Living in a hot and sunny country like Australia has many perks. Having at least one hundred sunny days is surely great weather, not only for spending time outdoors but for using solar energy. And while most people think of water heaters when solar energy is mentioned, the truth is there are many other solar appliances on the market. If you’re considering getting appliances of this type, then check GoSun. These guys are a small entrepreneurial business that creates solar products for people who want to use most of the sun’s energy. If you’re new to this, start with smaller things such as the GoSun solar cooker. It’s ideal for camping and while roaming around in your RV, but you can also use it at home. Here’s what you need to know about GoSun and its products.
What Are Solar Appliances?
As the name suggests, solar appliances are appliances that use a renewable form of energy (from the sun) allowing the user to save money on energy bills and reduce the dependence on the electricity grid. Solar appliances are classified into two broad categories: solar photovoltaic-based appliances that make electricity to power DC type of electrical devices, and solar thermal systems that utilize the sun rays to produce heating that can be used for generating hot water, cooling the room or cooking.
Solar Cookers
Not everyone is knowledgeable about the concept of solar ovens and cookers. Unlike regular ovens and stoves, solar cookers, as the name suggests, use the sun instead of electricity or gas to heat or cook a meal. However, it’s not the sun’s heat that gives power to these cookers or ovens, but the solar radiation. For instance, a GoSun solar cooker uses a solar vacuum tube and a set of parabolic reflectors to use the sun’s radiation and produce heat in the oven.
So if you’re looking to save on electricity bills and use the sun, a solar cooker or oven will be a good choice. You don’t have to have a fancy outdoor kitchen, all you need to do is expose the appliance to the sun and let it work. If you efficiently use solar cookers it can result with saving of 3 to 4 LPG cylinders per year. They have high durability and are easy to use even by beginners.
If you’re looking to get one, there are two types of solar cookers:
Box type – this type of solar cooker can cook most of the food except chapatis or frying. It’s perfect for cooking on sunny days but it won’t work on cloudy days. If you don’t want to rely on the sun, some box cookers have an electrical backup. Solar cookers’ lifespan is 10 to 12 years. You can use this cooker for camping, but also in your outdoor kitchen.
Dish type- this type of cooker has a parabolic dish for centralising the incident solar radiation. The dish type is also known as the ‘SK-14’ solar cooker; it has a higher capacity than the box type and can easily cook food for up to fifteen people. You can use it for 8 to 9 hours a day. It’s a great choice for roasting, frying and boiling. Dish-type solar cookers are quite durable, up to 20 years (the metallic structure) but the sheets must be replaced every 5 years.
Solar Water Heaters
Solar water heaters are a great choice not only for campers but for everyone who wants to save some money on their electricity bills. These water heaters use the energy from the sun’s rays to heat water for both domestic and commercial purposes. The heater has a collector that collects solar energy and an insulated water tank to keep the hot water.
The collector receiving solar energy will transfer the heat to the underlying pipes that are holding the water which then goes to the insulated storage tank. This water recirculates to raise the water temperature. There are two categories of solar water heaters – closed loop and open loop. The closed loop system includes installed heat exchangers for protection against hard water received from borewells.
In the open loop system, as the name suggests the water is open to the atmosphere at some point in the cycle. These systems are great for domestic but also for small industrial purposes. Solar water heaters are designed to last for 15-20 years, but of course, this depends on maintenance.
Solar Cooler
For campers, but also for people who prefer solar appliances, this type of cooler is an excellent choice. It will chill the air in the room while using solar’s energy. Solar coolers are made of a large pressure vessel and cooling panels that are connected using pipework. The fans inside this system will push the air at room temperature through the cooling panels, which are kept cold by the refrigerant inside them. This system is mostly used for commercial purposes.
Solar-Powered Fans
Solar-powered fans also use solar panels that directly absorb sunrays and convert them into usable electricity. The electricity is then stored within the rechargeable (it can be recharged during sunny days). This makes it possible to power the fan with no dependence on grid electricity but only if there are plenty of sunny days. These fans are efficient in warm climates since they don’t have AC compressor units included within them, which allows you to avoid electricity costs. The fans are a great choice for indoor and outdoor use (house and patios).
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