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You’ve gotta love brilliant people. I have this one friend who designed and set-up a system that uses basic filters and plants to purify the water leftover from his recycled paper-making business.
And then there’s the people who just wake up one morning, scratch their noggins and decide, “I think I’m going to make a solar panel this week.” I just marvel at those people. M. Davis of Arizona did just that.
Ok, so it might have taken him longer than a week, but with some materials scavenged from his garage, some parts sourced through ebay and a touch of brilliance, M. Davis now has solar power.
My first thought when I saw this project was ‘good for him. Too bad I’m not gifted enough to build a schmancy solar panel.’ But M. Davis has taken the time to document how he did it in plain English on his own web site and on Instructables. Plus, you can email him if you have questions!
Based on Davis’ writeup, the skills needed to build a solar panel like this are:
Basic Woodworking Soldering Electronics Wiring
For a seasoned do-it-yourselfer those skills are old hat. But, if you’re just starting out, recruit people you know who have these skills! Building a solar panel like this could save you some good cash. You could either make like M. Davis or hand over $485 CDN to Real Goods for a 62 Watt Solar Module.
Oh, and if this project is to basic for you, try building your own wind turbine. Or better yet, build me a solar panel!
We’ve cheered on the creative and efficient dome home design in recent months, and have now discovered a truly unique variation that’s sure to turn heads. Innovative company Solaleya was spotted at recent West Coast Green Festival by Inhabitat writer Chris Worrall. Solaleya is the creator of the dome house that, wait for it - rotates to follow the sun.
Yes folks, you’ve heard of rotating restaurants and dance floors. Now, you can actually order and live in a house that slowly spins to take advantage of passive solar heating and natural lighting opportunities. The domes come with a remote control allowing you to orient your picture window to the view of your choice.
Framed with FSC-certified wood and insulated with cork, Solaleya’s design presents a number of eco-friendly benefits. Unfortunately, each unit is pre-fabricated in France, requiring that it be shipped overseas to the construction site. But here is a design for living that can respond to the seasonal angle of the sun. That’s an impressive concept by any standard.
Want to be inspired? Check out what Steve and JD accomplished two years ago as they deconstructed and rebuilt their US home in the greenest way possible. Here’s just a sampling of their home’s ecofeatures. The couple:
spared materials from the dump by reusing them in the final product
reused much of the core and shell of the original building
purchased Forest Stewardship Council certified wood
insulated using soy-based spray foam insulation
installed recycled content products
incorporated solar electric and solar water heating technology
…I’ll leave a few surprises so you can enjoy the videos
The videos themselves are really well done, so enjoy!
Are you a humble person? So many of us answer ‘yes’, and yet our homes and possessions tell another story. One of the central pillars of personal sustainability and green living is fulfilling needs over wants, and doing so in non-material ways when possible.
Why? Because producing ‘things’ requires energy and resources, not to mention the toll it takes on the environment throughout the ‘thing’s’ production, use, maintenance, storage and disposal. But weeding out those ‘wants disguised as needs’ and finding non-material paths to fulfillment demands a certain amount of honesty, creativity and courage.
Shay Salomon, author of ‘Little House on a Small Planet’ sheds light on the growing small house movement, and how humble dwellings can offer financial relief, greater social contact, clutter-free spaces, more leisure time, and an abundant sense of home and personal fulfillment.
Sound intriguing? Try on Shay’s view via this Peak Moment interview or borrow her book from the library.
Know how to trick the sun that’s been beating down on you into doing something useful (besides making you sweat)? I can’t tell you how exactly, but I’d bet money that the dozens of solar experts listed on solarbuzz.com have some pointers for you.
This fantabulous directory includes solar retailers, manufacturers, wholesalers and associations - all catalogued by province for your sun-capturing pleasure.
Constructing a net zero energy home in Edmonton, Alberta is extremely challenging because this is a cold place. Thankfully, it’s also a sunny place. Still, in order to achieve the net zero standard, factors such as energy efficiency, insulating values and solar energy collection need to be maximized.
Peter the builder and I came up with the idea of an adjustable solar awning system that will increase by about 10% the amount of energy that the Mill Creek NetZero Home (MCNZH) produces annually.
I just wrote a proposal to help fund the prototype solar awning that we will put on the MCNZH. Here are some excerpts. Sorry for the formal tone, and warning: the following may be for eco-nerds only.
Passive Solar Energy
The MCNZH is designed to passively collect a large amount of solar heat through its south-facing windows. In fact, the 3642 kWh of solar heat that will be captured through the windows represent 46%of the annual space heating required by the MCNZH. With such a large area of south-facing windows, though, there is considerable risk of the home overheating.
In a home as well-insulated as the MCNZH will be, there are “…severe restrictions in the amount of south windows that can be used without excessive overheating” (CMHC, 2005, p.53). “Increasing the window overhang[, however,] allows for additional south glazing” (CMHC, 2005, p.54). In order to remain comfortable for its occupants, then, the south windows must be shaded by overhangs.
The installation of overhangs presents a compromise between maximum solar energy capture and occupant comfort. HOT2000 simulations show that the MCNZH will capture 314 kWh less annually if equipped with overhangs (HOT2000 is a residential building performance evaluation software distributed by Natural Resources Canada (Natural Resources Canada, n.d.)).
