Going solar!

[Daniel Korman]

I am currently talking to a friend that has his own solar retail and hydroponics shop going. He is getting in to solar as he did only sale hydroponics, but is now getting in to solar as most know this is the future of the world.
He has started with sales on solar attic fans and is more than willing to give great discounts to bulk buys and cheap installation. Yet, this is not why I bring this topic up.

I am currently working with him to see if he will support us and be a sponsor of our program when we get it off the ground. I feel that if we start our sponsor base now it will be easier to get grants from the government to support this idea.

Anyone else have friends or know of any places that might be interested in supporting our cause?
Thanks again for your help.
Daniel

[Daniel Korman]

Here is some great information found:

Lifetime Savings
Over a 35 year lifetime, depending on the fossil fuel displaced and the kind of water heating system being used, a two panel Genersys solar panel system in the UK will usually provide net carbon dioxide savings as follows:-

Natural Gas 16,900 kilograms
Oil 27,400 kilograms
Electricity 44,900 kilograms
Therefore using a Genersys solar system over its lifetime costs the planet less than 10 grams per kilowatt hour when natural gas is displaced and less than 5gms per kWh when oil or electricity is displaced.

No source of energy is carbon free. Some sources, like coal and oil are carbon intensive costing around 800grams per kWh and 400 grams per kWh respectively.

Wind energy is low carbon when you take into account the maintenance regime that you need to adopt to keep the turbines turning comes out at around 8 grams per kWh. Photovoltaic panels “cost” in the UK around 58grams per kilowatt hour. Nuclear energy “costs” around 5grams per kWh, and even so called biomass between 35 and 90grams per kWh depending on whether it is used in co-generation).

Unlike solar thermal energy, the energy generated by wind and photovoltaic panels cannot be stored, so there are often times when the energy created by these is not needed and is wasted. The energy produced is also intermittent, which adds to the problem of creating the energy which cannot be stored when it is actually needed. Nuclear energy creates large amounts of dangerous radioactive waste which must be safely stored for around 10,000 years. Biomass can create carcinogenic smoke as a by product if the boilers are not meticulously serviced and the smoke washing apparatus not kept in good order.

Solar panels do not suffer from any of these disadvantages. They quietly and effectively generate safe carbon free heat which can be stored for the times when there is insufficient light without any adverse emissions or by products.

* Source:

Average Household Appliances:
Aquarium = 50-1210 Watts
Clock radio = 10
Coffee maker = 900-1200
Clothes washer = 350-500
Clothes dryer = 1800-5000
Dishwasher = 1200-2400 (using the drying feature greatly increases energy consumption)
Dehumidifier = 785
Electric blanket - Single/Double = 60 / 100
Ceiling fan = 65-175
Window fan = 55-250
Furnace = 750
Whole house = 240-750
Hair dryer = 1200-1875
Heater (portable) = 750-1500
Clothes Iron = 1000-1800
Microwave oven = 750-1100
Personal Computer:
CPU - awake / asleep = 120 / 30 or less
Monitor - awake / asleep = 150 / 30 or less
Laptop = 50
Radio (stereo) = 400
Refrigerator (frost-free, 16 cubic feet) = 725
Television (color):
19" = 110
27" = 113
36" = 133
53"-61" Projection = 170
Flat Screen = 120
Toaster = 800-1400
Toaster Oven = 1225
VCR/DVD = 17-21 /20-25
Vacuum cleaner = 1000-1440
Water heater (40 gallon) = 4500-5500
Water pump (deep well) = 250-1100
Water bed (w/ heater, no cover) = 120-380
Refrigerators, although turned "on" all the time, actually cycle on and off at a rate that depends on a number of factors. These factors include how well it is insulated, room temperature, freezer temperature, how often the door is opened, if the coils are clean, if it is defrosted regularly, and the condition of the door seals. To get an approximate figure for the number of hours that a refrigerator actually operates at its maximum wattage, divide the total time the refrigerator is plugged in by three.

If the wattage is not listed on the appliance, you can still estimate it by finding the current draw (in amperes) and multiplying that by the voltage used by the appliance. Most appliances in the United States use 120 volts. Larger appliances, such as clothes dryers and electric cooktops, use 240 volts. The amperes might be stamped on the unit in place of the wattage. If not, find a clamp-on ammeter—an electrician's tool that clamps around one of the two wires on the appliance — to measure the current flowing through it. You can obtain this type of ammeter in stores that sell electrical and electronic equipment. Take a reading while the device is running; this is the actual amount of current being used at that instant.

Note: When measuring the current drawn by a motor, in the first second that the motor starts, the meter will show about three times the current than when it is running smoothly.

Also note that many appliances continue to draw a small amount of power when they are switched "off." These "phantom loads" occur in most appliances that use electricity, such as VCRs, televisions, stereos, computers, and kitchen appliances. Most phantom loads will increase the appliance's energy consumption a few watts per hour. These loads can be avoided by unplugging the appliance or using a power strip and using the switch on the power strip to cut all power to the appliance.

*Source: U.S. Department of Energy

[Emett]

Well said! Thanks for the explanations and info!

So, if I wanted to cover the electricity used by my refrigerator, I might need approximately 30 square feet of solar panels of the average 10W per square foot type. But by doubling it, say a 6 ft by 10ft array, should give enough power to make up for the 50% lost solar generation time per day: night.

How can that day-time power be stored cleanly and greenly for later use? Batteries and home storage battery arrays are the current solution. But, I have been dreaming of inventing a water-column engergy storage system for a long time, and the excess electricity from the solar panels could be used to pump water into the column, and the potenial energy could be recovered using a house-hold scale hydro-electric generator. Check out Water Motor: it makes this dream a real posibility. I, of course, see the water column as a 60ft high yard-tree, or rather, disgisued as one, less the height one might like to bury the column underground...(if you had a basement then the generator and lower holding tank could be there) This would as serve as your own household fresh water reservour and could tie in with a solar water heating system. Total column height is the key to calculating the pressure, and total volume times the pressure times the generator's effeicency (say 80%) would be the total power potential.

Further, solar water heating could drive a kind of "free pumping" by evaporating water at a low level and recapturing it through a condensation trap which would just be a cold metal, glass, or plastic panel disigned to drip water into the upper storage tank. Perhaps there are more methods of "free pumping" out there, but I'd like to mention human power! A person could make a workout out of pumping water! With the right designs, a whole new "Universal Gym" type of workout machine could be made just for pumping water into a column, or generating electricity straight away, like the pedal generators found so easily on the internet now.

-e

[Daniel Korman]

Very nice input on the pumping idea, a never ending water effect is always a good way to look at it.
As for solar storage you can currently sell your non used electricity back to the electric companies for their own personal use or to sell to the general public. I believe they will buy it from you @ a 75% of their cost. This is cool because you can contribute to cleaner air for your self and help others use your energy created from solar (so their contributing to the cause not knowing). I think some companies also do make specific batteries with special cells for energy storage.
Something I also might add not sure if it is correct, but it is to my assumptions do to the nature of chemistry and mathematics; all solar panels are different due to the substrate that are created from (e.g. Gallium Arsenic, Silicon, Silicon Carbide and etc). They may just give off different amounts of energy because of the difference in substrates.

This site is pretty cool you can make your own solar panel from your own kitchen. Cool project to do with the kids.
http://www.thesolarplan.com/articles/your-own-solar-panel-collector...

[Daniel Korman]

Also check out this site.
http://www.solarpanelstore.com
Some cool stuff on here.

[Emett]

Sharp's Solar Website is cool and interesting. Follow this link: Life Changing Box
Funny name, but so's unpollute, eh?