When we say alternative energy, it means any source of usable and exploitable energy which is deliberately researched and calculated to replace the ordinary fuel sources. Today, there are many different sources of energy readily available for consumption; it is just a matter of time when the energy alternative will be fully utilized in every home.
Wood is considered as the most basic source of energy. In early times, it is used as a means to make trains run or just simply cooking. Nowadays, since wood is becoming scarce and limited, people are finding ways to alleviate or lessen the needs for wood energy. One energy alternative for wood is coal. Coal is an effective source of energy as it replaces everything that wood energy can provide. Coal is quite accessible, all one has to do is to create a coal mine, and surely, coal will be found.
Petroleum is another energy alternative. Petroleum replaces the use of whale oil back in the 19th century. During that time, whale oils are commonly used for lubrication and fuel for lamps. Now, petroleum is widely used because is it is cheaper than whale oil.
Petroleum, as stated, is an alternative to whale oils. But now, petroleum is becoming limited, as such, another energy alternative was discovered to replace petroleum, and that is goal gasification. Coal gasification simply means coal turned into a gas.
Alcohol is another form of energy alternative. Before alcohol, many people way back then used fossil fuels to run almost everything. However, due to scarcity and limited accessibility of fossil fuels, the use thereof had become very expensive. Since 1917, alcohol had been used as an energy alternative to fossil fuel and become a new trend in providing fuel to many establishments. The good thing about alcohol is that one can just build an ethanol plant in order to obtain this kind of energy alternative.
There are also these zero carbon alternatives. In countries where change of climate is an issue, and thus, making it difficult to store and restore energy, hydrogen and biomass combustion is often used. It is derived from natural gas and does not present any available alternatives because they are not commonly used world wide.
In some countries, they treat natural gas as an alternative source of energy. It is an effective energy alternative as opposed to petroleum. Potential sources of natural gas include decomposition of waste in landfills, agricultural waste materials, unusable parts of plants or manure, and many more.
Solar power is also one of the very famous energy alternative. During the past year the prices of photovoltaic solar panels have declined somewhat yet are still anticipated to fall even further as the technology advances and some manufacturers have already stated that their pricing is now comparable to the costs of conventional electrical energy. Unfortunately for many these prices are still a big pill to consider swallowing given the current state of economics in many countries around the world. You’ve tried to make all the changes to your home or businesses energy efficiencies such as switching to compact fluorescent light bulbs, using Energy Star rated appliances or installing a power factor conditioning unit to reduce your wasted electrical consumption but you still want to attain greater reductions in your energy costs. There are a great many systems currently available which when used in combination’s can have a great impact on your energy costs while providing the functionality your lifestyle has grown accustomed too.
Tackle the high ticket energy costs first and take advantage of the government grants, rebates and incentives while they are still available. Even if you can only afford a 1kw solar panel electric system to supplement your energy needs you can still add to it at a later date. Consider also using solar powered outdoor lighting systems so that you can eliminate the need for any conventionally powered outdoor lighting. Adding a solar thermal hot water system is very comparable to the replacement costs of your current gas or electric hot water tanks already and as they can save up to 47% of your energy costs you can take advantage of the savings they offer. The idea here is too take advantage of the savings offered by multiple systems in combination’s to give you a collective savings overall.
In this age of technology and advancement, most countries resort to hydro and geothermal plants in order to produce energy. This is commonly called as renewable energy. Other examples include solar energy, energy coming from wind mills or the ocean. These sources of energy are the best alternative to the commonly used coal, petroleum, or fossil fuels. They are called renewable because they produce energy without wasting or combusting anything. Renewable energy is one of the sources of alternative energy that is being utilized and improved today because of its unlimited source and easy accessibility.
If you have no idea where to start then it is best that you contact either an energy consultant or a home energy auditor service to have your home or business inspected. Using the latest technologies in thermal imagery, electrical data logging and heat loss detection systems they can very quickly give you a report showing all of your home or businesses greatest weaknesses in energy efficiencies. They will also provide you with a hit list of the areas that need the greatest improvements in a priority list which you can later chip away at. Sometimes the changes needed can seem insurmountable but like my grandfather would always say, “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time”. These changes can be overcome with the proper information and system usage.