On Jun 21, 8:08*am, "D. Peter Maus" wrote:
On 6/21/10 09:41 , bpnjensen wrote:

My PC runs off solar.

* *Which equipment are you using to achieve that?

This is at work. Here at work, we have a large array over the parking
lot that supplies a bunch of energy to our complex every day, rain or
shine, and it's prtety efficient. I don't know the manufacturer, but
I could find out. Extra to run back to the grid, too. That meter
turns backwards starting shortly after sunrise and won't quit all day.

Our land use policies encourage solar on every rooftop and parking lot
around. We're looking for ways to subsidize those as much as
possible. I have been given to understand that Alameda County, as an
entity, uses a higher ratio of solar energy than any other County in
the U.S. - but that may have changed. We're trying :-)

At home, my not-too-distant future intent is to get a substantial
solar panel on the rooftop, maybe even a small wind turbine to
augment. We're breezy enough here so that such a system would be
worthwhile. I'd have to think about a storage battery or fuel cell.
Maybe a compressed air storage system? There are some other
technologies coming around too. I'm a big fan of Thorium nuclear,
which is going to be coming aboard in India, China, maybe France in
the next few years. Working prototypes have been around for decades,
some industries use small versions right now. Much less troublesome
than U or Pu nuclear in every respect, and plenty of fuel for hundreds
of years - until we get Fusion working.

Bruce Jensen