solar

There are many problems with solar systems permanently fixed to residences. For one the home may not be conducive to solar modules. Or you may have multiple residences. You also know if you have to sell your house you probably will never get back the investment it cost to build and istall your system. Finally theft is an issue if you have a solar system for your cabin or other residential retreat where you are gone for extended periods of time. For now complete solar systems are still rather expensive therefore it is important to get as much out of your system as possible. For some the answer will be a mobile solar system.

That is where GreenTow comes into play. GreenTow has the finest and most durable mobile solar systems on the market. The goal is to allow user more options of use in a complete package that can be taken with them. GreenTow has taken the finest componants one could currently buy for a standard solar system and put them into one streamline custom built trailer system.

If a mobile solar system is a better option for you and your green building goals. Visit www.Greentow.com and learn more.

Sincerely,

VP Perry Myers

Back in July when gas prices were over $4 and friends were actually thinking about turning in their trucks for hybrids, I felt really good. Vindicated, almost, that the premium I paid for my Prius was actually worth it. I wasn't happy about anybody suffering at the pump, but relieved that something was being done to level the playing field between oil and the other green alternatives like solar and wind. For so long low oil prices made the economics of green a hard sell,but when gas prices shot up and the shock of filling up for a hundred bucks knocked people for a loop, green was suddenly really cool. It didn't really matter that products like CFL bulbs and non-toxic detergents cost a bit more, they were green and being green was the only thing that was going to save us from ourselves in a time of desperate over-consumption. And then it happened. The economy is tanking gas prices are falling to eight year lows, and people are suddenly questioning the need to run out and buy a hybrid car or invest in a home or business solar system. "It's the economy, stupid," has never made so much sense to so many people. I'll go green again when I can afford it. Well, I'm here to tell you being green is everybody's business. From the solar installers to the guys who make the kitchen counter tops out of recycled glass and pottery, it's up to the green community to throttle up and serve notice that we can't wait for the thieves on Wall Street to fix things for us. Being green isn't just our business, it's the way we're going to save our communities around this country and the world. It's time to take the "D" out of GREED and replace with an N. NOW is the time for GREEN.

The Photovoltaic roof consists of a set of solar panels assembled to cover the surface of the roof of a house or a building. Don't confuse it with the pool solar heaters, they are used to hot water and not to generate electricity.

There are no moving parts, maintenance requirements are reduced to the minimum terms and consist, mostly in periodic checks of the accumulator battery.

The photovoltaic modules that make up the solar panels, transform the energy received from the sun into electricity used for domestic use in partial or total replacement of conventional supply.

This solar system is feasible even on complex already built but is considerably cheaper, obviously, if already part of the plan for a new building.

Of course, the main advantage of these systems is in the use of an inexhaustible energy source, free and clean. The energy produced by photovoltaic panels is included in the existing electrical system and connected to the supplier of electricity.

Therefore, a practical example is that when it produced more energy than required, the system can assign an energy surplus to the electricity distributor.

The market is increasing its penetration, the experts for the magazine "World Renewable Energy" have estimated a change of 1000 kW in 1990, 2000 in 1993, 7000 in 1996, 36,000 in 1999, 60 thousand in 2000, 800 thousand in 2010.

I know I blogged about InLight, Richmond's first "Art, Turned On" addition to First Friday and celebrating 1708 Art Gallery's 30th anniversary last week.

But for you geeks like myself out there, thought I'd expound more on the technical green building/solar information as well as the volunteers whom made the Solar Sidewalk possible.

('Cause. I'mma geek. This is better than Legos!)

Scott Kyle, the green building architect who created this piece, explains:

"A quick description of the system: Two Kyocera 65 Watt PV Modules, 24V Solar Lighting Control, & two 12V Concorde SunXtender Deep Cell Batteries.

This is what is showing up in my truck and on the roof with the guys from Cityspace Construction (Richmondcityspace.com), who volunteered time and materials to the cause.

Thanks also to Kenny, whose rooftop apartment we have to go through every time we have to access the roof.

Next, there is 24V DC wired from the roof to inside the window seat at the storefront of 1708 where there are two 25W LED Fiber Optic Illuminators (http://lightbeaminc.com/illuminators_25_watt.html).

These are state of the art illuminators with very high light output and very low current draw, ideal for photovoltaics. If we would have used halogen, which is standard for fiber optic illuminators we would have had to have added four more PV modules (yes there is a lesson here for homeowners and their appliances and lighting).

The fiber optic (plastic filaments) bundles are divided into four smaller bundles from each of the two illuminators where they are brought to each of the eight concrete panels in metal conduit that are then covered in sidewalk cement.

That's Stan Webb of Concrete Ideas handling the fiber optic cables. Stan's company manufactured the fiber optic concrete panels in their shop in Richmond. The PV modules are illuminated at dusk and stay on for a set period of time (currently 8 hrs - long enough for staggering club dwellers to see their way home by). The PV controller takes care of the battery charging and control of the on-off cycle. "

Thank you, Scott, for sharing your wonderful project with us!!!! Er, see ya at Green Drinks Thursday! : )

There is no photograph that can accurately freeze-frame/capture it, except to see/experience it.

Below is my video where I tease Scott (his wife has a degree in sculpture)... but it kind of gives you the "experience" of seeing this nice addition to Richmond at night...

