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Greg Furtman said:
This is a good NYT article on our grid. If we are going to go with solar & wind our infrastructure needs to be upgraded soon.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/23/...hZpgiVI97zHumxdFWKtMCHCXbDss7o&smid=url-share
Click to expand...
Upgrades will last many years so why not. From that article:

“There are only so many power engineers out there who can do the sophisticated studies we need to do to ensure the system stays reliable, and everyone else is trying to hire them, too.”

Sounds like an interesting job. I bet registrations for power engineering will go up. In any case:

https://cleantechnica.com/2023/02/2...ty-generating-capacity-in-2023-will-be-solar/
 
Funkworks said:
Upgrades will last many years so why not. From that article:

“There are only so many power engineers out there who can do the sophisticated studies we need to do to ensure the system stays reliable, and everyone else is trying to hire them, too.”

Sounds like an interesting job. I bet registrations for power engineering will go up. In any case:

https://cleantechnica.com/2023/02/2...ty-generating-capacity-in-2023-will-be-solar/
Click to expand...
From what I can tell, degreed electrical engineers on the power side (as opposed to the electronics side) can write their own ticket pretty much anywhere.
 
kuririn said:
I was sitting in the back yard the other day, taking a break from mowing the lawn. Of the nine houses I could see, six had solar panels on the roof.
Click to expand...
Its not quite as popular here...

According to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), as of mid-2022, Ohio ranked 25th nationwide in solar power generation capacity, with around 107,207 Ohio homes powered by solar energy and . 0091 percent of the state's electricity generated by solar power.
Click to expand...
 
boatgeek said:
Crossposted here and in the Ukraine thread. Solar panels are being used in Ukraine to make critical infrastructure more resilient. There's far less value in bombing solar panels than in bombing major power plants.

https://www.seattletimes.com/nation...-unlikely-tool-to-resist-russia-solar-panels/
Click to expand...

Not sure why title says "unlikely". Solar has always been among the most versatile energy sources. It needs a lot of space, but you just can't run out of Sun. And because they are so distributed, panels make a lousy target. I think I posted this in the war thread last year:

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2022/06...lant-partly-resumes-operations-after-bombing/
☀️😎☀️😎☀️😎☀️😎☀️

Here's a panel that can produce drinking water:

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2023/05/23/new-solar-panels-produce-water-from-humidity/
 
Funkworks said:
Not sure why title says "unlikely". Solar has always been among the most versatile energy sources. It needs a lot of space, but you just can't run out of Sun. And because they are so distributed, panels make a lousy target. I think I posted this in the war thread last year:

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2022/06...lant-partly-resumes-operations-after-bombing/
☀️😎☀️😎☀️😎☀️😎☀️

Here's a panel that can produce drinking water:

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2023/05/23/new-solar-panels-produce-water-from-humidity/
Click to expand...
They kind of addressed that in the article, mentioning that Ukraine doesn't get that much sunlight in winter months because it's relatively far north. Plus there's the typical nay-saying that solar can't possibly work. Perhaps you've heard that before. 😁
 
Here's what flexible solar panels can do: turn an RV into a land-based space probe! 🛰️ 😁



I cannot get enough of brilliant ideas.
 
The video never mentions you either need batteries or a power plant to be able to provide a base load if needed. I am wanting to do solar for my off grid shed. It is really expensive, even when all you taxpayers will reimburse me 30% of my costs.
 
Not much I can say. Cost depends on building and location. I would set up a battery first and feed it with the grid. That's useful in itself, as backup and for getting use to. Then a few years later I'd add solar. I'd say this adds value to the home, but I'm not sure what the real estate market actually says.

Edit: Also, if the equipment only last 5 years, it's very expensive per year, if it lasts 100 years, it might be very cheap per year. The reality is it's somewhere in between. Each manufacturer should have numbers for that. But my point is it's the yearly cost that matters, and how long the equipment lasts is what I consider to be the main unknown. So I would try to get that info, and warranties out of the manufacturer.

☀️😎☀️😎☀️

Wish I could go here:
https://www.americansolarchallenge.org/the-competition/2023-formula-sun-grand-prix/
 
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Solar sales called yesterday.
I told him we were in a box canyon and in summer only get 30 minutes of sunshine in morning. Rest of the year nothing.
He suggested putting panels on top of the cliffs, kid is thinking. I said it’s a military gunnery range. But we got the land cheap.
 
