Solar Powered Battery Rechargers: An Easy Way to Start Going Solar

The thought of having a completely solar powered home is an attractive idea to a lot of people. Unfortunately, solar panel technology is still relatively expensive when it comes to providing energy to your entire home. But there are ways to start using solar energy at home that won't break your budget. Here’s an easy way to start using solar energy in smaller applications.

For instance, anything that uses electrical power can be switched over to using solar power. Make a list of everything you use that requires alkaline batteries. Include things like flashlights, alarm clocks, voice recorders and even battery-powered toys. The AA, AAA, C and D batteries used in these items actually contain hazardous materials that are not supposed to end up in our landfills. People are not supposed to just throw them into the trash when they're drained, but that's exactly where most of them end up. Just think of how many of these small batteries you buy and use in a year. If you multiply that number by the population in your city, you'll have a good idea of how important it can be to start being eco-friendly even in small ways…like starting with your household's batteries.

It's not hard. You can set up a solar powered battery recharging station in your home for less than $100. You'll just need to buy a solar powered recharger and rechargeable batteries to replace the old alkaline variety. Take an inventory of the batteries that all of your gadgets currently use. List all the different sizes of small batteries, and the total number of batteries needed in each size. You'll want to add a few of each size for spares so that you can still use your gadgets while their original batteries are recharging. Keep your recharging station in an accessible place, but safely out of reach of children and pets. Every time you buy a new gadget that uses alkaline batteries, add those batteries to your inventory list and buy a set of rechargeable batteries to put into use as soon as the alkaline batteries run down.

Solar rechargers cost around $20 and up, depending on how many batteries you want to be able to recharge at one time. The batteries themselves start at around $1 each for AAA’s, if you can find them on sale. They do cost more at the outset than disposable batteries, but the savings over the life of your gadget starts adding up fast. If you set up a solar battery recharging system, you'll save money, you'll never run out of batteries again, and you'll be helping to clean up the environment.