Here's a cool article from Treehugger.com about the future of solar powered window film. Think of the potential!
Solar cooling seems to one of those oxymorons that's good for a chuckle and not much else (like jumbo shrimp, military intelligence, etc.). This article talks about the technology of solar cooling and how it is a real, and more importantly market ready. Check it here:
That's dovetails nicely with the addition of Solar Air Conditioners here at Solar Sphere. This technology can reduce electrical consumption by 50%! Wow, that's big, and this can be a great way to reduce our overall energy consumption since almost 20% of our energy usage goes toward cooling buildings. The future is bright my friends....
Solar Cooling: Proving the Paradox
That's dovetails nicely with the addition of Solar Air Conditioners here at Solar Sphere. This technology can reduce electrical consumption by 50%! Wow, that's big, and this can be a great way to reduce our overall energy consumption since almost 20% of our energy usage goes toward cooling buildings. The future is bright my friends....
We are proud to welcome the entire Atlantis Solar catalog to Solar Sphere. We have become the exclusive online dealer in North America for Atlantis and their huge roster of great products. Here's just a sample of what they can offer:
- Solar Power Kits for Off Grid Cabins and Remote Power: plug and play solar.
- Solar Air Conditioners: 50% more efficient than standard AC's!
- Solar Water Pumping Kits: great for stock water or remote applications, super easy to install
- Wind Generators: wide range of small and medium size generators
- Water generators: create water out of thin air! No really...
A good question posed by the folks over at Renewable Energy World. They answer the question in an excellent podcast that you can hear for free here: REW Podcast.
The real answer is of course: maybe. We need to challenge our traditional urban growth models, our power distribution system, and most importantly our consumption habits. Solar power in the short term can help impoverished people get much needed electricity and help with remote and backup applications. We are also seeing the technology advance to the point where it can have a great impact on power bills in single family homes. But for it to really take off, we need to adjust our lifestyles too.
The real answer is of course: maybe. We need to challenge our traditional urban growth models, our power distribution system, and most importantly our consumption habits. Solar power in the short term can help impoverished people get much needed electricity and help with remote and backup applications. We are also seeing the technology advance to the point where it can have a great impact on power bills in single family homes. But for it to really take off, we need to adjust our lifestyles too.
Our friend Houston Neal has written a nice piece on job growth over the next few decades in the new energy economy. You can find it here: The Coming Renaissance of Electrical Contracting
Some highlights from the article:
Some highlights from the article:
- The American Solar Energy Society excepts renewable energy jobs for electricians will grow from 912 in 2007 to 8,176 by 2030, a 900% increase. And that's just in Colorado.
- Green construction, something near and dear to my heart, is expected to generate about 8 million jobs from 2009 to 2013. More and more of those jobs will be for electricians as new green energy systems require advanced electrical knowledge for installation and maintenance.
- Other jobs for 'sparkies' will include hybrid vehicle repair, lighting system upgrades, manufacturing, and green retrofits.
Hey folks, here's a plug for our friends over at SunOven.com, they are trying to raise money to provide with sun ovens.
Why sun ovens? Check this out:
Why sun ovens? Check this out:
- They are essential in areas with little or no power for cooking food.
- They can be used to decontaminating water as you can actually boil water in them.
- They provide a clean way of generating heat, as opposed to burning wood and wreckage that can pollute the already dirty air.
- They are a very tangible way to help, instead of just sending money off to a relief organization and not knowing how your money is spent.
We pride ourselves in helping folks go with clean energy and help the planet. The frustrating part of this of course is that its always been expensive to get into solar. I think we can safely say that this problem just got a lot more manageable.
We now have three kits from $1000- $4000 that can actually reduce your electric bills. That's right, these grid-tied solar power kits are small, easy to install, and more than ever AFFORDABLE.
This is all due to the new micro inverter technology. This inverter makes it possible to install one panel and start turning that meter backwards! As always we suggest you get help from master electrician, but these kits are pretty simple: panel, inverter, mounting, and wiring. You can even add a kit that let you track your production from any computer with an internet connection. Pretty cool eh?
We now have three kits from $1000- $4000 that can actually reduce your electric bills. That's right, these grid-tied solar power kits are small, easy to install, and more than ever AFFORDABLE.
This is all due to the new micro inverter technology. This inverter makes it possible to install one panel and start turning that meter backwards! As always we suggest you get help from master electrician, but these kits are pretty simple: panel, inverter, mounting, and wiring. You can even add a kit that let you track your production from any computer with an internet connection. Pretty cool eh?