A great addition to the Richmond arts scene- it is a good time to be in Richmond!

Here's a great tool I found that utilizes Google Maps to help you calculate the potential of your home for solar.

http://www.springwise.com/eco_sustainability/using_google_maps_to_calculate

RoofRay uses modeling tools, past weather data, and Google Maps to help consumers estimate how much potential their home could have for solar.

What a great way to evaluate your home's possibilities before taking the financial plunge to invest in solar energy!

It's been awhile since I've posted anything on solar cooking. I guess I just felt I hadn't made anything of note lately... when you solar cook, it IS convenient, but the novelty does wear off - I mean, how many people blog about what they make for dinner each day? (Suddenly a rush of web domains devoted to cooking overwhelms me! Never mind!)

For those of you on myspace, I have a whole album of solar cookin' successes (and failures), as well as posts in the green building group. But lately I've just been making... I don't know... normal stuff?

So today when I decided to "make something out of nothing" by looking through the icebox as I often do, I became a little more creative- and it occurred to me this dish could be photo-worthy. : )

In our family, we buy our meat from two families near us. That means we buy in bulk (I mean, when I buy lamb... I buy A lamb...) so our meat is usually frozen the day it's butchered. So I dug through the freezer and pulled out some beautiful pork chops from the Ault's, and defrosted them overnight. Then I found some grapes that the children were not devouring- they had been a little on the sour side. But if they were cooked? Dee-lish. So I threw in the chops, grapes, added cloves of garlic and a dash o' balsamic... and YUM! Tonight's dinner!

I also added a side o' potatoes. Solar cooked potatoes are frightfully easy and taste more earthy & delicious.

Feel free to try this at home! Cooking was never so easy- I'm off to play instead of hunkering over a hot oven: Let the sun do your work!

As they say here in the south:
"Myyyyyyyyyy it's hot!"

For weeks I've been ruminating over how to really cool an off grid house on those hot, dog day stretches of heat we get in Virginia. Despite the fact that our house kits are super insulated, passive solar and utilize the cross breeze, well, heck.

Until you've spent a summer in the south, well, until you've spent a stifling, still, searing summer languishing on the cool floor 'cause you were too hot to stand... listlessly spraying little bursts of misted water towards yourself out of an old hairspray bottle 'cause that was the closest you could get to cool, where even the fans blew hot... where the still farm fields were so heavy with heat it knocked the air outta you and even the grasshoppers wouldn't even leap, where the...

Oh, ahem. Did I digress? Ok, fine. It's frickin' hot here, 'K? : )

So you see why I aspire to a cooler solution.

Today, when I heard about Sun Utility Network's California Dream System- Solar Electric Cooling and Heating Sunstation, I was intrigued. Reading through, it makes sense! For our off grid house it could still work despite the electric piece as really, we wouldn't be aggressively cooling at night/when the sun was low.

I will post more information on this system as I get it/have an opportunity to speak with them; in the meantime enjoy their website- http://www.sunutility.com, and... I hope you all stay cool! : )

It's sunshine, it's free, it's simple enough—right? With all the things to consider, from interpreting the power bill and reviewing solar proposals to comparing paying cash with lower-cost offerings, the process of switching to solar can leave a homeowner buried in paperwork and as confused as ever.

In recent years, a number of innovate companies and business models have emerged to help lower the initial costs and barriers to entry for consumers. Examples include New Resource Bank's solar financing initiative, CitizenRe's solar rental plan (still in pilot phase), and Solar City's group buying program, which also makes it easier to sell power back into the grid in states where this is possible. People can find lots of great information on financial and other aspects of solar at The Solar Guide website.

Another company who provides an innovative financing and service solution for consumers is Sun Run , who’s borrowed a model from commercial markets. We’ve written about them before , and we recently caught up with President and COO Nat Kreamer to get his thoughts on what people should be thinking about as they evaluate solar and solar service providers.

"Californians know that solar power saves money and cuts global warming. Now homeowners are asking us how to go solar in the most financially responsible way, so they can avoid hidden costs or hassles down the road," said Nat. "We're all concerned about the same things: making smart spending decisions that also help protect our environment."

Here's a list of the top seven questions homeowners should answer before they can triumphantly watch the meter spin backwards.

Q: I know solar is great for the environment, but I want to know the economic benefits--How do I compare the long-term cost of solar to what I currently pay my utility?

Hi everyone!!!

I am thrilled to announce our prefab Green Cottage Kit design is here!

Although a modern enthusiast, I grew up (and my parents still reside) in a home built in 1801. A Virginia native, I appreciate old farmhouses, Victorian brownstones, colonial and happy, yes, exuberantly happy cottage architecture.

So, when people came to me on GreenModernKits.com asking for a cottage, I understood.

So I kidnapped Eric Drivdahl, an award winning architect with a heart of gold, and he designed a gorgeous, passive solar, SIPs, cottage kit with so many thoughtful details:

- 2,000 sq. ft. (and less: this house has 3 configurations)

- 3 bedrooms (or less)

- Structural Insulated Panels (SIP) for energy efficiency

- Passive Solar

- Trombe Wall

- Nooks and Crannies where you can curl up and read your books!

We haven't even named it yet, but we're so happy.

If you have any names you'd like to suggest, we'd love to hear them!

Sincerely yours,

Copeland

aka Green Modern Kits! : )