With the cost of energy on the rise, producing electricity from the sun is looking more promising than ever. But while sunlight is free, producing electricity from photovoltaic cells is still quite expensive, costing from $30,000 to $40,000 to convert an existing home to a solar powered one.

Until solar cells become more affordable, there are other solar options worth considering, including solar landscape lighting and solar hot water heaters.

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I have always been fascinated by things like this radiometer. It’s just a basic motor powered by nothing but solar energy. So why not use this free energy in our homes? Well, the fact is that while sunlight is free, solar energy can be expensive. Not many contractors are building solar homes, and it would cost around $30,000-$40,000 to convert an existing home to solar power. Plus, the expense of manufacturing a solar cell when compared to the amount of electricity it will produce is pretty high. But that doesn’t mean it’s a bad idea. After all, here’s a great renewable energy source that requires no fuel and produces no pollution. We need to continue developing inexpensive ways to harness this power and, eventually, I believe that we can find a way to do that. Until then, take advantage of what we already have available, like landscape lighting and solar-powered water heaters.