One of the biggest controversies in the webosphere regarding renewable energy is the proliferation of 'build your own solar panels' systems and kits. We get asked all the time if we offer them, what we think of them, and if they are a scam. So we'll answer some questions that come up.
Here's full disclosure: we are going to start offering a build your own solar kit in 2010. Why? Because there is enormous demand for them, plain and simple. Our customers want them, we believe in do it yourself solar power and the fact is that you can build your own panels and get energy out of them. When used properly these kits can be a great learning opportunity and can power simple devices.
Are these systems a scam?
Yes and no. As with anything, the devil is in the details. We believe the problem is more in HOW the systems are sold, instead of WHAT is being sold. Earth 4 Energy and Green DIY Energy (the two major players in this market) use virtually identical sales strategies with affiliate links, sales pages, testimonials, etc.
The difference here is E4E's sales language. If you read their materials they will tell you that you can power your home for less than $200 and that the energy is FREE. This is simply not true. The average American home would require dozens of solar panels, whether you build them or not, and it could cost thousands of dollars.
Green DIY, while selling a very similar product, doesn't try to convince you that the energy is free or that you can power your entire home. They are simply saying that you can create your own solar panels and save a ton of money compared to buying panels. This is true.
So what exactly are they selling?
Its important to realize just what you are getting with these products. First of all neither one of them are actually, at the time of this post, selling solar parts. They are selling instructions on how to build solar panels, not the parts to do so. Make sure you're getting a video AND some written instructions with your kit as both are very useful if you're going to undertake this project.
So what can you do with the panels if you do build them?
There are a few applications that these home-built panels are good for. They are great primarily for building a science project or demonstration panel. They will serve as a terrific learning opportunity in renewable energy for you or your kids. They are also good at powering small DC devices, like pumps, lights, or small electronics. Obviously you could build a bunch of them and power larger devices, but we find most folks are looking to just build one or two, which would not be adequate to power a large appliance.
What should we know about home built panels?
Well everything that is electronic in your home is 'UL' (or Underwriters Laboratory) listed. This means that it conforms to certain electrical standards and is generally safe for the home. Your home built panels wouldn't have that listing and should be used with caution.
The other issue is that you can't just plug these panels into your power system and expect the meter to start spinning backwards. You need a lot more components (namely an inverter, fuses and disconnects) to have a functional solar power system on your home.
If I do buy a learning kit, can I get the parts to actually build the panels?
This is something we've been working on to offer. Because, of course, we are trying to empower your world with green energy, not just books and videos about green energy. So, in the coming weeks, you will see we will offer the learning kits (with honest sales language!) and the cells and parts to actually build the panels.
So what are you experiences with these products? Good? Bad? Leave us a comment and let us know what you think.
Here's full disclosure: we are going to start offering a build your own solar kit in 2010. Why? Because there is enormous demand for them, plain and simple. Our customers want them, we believe in do it yourself solar power and the fact is that you can build your own panels and get energy out of them. When used properly these kits can be a great learning opportunity and can power simple devices.
Are these systems a scam?
Yes and no. As with anything, the devil is in the details. We believe the problem is more in HOW the systems are sold, instead of WHAT is being sold. Earth 4 Energy and Green DIY Energy (the two major players in this market) use virtually identical sales strategies with affiliate links, sales pages, testimonials, etc.
The difference here is E4E's sales language. If you read their materials they will tell you that you can power your home for less than $200 and that the energy is FREE. This is simply not true. The average American home would require dozens of solar panels, whether you build them or not, and it could cost thousands of dollars.
Green DIY, while selling a very similar product, doesn't try to convince you that the energy is free or that you can power your entire home. They are simply saying that you can create your own solar panels and save a ton of money compared to buying panels. This is true.
So what exactly are they selling?
Its important to realize just what you are getting with these products. First of all neither one of them are actually, at the time of this post, selling solar parts. They are selling instructions on how to build solar panels, not the parts to do so. Make sure you're getting a video AND some written instructions with your kit as both are very useful if you're going to undertake this project.
So what can you do with the panels if you do build them?
There are a few applications that these home-built panels are good for. They are great primarily for building a science project or demonstration panel. They will serve as a terrific learning opportunity in renewable energy for you or your kids. They are also good at powering small DC devices, like pumps, lights, or small electronics. Obviously you could build a bunch of them and power larger devices, but we find most folks are looking to just build one or two, which would not be adequate to power a large appliance.
What should we know about home built panels?
Well everything that is electronic in your home is 'UL' (or Underwriters Laboratory) listed. This means that it conforms to certain electrical standards and is generally safe for the home. Your home built panels wouldn't have that listing and should be used with caution.