MClark said:
Solar sales called yesterday.
I told him we were in a box canyon and in summer only get 30 minutes of sunshine in morning. Rest of the year nothing.
He suggested putting panels on top of the cliffs, kid is thinking. I said it’s a military gunnery range. But we got the land cheap.
Click to expand...
I suppose it's a sign of an industry's maturity that there's cold calling by slightly scammy operators. Yay?
 
To apply any solution, you have to identify what the problem is and what the options are based on both best practice and cost..
For me living in Sydney Australia, solar is a viable option. I have 6kw of panels and 32KWh of battery capacity installed. I have gas cooker, heating and hot water. I have a portable aircon for summer.
First I had the system without batteries, grid tied. I got paid 19c feed in and charged 40 c for my usage.
Slowly the power companies increased daily connection fees to over $1 per day and the electricity usage charge to over 58c per KWh today. I saw the writing on the wall for that over a year ago and changed the system from grid tie to off grid but maintaining a grid connection as a backup.
In the last year I've used 8KWh from the grid. So if I want to fully disconnect, I have to get that from somewhere.
To get down to that low grid usage has not been without challenges. I left the aircon running and almost completely emptied the battery. It took 3 days of good sun to fully recover and a few weeks ago before winter solstice here and a lot of really cloudy and rainy days I connected to the grid on 2 days for 2KWh each day.
After 2 years of monitoring I can now say that I could completely disconnect from the grid with my modified usage patterns and a small wind generator on the roof.
Used panels are coming readily onto the market for next to nothing. Au$1000 for 10KW of panels. So that's my cheapest option. But you have to have somewhere to put them. The cost of batteries is as low as US$80 per KWh in the US.
See Batteryhookup.com
This is a diy option. Not for everyone. I've previously provided links for prices where people have doubted my costs feasibility.
YOUR OPTTIONS FOR YOUR LOCATION WILL BE DIFFERENT......Remaining connected to the grid is also an option.
Norm
 
Funkworks said:
I see the cold call, but I don't see the scam. Sounds like any other pushy salesperson to me. I'm being bombarded with ads all the time, most of which, but not all, are pointless.

🌞🕶️🌞🕶️🌞🕶️🌞

A solar insurance company:
https://www.solarinsure.com/for-homeowners
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Eh, there's a fine line/gray area between scam and pushy sales, which is why I said slightly scammy. Without knowing any more about the situation, I think it's pretty unlikely that panels up the box canyon walls are going to be a viable solution either from an engineering or aesthetic standpoint.
 
DEmery said:
The video never mentions you either need batteries or a power plant to be able to provide a base load if needed. I am wanting to do solar for my off grid shed. It is really expensive, even when all you taxpayers will reimburse me 30% of my costs.
Click to expand...
If you search YouTube there are a number of channels that show you how to build your own battery packs. Most of them use LiFePo4 batteries. They cover testing the batteries, how to wire them, and how to choose and install a Battery Management System. So if you has some DIY skills you can build a storage battery system for a lot less than a commercial unit.

This channel is pretty good. https://www.youtube.com/@RayBuildsCoolStuff
 
Greg Furtman said:
If you search YouTube there are a number of channels that show you how to build your own battery packs. Most of them use LiFePo4 batteries. They cover testing the batteries, how to wire them, and how to choose and install a Battery Management System. So if you has some DIY skills you can build a storage battery system for a lot less than a commercial unit.

This channel is pretty good. https://www.youtube.com/@RayBuildsCoolStuff
Click to expand...
Yes but if you use it in your home you probably won't get it pass an electrical inspector. No electrical inspection, no insurance.
 
jderimig said:
Yes but if you use it in your home you probably won't get it pass an electrical inspector. No electrical inspection, no insurance.
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In addition if something is done that is not properly inspected it must be disclosed when selling the home. Failure to disclose improvements that have not been properly permitted leaves a seller open to liability after the sale. DIY’s can be a big problem in home sales.
 
boatgeek said:
Eh, there's a fine line/gray area between scam and pushy sales, which is why I said slightly scammy. Without knowing any more about the situation, I think it's pretty unlikely that panels up the box canyon walls are going to be a viable solution either from an engineering or aesthetic standpoint.
Click to expand...
I’m wondering what’s the smallest box canyon out there. 🤔

I guess I’m imaging a geographic feature that would qualify but who knows if it actually exists.
:questions:

But yeah, living down there would be a joke in itself.

Recent article on setting up solar:

My Off-Grid Project: The Secrets I Learned to Save on Solar
https://www.cnet.com/home/energy-an...ct-the-secrets-i-learned-to-maximize-savings/
 
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