One of the most asked questions, when people search for information about solar generators, is what their advantages are over normal generators.
By “normal” generators, we are of course referring to gas generators. Right offhand, that should clue you into some of the advantages of solar generators.
Gas is expensive, dirty, and potentially toxic. Most gas generators are very loud, meaning that you don’t want to operate them nearby. Worse, the fumes that gas generators put out mean that you cannot operate them indoors, as it would be unsafe. As a result, gas generators must be kept outside which means you’re going to be dealing with a mess of cables coming through windows and doors that you have to extend repeatedly to get to your devices. Further, if your power is out, typically it entails harsh conditions outdoors and heading outside is often not advised.
Perhaps the most important and unknown of the disadvantages of gas generators is that gas pumps require electricity to operate! Yes, that’s right. If you use up all of your gas (or didn’t have any ahead of time) you will not be able to get more because gas stations themselves cannot operate without power!
Contrary to gas generators, solar generators are whisper quiet, meaning you could use them right next to your TV if you so desired. Their energy is 100% clean and they are 100% safe to operate indoors. That means no trips out into the harsh weather, and it means no running cables through windows and doors or trying to extend cables multiple times to reach far away appliances. Just set the generator down right next to it!
Of course, the largest advantage of solar generators outside of convenience is expenses. They may cost a bit more up front, but solar generators will more than make up for it over time since, once you have one, you never have to pay another dime. The sun is free and provides 100% free energy with an endless supply (well, nearly endless, though we don’t think you’ll be here to worry about it when the sun runs out of energy 5 billion years from now!).
Another oft-overlooked advantage of solar generators is that you can charge them while they operate. With a gas generator, you fill it with gas and then run it until the gas runs out. When using solar power, your generator will continue to charge while it’s in use so long as it’s daytime out! That brings us to yet another advantage, solar generators can save you money even when the power isn’t out! You’re not going to use your gas backups when the electricity is working fine because that would be a waste of both money and environmental pollution. But with a solar generator, since you’re collecting that free and clean sunlight anyway, you may as well have it running all the time on one of your appliances and take that appliance off the electric bill!
The last advantage I’d like to talk about today is less focused on your individual gains and more focused on what we all gain. Every day our environmental stability gets weaker, largely due to the excess of gas fumes put out by automobiles and the like. While a small gas generator is unlikely to contribute to that significantly, every little bit helps and removing yet another gas fume producing device from sending its fumes up into our atmosphere is yet another step in the right direction.
So, let’s recap:
- Advantages of Solar Generators
- Can be used indoors
- No messy cables or extensions running outside
- Clean air
- Can recharge even when gas stations lose power and fail
- Can recharge as they are in use
- No operating costs. Sunlight is FREE!
- Can use even when power is not out to save on electricity costs
- Environmentally friendly
If you’re sold on the idea of solar generators but don’t know which one to pick, be sure to check out our solar generator reviews page to find out which is the best for you. Here’s a hint, our runaway favorite was the mysolarbackup unit which has really taken the nation by storm and becomes the defacto solution for cheap, portable solar power.