The solar awning prototype will eliminate this compromise, maximizing solar energy capture and providing occupant comfort at the same time.
Photovoltaic Electricity Generation
The MCNZH needs to provide itself with over 8800 kWh of heat and electricity annually. Much of this energy will be provided by an active solar hot water system and a ground source heat pump, but the remaining kWh will need to be provided by photovoltaic (PV) panels.
PV panels produce the most electricity when the sun is striking them at a 90° angle. Because it is so far north, Edmonton experiences a large degree of variation throughout the year in the angle of incidence at which the sun strikes an installed PV panel. On the day of the summer solstice (June 21), a PV panel must be tilted at a XX degree angle (not sure what angle yet) to be producing at its maximum capacity (all other variables considered). Alternatively, on the day of the winter solstice (December 21), a PV panel must be tilted at XX degrees.
When a PV panel is installed in a fixed location on a building in Edmonton, it is usually tilted at an angle of approximately 53°. This represents a compromise between the winter and summer months that maximizes electricity production.
The solar awning prototype will eliminate this compromise by being adjustable. The solar awning prototype will increase the electricity produced by the MCNZH by 10%-15%, or 400 – 600 kWh annually.
Solar Awning
Any design element that has only one function is probably a mistake or a missed opportunity. We ought to strive for multiple and diverse functions of each element so we pay once and get many benefits.
Amory B. Lovins, Rocky Mountain Institute
The solar awning prototype is a system that will provide two functions at once for the MCNZH. Covered in PV panels, the awnings will efficiently produce electricity and provide shade for the windows during the hotter months. They will be installed above the first and second floor windows of the home, and be adjusted four times a year by the homeowner. The solar awning prototype will provide a benefit of 714-914 kWh of energy to the MCNZH. This represents an increase of 8%-10% of energy generated when compared with the same home with regular awnings and the PV panels fixed in place on the roof.
During the summer months, the awnings will be set at an angle of between 25° and 30° (see picture). The summer adjustment will also slide the awnings forward so that they act as shade-providing overhangs for the windows. In addition to providing shade, the PV panels will generate electricity more efficiently because they are properly angled towards the sun.
Solar Awnings in July. The widows are fully shaded and the PV panels are perpendicular to the sun.
During the winter months, the awnings will be set at an angle of between 70° and 90° (see picture). The winter adjustment will pull the awnings up and away from the windows so that they don’t provide any shade. This will maximize passive solar heat capture through the windows, and increase solar electricity production by optimally tilting the PV panels towards the sun.
Solar Awnings in December. The windows are unshaded and the PV panels are perpendicular to the sun.
The solar awning idea is an elegant way to squeeze out an extra 10% of solar energy for this house. Plus I think they look pretty cool. I can’t wait to see them in action.
CMHC (2005). Tap The Sun: Passive Solar Techniques and Home Designs.
Natural Resources Canada. (n.d.). Retrieved October 16, 2007 from http://132.156.37.56/residential/personal/new-homes/r-2000/standard/hot2000.cfm?attr=4
For the DIY crowd out there, here’s another way to save energy with the sun. If you like to tool around and ease the guilt that your power-feeding gadgets cause you, check out this Instructables project submission.
It’s minus 34 tonight and the generator just quit. Why did we say no to Hydro?
Anastasia Ledwon
Re-posted with author’s permission
Originally Published by TheTyee.ca
A friend who visited recently calls. “My roommate’s got all the lights on,” she complains over the phone, “and I keep thinking I should be turning off power bars.” I have to laugh; after spending 10 days with me in my off-the-grid house in northern B.C., my friend has become adept at tracking down phantom loads and power drains. Not exactly a big concern in her Vancouver condo with its cost-shared Hydro, but I do what I can to encourage people to conserve.
Not that I set out to be a champion of rugged self-sufficiency. Hydro made it almost a no-brainer. When my ex-partner and I first bought this house, it was wired for 110V and the previous owners had run a large diesel generator for power during waking hours. Deciding this was noisier and more polluting than we’d like, we looked into alternative power sources and compared them with putting in Hydro. Read the rest of this entry »
Have a curiosity about solar power that you’ve never pursued? Now’s your chance to use this fairly simple do it yourself project as a stepping stone to even greater applications while learning the basic calculations and considerations required!
* Note - Instructions will be provided to help you select the appropriate capacity of these components, assess the duty cycle of light, and choose an ideal location for solar-powered light.
Overview
What follows is a brief overview on installing a solar-powered fluorescent light in your home or garage. Each topic touched on is the subject of many articles unto itself, so this should be viewed as a starting point. The project will likely require further research into those aspects where you feel uncertain as to how to proceed. Read the rest of this entry »
If you’re one of the folks who still thinks all solar collectors on the planet are flat, then you have some catching up to do! Get a head start with this simple greenthinkers.org translation. It’s packed full of photos and diagrams, not to mention down-to-Earth explanations of logic behind evacuated solar tube collectors. If you get as excited about them as we did, check out Rebates & Promotions for a listing of current programs to help you afford your own home renewable energy system!
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Choose green for your next reno project.