The other issue is that you can't just plug these panels into your power system and expect the meter to start spinning backwards. You need a lot more components (namely an inverter, fuses and disconnects) to have a functional solar power system on your home.
If I do buy a learning kit, can I get the parts to actually build the panels?
This is something we've been working on to offer. Because, of course, we are trying to empower your world with green energy, not just books and videos about green energy. So, in the coming weeks, you will see we will offer the learning kits (with honest sales language!) and the cells and parts to actually build the panels.
So what are you experiences with these products? Good? Bad? Leave us a comment and let us know what you think.
For those of you that watch our blog, you know that climate change and renewable energy really go hand in hand. We here at Solar Sphere are serious about addressing climate change, and we believe that regardless of whether or not climate change is caused by humans or not, we have to change the way we produce energy.
If you're not up to speed with what happened at the summit, here's a quick summary. There was an accord. Here's what they agreed on:
So where do go from here? I think we need a different approach. So much of the Copenhagen summit involved bickering by international bureaucrats over trivial matters like parliamentary procedures and legal jargon. All of those things wasted valuable time when the real issue should have been cutting emissions.
Maybe the approach should have been similar to the G-8, where the 8 largest economies on the world meet on a bi-annual basis. Maybe we gather the 8-10 largest polluters (US, China, India, Brazil, the EU, etc.) and have them hash out a legally binding agreement, with mandatory inspections, audits, and fines for non-compliance. It seems that every large player at the summit, except for China, was willing to accept some form of this agreement.
I realize that there are far more stakeholders than just 8-10 countries. But trying to include every single one of them in a comprehensive plan is next to impossible. I don't want to imply that smaller countries shouldn't have a say, but the reality is they have very little control over the emissions issue anyway and giving them a seat at the table just complicates the matter.
Here's to hoping this is just a hiccup and that our leadership will push for further measures, and soon. In the meantime, all we can do is keep our homes and business emissions as low as possible, and spread the word in our communities. Keep up the good work....
If you're not up to speed with what happened at the summit, here's a quick summary. There was an accord. Here's what they agreed on:
- Cap temperature increases at 2 degree Celsius.
- No caps to carbon emissions.
- No legally binding agreements or inspections.
So where do go from here? I think we need a different approach. So much of the Copenhagen summit involved bickering by international bureaucrats over trivial matters like parliamentary procedures and legal jargon. All of those things wasted valuable time when the real issue should have been cutting emissions.
Maybe the approach should have been similar to the G-8, where the 8 largest economies on the world meet on a bi-annual basis. Maybe we gather the 8-10 largest polluters (US, China, India, Brazil, the EU, etc.) and have them hash out a legally binding agreement, with mandatory inspections, audits, and fines for non-compliance. It seems that every large player at the summit, except for China, was willing to accept some form of this agreement.
I realize that there are far more stakeholders than just 8-10 countries. But trying to include every single one of them in a comprehensive plan is next to impossible. I don't want to imply that smaller countries shouldn't have a say, but the reality is they have very little control over the emissions issue anyway and giving them a seat at the table just complicates the matter.
Here's to hoping this is just a hiccup and that our leadership will push for further measures, and soon. In the meantime, all we can do is keep our homes and business emissions as low as possible, and spread the word in our communities. Keep up the good work....
One of the, shall we say, 'exciting' things about living with off grid solar power is that you never quite know when problems will crop up. Last night I noticed our propane generator was turning off and on about every minute then timing out with an error. This was a little disconcerting since we were definitely running low on power (that's why the generator was running anyway, we've had about a week of cloudy and snowy weather).
After some real head scratching last night we decided to go ultra-conservative on power (no laundry, dish-washing, or tv) and start again on it this morning. Upon further review it was simply a breaker switch that was tripped from the generator to the inverter. Apparently I had tripped it this weekend while doing some battery maintenance. It is in a hard place to see and actually looked like it was on, but needed to be cycled fully off and then on. After that, no problems.
The best part is that's clear as a bell here today so we'll hopefully fill those batteries with sunshine. Crisis averted, we're back in business!
After some real head scratching last night we decided to go ultra-conservative on power (no laundry, dish-washing, or tv) and start again on it this morning. Upon further review it was simply a breaker switch that was tripped from the generator to the inverter. Apparently I had tripped it this weekend while doing some battery maintenance. It is in a hard place to see and actually looked like it was on, but needed to be cycled fully off and then on. After that, no problems.
The best part is that's clear as a bell here today so we'll hopefully fill those batteries with sunshine. Crisis averted, we're back in business!
