Renewable Electricity - (RE)

This is a listing page for Renewable Electricity Companies in your area.

Scroll down to visit RE Contractors in your area.

Some brief information on Renewable Electricity.

In this case, we are talking about generating electricity from renewable sources only. This entails finding some renewable means of driving a turbine for the production of electricity or in the case of solar, the electricity is produced by direct solar rays hitting photovoltaic PV cells.  PV will convert this energy to useful electricity.

The main types of renewable electricity are derived from wind, the Sun, moving water, steam, or water waves. Technology changes over the past few years have made the production of electricity from renewable sources ever more viable with the payback periods being reduced year after year as these newer technologies become ever more energy efficient. For additional information on opting for green electricity read the Which Guide to switching to green electricity. 

Types of stand-alone renewable electricity technologies:

• Solar Power - Most common are those that take energy from the Sun by means of Photovoltaic Cells usually placed in specially adapted panels and normally oriented to the south or in an East-West direction.
  

  Solar PV Photo-voltaic

• Wind Turbines - This has excellent potential for replacing fossils fuel derived electricity. Winds in Ireland are very favourable for the production of power from wind.
  

  Wind energy

• Wave Energy - In this method, the wave motion of the sea is exploited to create electricity. Consistent wave movement makes this an exciting source of power for the future.   A good source of further information on Wave Energy is RenewableUK.
• Steam Power - This involves burning biofuels, solid, liquid or gas, to produce steam; the resulting power output from the steam is used to turn electricity-generating turbines
• Hydro Electricity - This method takes advantage of moving water such as a natural waterfall or an artificial dam. The moving water is converted, by mechanical means, to electricity by way of a generating turbine. For those who are lucky to live in mountainous areas why not take advantage of the downhill movement of water? For further reading consult Gov.UK on hydroelectricity.

Some basic Understanding of Electricity

It is important to understand the rudiments of electricity such as Ohms Law and  frequency if you are seriously thinking about generating your own electricity.

Frequency

Frequency, for the uninitiated, is the amount of time an event occurs over time. The S.I. unit for frequency is the Hertz (Hz). The Hertz, simply translated, means the number of times an event is repeated every second.

For Ireland and the UK  mains frequency is the acceptable term used when talking about Hertz(Hz).  The mains frequency, in this case, is the nominal frequency of oscillations of an AC current in a Power Grid.  For most European countries the acceptable frequency is 50Hz. However, the frequency of the renewable energy generated such as wind or solar will not match the standard so it will have to be modified before transferring to your mains electricity.

Ohms Law

Ohms law is the simplest way to understand the workings of Electricity.

V =I *R

I =V/R

R = V/I

Where   V = Volt      I = Current (amps)      R = Resistance (ʊ)

Voltage is sources of energy that can deliver power P (watts) to an electrical appliance or a light bulb which will absorb this energy.  The light bulb converts this electrical power into light. The heater converts this power (watts) into heat energy.

P = V*I

P = V²/R

P = I² *R

Where P = Power (watts)      V = Volt    I = Current (amps)      R = Resistance (ʊ)

In addition to Ohms law, you will also have to be aware of the frequency of the current being produced by renewable means.

It goes without saying that electricity is a very dangerous source of energy if not handled with extreme caution.

Advantages of Renewable Electricity:

• Virtually free electricity during operating times.
• Instant electricity.
• Lower energy bills.
• Improved BER rating.
• Reduced carbon footprint.

Disadvantages of Renewable Electricity:

• Initial installation costs will be high.