Solar Power?

[mustardman]

The one thing that Doesn't get talked about enough is Energy Conservation

Heard that half of the energy we produce gets Wasted thru leaky buildings ,leaving lights on etc.etc
Our first step as Individual is to stop being wasteful

[biglentil]

There is a passive solar system for aeration bind its in The Book. Forget its name big black bladder that mounts to the intake of the fan.

[LEP]

Thanks for the current breakdown of costs. So we can all see solar has a long way to go to even be considered viable.

The only way it is considered is if you are making a decision and someone else is paying for it. That is what Wynne and Notley are doing.

Hamloc see if your neighbours will pay for it then it becomes viable.

[RD414]

Mustard, somebody mentioned it a few threads ago, air conditioning uses huge amounts of electricity every year. Bet 98% of young entitled would not think of giving that up.

[jamesb]

because energy has been so cheap here in Canada we have never had to really look for energy savings. In my travels I have seen lots of devices that would make things cheaper. On demand water heaters are all the rage in Europe. We easily could utilize rooftop water heaters to bump up the heating of water in the summer months. the list goes on.

[grassfarmer]

As 15444 says you've got to think of a different way to do it. What kind of trough uses a 2000 watt heater? Is it a concrete one?
I got a quote for a solar system for 150 cows, 15 foot lift from a wet well. Anti vortex system from Sundog Solar. They were only using a 175 watt panel and $700 of batteries. The whole package including 30' cribbing, submersible pump, panels, batteries, self draining trough, motion eye sensor, wiring etc was @$5000.

I prefer frostfree nosepumps. No solar panels, no wires, no water heaters. Just a cow powered winter watering solution.

We also put in an energy efficient waterer in another location - it takes a 500 watt heater but if you build enclosed boxes around them with a curtained hole for them to stick their heads in and drink it uses very little power.

[Jay-mo]

Solar panels (photovoltaic) are not even worth talking about for heating purposes.
I can't remember exactly but I think they are only 10-15% efficient.
Passive solar heating through efficient design of a building is a great way to take a good bite out of your heating bill. However it still doesn't help you much for the other 20 hours of the day on Dec 27th when the sun is down.
Going off the grid in our climate looks to be a ways off unless you're burning wood. That's carbon neutral right??

[STR1]

Mustardman

I agree there is allot of talk around climate change and renewable energy...........but I rarely hear about reducing energy waste! I think that would be the first place to start?
We were much more energy conscience when I was a kid on the farm, I remember Dad ranting about lights left on that weren't being used!! Back then he remembered what it was like to not have power and he really valued it!!

[grassfarmer]

STR1, Maybe my Scottish upbringing but we never lost the thrift habit. I always thought farmers were natural recyclers but I can't believe the wastage that goes on nowadays though. I pick up some stuff every time I'm at the landfill - corrugated roofing sheets, rigid foam insulation, lumber, steel - some of it is new, often offcuts from tradesmen working on jobs. Does nobody ever think of setting leftovers aside for future use anymore? I've been able to do a lot of repair/construction jobs around the farm with these free materials.

[15444]

GF, you can save a lot of money by sourcing a unit through Kelln. SunDog prices are ridiculous.
I priced them all before I started buying Kelln units.