Renewable energy sources—such as hydroelectricity, wind power, and solar power—are becoming cheaper to deploy compared to thirty, twenty, or even ten years ago. Companies with large complexes have increasingly turned to installing solar panels or wind turbines on their buildings to help supply more energy. These power generators reduce the amount of energy a company needs to purchase from a utility, and allowing them to claim rightfully that they have taken a step in the “greener” direction.

Solar energy is also used to power a wide array of devices. Solar panels originally and continue to power space equipment such as satellites. Solar panels are connected to permanent fixtures that are difficult to power by running individual power lines such as parking meters and traffic lights. They are also used to power handheld scanners, calculators, and complement power of some vehicles. While solar energy is not efficient enough to power a car completely, significant advances have been made at least to offset other energy choices.

Even Apple, maker of the iPod and iPhone devices, has been searching for solar power opportunities. Over the past year, the United States Patent and Trademark Office has published applications by Apple for various solar energy technologies, such as a portable device with onboard solar power cells and a separate device that gathers solar power to then charge other devices. The possibilities are truly endless.

When attached to someone’s home, solar power cells can begin producing energy that is connected to the house’s power supply. This power can be utilized first, allowing energy to be drawn from the electric company when needed. (The homeowner can also rest assured that some of their energy usage came directly from a clean renewable energy source like the sun.) In many countries, they can connect their renewable energy source to the local power grid. In the event that the panels produce more electricity than is used in the house, that electricity can be channeled to the utility power grid, resulting in a credit that makes electric consumption even cheaper.

Solar power is taking off in the world today. Many sources say that in only a few short years, solar power can easily compete with other standard forms of electricity generation.

Long Beach solar panels provide Long Beach solar power, an alternative energy that can save homeowners money. Using Long Beach solar power, homeowners can augment their current power supply using energy harnessed from the sun, reducing electrical bills.