation.  As long as there is sunlight you will have energy provided for you.

When you plan to use your motor home loaded with solar panels, the best season for camping is summer. Preferably try not to go on vacation and camping trips during continuous rain or heavy snowfall to be able to utilize and enjoy to the optimum your solar panels.

Are you paying too much for your RV Insurance? Click here for a free quote from Good Sam VIP