On Jun 21, 1:47*pm, "D. Peter Maus" wrote:
On 6/21/10 15:40 , bpnjensen wrote:



On Jun 21, 12:49 pm, "D. Peter *wrote:
On 6/21/10 14:20 , bpnjensen wrote:

On Jun 21, 11:53 am, "D. Peter * *wrote:
On 6/21/10 13:42 , rod wrote:

On Jun 21, 9:23 am, * * *wrote:
On Jun 21, 8:08 am, "D. Peter * * *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

****Hey Blow Job Jensen, STFU! WTF! Big f%cking deal your laptop runs
on "solar". STFU BJ. And your meter runs backwards all day "selling
back into the grid". STFU! We all know one thing for sure, YOU DIDN't
PAY for any of it so shut your pie hole. Yea, I'm sure you are going
to rush right out and buy a gigantic solar panel for your roof and a
wind turbine to supplement it, you @$$ H%LE!

* * *He might not. But I will. And I can run my entire radio operation
on it all. In that sense, his information is useful. Which is why I
asked for him to describe it.

* * *p- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Rod's a funny guy, eh? ;-)

* * Ya think? Rod's just another guy who can't countenance thinking
that doesn't reflect his own.

* * It's not like I've not encountered it before.

* * I'm intrigued by the Thorium nuclear, though. That would seem to
have promise.

* * But if you can come up with a make of the solar panels you're
using out there, I'd appreciate it.

* * The solar we can get around here is installed according to local
common practices. The vendors will come out and evaluate what they
believe is your need (and there is frequently a difference between
what you need and what they want you to need) calcuate a 75% limit
of their evaluation, and they'll sell you that capacity. No more.

* * So, I'm still looking for equipment that will meet my needs,
stand up to the weather, here, and can be installed to my full
demand capacity.

* * I'd love to get off the grid. If for no other reasons than to
**** them off.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I think Rod's just a troll.

I don't blame you one bit. We may have self-imposed limitations on
proportional capacity here as well - at least until recently, it may
have been possible for Pacific Gas& *Electric to not approve a hookup
of anything larger than the average daily use for the household - they
really don't want to pay for any of the "backwash" from indepenedent
users. *There is a law that says they must pay for some tiny increment
(a couple percent), and they have actually since voluntarily increased
their allowance to about 2.5% since state law now requires them to
increase their renewable portfolio over the next 10 years.

If you wanted to be self-contained, they could not do anything about
it.

The manufacturer for our County facility may or may not do small jobs,
but I can check for you. *If I were you, and money was not a big
object, I'd shoot for the most efficient panels available to help out
on those dreariest winter days. *Also bear in mind that a panel only
puts out max energy when it is aimed straight at the sun's disc -
otherwise it will vary roughly according to the cosine of the incident
angle (I bet you knew that!).

* *I thought that was the SINE of the incident angle. The closer to
90 degrees, the higher the output.

* *Winter is a different animal, here than it is there. But summer
months, I can go off the grid entirely.

* *I did look into geothermal, too. The smallest generator available
was about half a megawatt. Which would make some of my neighbors
very happy, too. But that's still under investigation.

* *heheheheh.



I'll see what I can find out.

* *Thanks.

PDM - If you have a 'source' of 24H/7D/52W
'free' running water that is usually the best way
of getting off the grid at the lowest cost. ~ RHF