Disadvantages of solar energy or potential problems must be considered before using all the advantages of solar energy. Even if geothermal energy can satisfy a significant proportion of our energy needs before cooling down the Earth too much, we pretty much rely on solar energy as a clean and sustainable source of energy. Wind and hydroelectric power are indirect uses of solar energy.
One problem could be a shortage of required resources. Silicon, the major component of solar panels, is not a scarce resource, but there is a long way for silicon to become a solar panel. It has to be mined, processed, and combined with other materials. A solar panel and its components need to be transported and set up for the end user. Possible solutions could be to use different technologies – temporarily or permanently – such as heat engines (e.g. steam turbines) that are driven by concentrated solar power. Maybe it would also help to build fully automated factories in the desert, a place with vast amounts of silicon, that produce solar panels and other devices using solar energy.
Many people think that high set-up costs or complex installation are major disadvantages of solar energy. This might be true for some technologies or companies, but if you do some research you might find cheap and easy solutions. Even cheap DIY solutions like self-made solar panels or Solar Stirling Plants are now explained well enough that virtually anyone can efficiently harness solar energy. However, initial expenses or efforts might still prevent some people from using solar power.
One of the most challenging disadvantages of solar energy is that sunlight is not equally distributed in space and time. Geographic location, weather and time of the day play important roles when collecting sunlight. Under certain circumstances it might really be inefficient to have your own plant. In those cases it could be more efficient to have community solutions or to transport energy from remote areas. Devices to store energy might not work efficiently or be very expensive, if operated for a single household. If you use a solar thermal device you might want to use molten salt for (thermal) energy storage.
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