If done right, you can actually lower your annual utility bill by as much as 80%, which is very significant, especially if you are trying to find ways to save some money. Also, there are certain programs that allow solar energy systems user to sell back energy or electricity that they were not able to consume to the utility provider, giving you more ways to save money. Solar Hot Water Heater One of the more common uses of solar energy is for solar hot water heaters. Most homes in America actually have a hot water heater, which is probably why it accounts for about a quarter of the total energy consumption of a typical American home. Unfortunately, the U.S. government actually spends a lot of money on paying off the energy consumed by these hot water heaters, about $13 billion every year, possibly making it the single biggest energy consumer in your home or work place. You can then have direct current electricity. When the power enters an inverter, you can get 120 volt AC conversion, the same electricity required to power the house. The connection will be to the utility panel so that appliances and lights will work the same way when the switch is turned on. On Storage If the house is not using a lot of electricity from the solar energy created, the excess energy can be stored in a battery. You can choose between brands such as Sharp, BP Solar and General Electric. You should visit some of the manufacturer web sites to determine the process and the ways how their solar panels are built. You should also read about the background of the company and what their objectives are in making these pieces. CSP plants use several thin strips of mirror instead of the usual parabolic mirrors to focus sunlight onto a couple of tubes using working fluid. This application provides the advantage that flat mirrors can be used. Flat mirrors are great because these are cheaper and can contain more reflectors within the same amount of space. An area in the dessert would appear to be one of the most ideal places for such solar energy power plants to thrive in. Another problem that solar energy systems would encounter would be the integration and retro-fitting of these solar energy systems to the different houses and structures that are already constructed without any solar energy system incorporated in them.