A growing number of people are becoming more and more interested to learn how to build solar panels for household use due to the increasing cost of electricity generation and the mounting environmental concern against burning more fossil fuels to generate electricity for human consumption .

Building solar panels for residential use has become easier nowadays because instructions and techniques are all over the internet and materials are also easily available in the market like pre-made panels that can cost around $900 and up and are very easy to install, and do-it-yourself kits, which are cheaper (around $600) and preferred by more people also because of the fun many families find in involving the whole family to build their own electric source and contribute to reducing the family’s monthly electric bill and carbon footprint .

There are two types of solar panels commonly used for household purposes, the water heating panels that are used exclusively for water heating needs during winter time that also consumes a significant amount of electricity; and the photovoltaic electricity producing panels that take charge of all electricity needs of a household including water heating .

A do-it-yourself kit principally contains solar cells, tabs, solder and flux, and soldering iron; a panel is constructed by connecting the solar cells in series using the materials included in the kit, one’s basic carpentry skills and other tools such as saw, plywood, paint brush, wire cutters, screwdriver, caulking gun, volt meter, glass cutters and drill .

The size of the panel and the number of cells to be used would depend on one’s preferred amount of electricity to generate for the household and one can inquire about this information from the hardware store where materials for the panels can be obtained .

Solar panels are perfectly built on rooftops of houses that get maximum sun exposure, without blockage from trees or any other tall infrastructure but if the rooftop is unavailable, one can use a pole that is at least six feet high to hold the panels up to avoid being accidentally damaged by playing kids or pets .

Some attach battery systems to their solar panels to amass and store excess electricity that has been generated for future use or for sale to the electric provider in the locality.

Tapping the sun as our energy source is perhaps the most practical way to lower our monthly electric bill and save the environment from buildup of greenhouse gasses resulting from burning of fossil fuels to generate electricity so more awareness and motivation is needed to encourage people to build solar panels .