Textbook in PDF format

The book you are about to read provides a step-by-step guide for building a renewable energy power plant at home. Our goal was to make the book as practical as possible. The material is intended for immediate application with a small amount of theory. Yet, the theory is important as a foundation that saves time and effort by disabusing the readers of potential misconceptions. Specifically, upon having a firm understanding of photovoltaic physics, you will not be inclined to fruitlessly search for 90% efficient solar panels! We want our readers to be the "doers". If the book gets covered in grime and some pages become torn while you are building your power plant — this is the best compliment to us. The book covers solar and wind energy. Also, a curious power source based on manure is discussed as well, giving the doers an opportunity to further develop the manure fuel cell. It is important to note that there are many companies offering installation of complete solar solutions. Upon installing the panels, the system is not owned by the customer. Therefore, there is no freedom for experimentation and optimization. Also, none can beat the cost of a DIY solution as well as the ultimate satisfaction. All that is written here is a result of us building a renewable energy solution in Southern California. As the book was completed, the energy began flowing!
Many books have already been written about various aspects of renewable energy, e.g., economic, political, etc. In addition, there are also books for the DIYers claiming to guide creating an off-grid solar energy powered house. The book you are reading now was written while we created a garage and a deck "power plants" from scratch. We present actual steps and considerations relevant to establishing your own energy independence together with some revealing experiments along the way.
We speak to the experimenters and geeks who would like to play with their renewable energy setup, learn fundamentals experimentally and ultimately build their own unique solution. The readers are encouraged to follow the projects described here and produce their own variations specific to their locations / circumstances. Some of the experiments and projects may sound like reinvention of a wheel, however we firmly believe that it is okay to re-invent and make a couple of wheels in someone’s lifetime if it provides the experience and in-depth understanding of the subject.
Finally, our intention was not to simply rephrase information from various sources to fill up the pages, but rather create a new hands-on experience that will grow on its own. Where appropriate, we provide references to published literature and stable (hopefully) web resources for additional information for those who are interested