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Thinking Green

Jun 3rd, 2009 by Greenist

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Today I was thinking about my green project of building a solar panel while I was out and about doing errands.  Enjoying the dream of the buckets of money that the power company will be paying me as the Solar panels over produce free captured energy, I could not help but notice the number of people that just tossed garbage from their car window.  Aside from the illegality of the littering, I was outraged at the disregard for being environmentally friendly.

It was at that moment I realized that the entire Green movement is dependent on FREE, or at least sufficient value.  All things green and environmentally friendly have a cost.  Each of us makes a determination with respect to an acceptable price for saving the planet, being green, preserving the environment and generally being a good citizen of the Earth.

So, I quit!  No not really, I am now more energized than ever to find cost effective and complete green solutions that have high payouts, are totally free, or inspire people to be more sensitive to the environment.  The last part being the most important and easiest to achieve.

So, I am now looking for comments and ideas of how to achieve this grass roots [yes a green quip, sorry] movement that has no cost associated.  I intend to try and think of at least one green environmentally friendly approach each day.  If it is successful, it will make the blog.

I invite anyone interested in supporting this effort to do the same, and I will happily post your thoughts as comments, or if you wish, you can contact me and discuss writing directly to the blog.

Enjoy the sun,

Greenist

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Memorial Day

May 23rd, 2009 by Greenist

This is simply a post to acknowledge the members of the United States Military Services.

While we may not agree with the motivations of where our Country has landed troops and what we are doing around the world, we should have positive thoughts for the individuals that have chosen to safeguard our homes, rights and privileges.

I have known many members of the Military Service, and they are fine people.  Those who have fallen should also be remebered for thier efforts on our behalf.

This weekend, even if you don’t agree with the current U.S. Militray actions, have kind thoughts for those who have entered into harms way and my suffer irreparable injury or death.

The Greenist



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DIY Solar Panel Kits– Is everyone actually testing them?

May 22nd, 2009 by Greenist

As a Green Enthusiast, I am challenged with claims for products that promote or provide guidance on building Green DIY projects that suggest anyone can achieve positive results.

I have come across many websites that have nearly the same add for the two leading kits, and I am not suggesting they are not the best.  What I am wondering about is how many of these affiliates have actually built the systems versus just using the copy-text provided by the affiliate sites.

For example, the puppy poop composter project, which I have blogged about on this site, was an actual project that was completed in my yard with pictures to show the process and the finished product.

Over the next couple of weeks I intend to investigate and build a solar energy capture system or wind turbine system, to see if they are as easy as the claims and will they work.  The one thing I am doing in advance is contacting an electrician to ensure I am electrical code compliant.

So, be wary of the advertising gurus, not that there is anything wrong with this, and be sure you can find someone who is actually building and installing these DIY projects.

Have fun,

Greenist



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Transparent plastic solar cells fitted into windows

May 10th, 2009 by Greenist

Solar company Konarka has developed a transparent solar cell that it hopes will be built onto electricity-generating windows.

The Lowell, Mass.-based company on Tuesday said it has reached an agreement with Arch Aluminum & Glass to use Konarka’s plastic solar cells in building materials, including windows.


A transparent solar cell Konarka hopes will be fitted into power-generating windows.

(Credit: Konarka)

Under its Arch Active Solar Glass development, the company has built prototypes of windows with the solar cells between two panes of glass. The photovoltaic cells can be tinted different colors.

“It is energy-efficient and transparent with superior vertical performance and a subtle red, blue or green aesthetic. With these features, BIPV (building-integrated photovoltaics) will no longer need to be confined to spandrel or overhead applications,” Arch CEO Leon Silverstein said in a statement.

Konarka makes organic solar cells made from flexible plastic. Last fall, it opened a factory in Massachusetts to manufacture the cells which come off assembly lines as spools fitted with wires to carry electricity.

The advantage of these flexible cells is that they can be used for a wide range of applications, such as power-generating military tents, portable chargers for electronics, and sensors.

Photos: Building on flexible solar cells

But these organic photovoltaics aren’t very efficient at converting sunlight to electricity and won’t last as long as a rooftop solar panel, which is typically under warranty for 25 years. Konarka said late last year that it achieved 6 percent efficiency in its labs but that’s not yet available in its products. A high-efficiency silicon solar cell, the most common cell material, can be over 20 percent.

Konarka’s factory is turning out red solar cells but has started making the transparent cells in limited runs for prototypes and development, according to a representative.

Although Konarka has raised over $100 million and has signed a number of partnerships, there are many people who are skeptical that the company can be profitable.

“The real key will be to see if they can make building-integrated products that can stand the weather for 20-plus years,” clean-tech venture capitalist Rob Day from @Ventures told Greentech Media in December last year.

Konarka also faces growing competition in the building-integrated photovoltaics field. Thin-film solar manufacturers, including Heliovot, also make flexible cells that can be fitted onto glass or building structures such as awnings but are more efficient. Nanosolar’s cells made from CIGS (copper indium gallium selenide), for example, are in the 9 percent to 10 percent range.


via by Martin LaMonica

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Residential Wind Turbine Introduced at WINDPOWER 2009

May 9th, 2009 by Greenist

Flagstaff Firm Announces Newest Household Wind Turbine

Southwest Windpower, the world’s largest manufacturer of small wind turbines, announced their newest residential wind turbine at the residential-wind-turbineWINDPOWER 2009 conference. Thanks to a $10 million investment from GE, the company was able to assemble Skystream, a 2.4 kilowatt generating wind turbine which may help cut energy costs significantly for single-family homes by supplying anywhere from 40 to 90 percent of renewable electricity. The technology is open to homeowners with a 4-5 year payback, relying upon how ideal the site is for wind and how excessive existing energy bills are. President Obama’s package also includes a 30 percent renewable energy credit for those who invest in residential wind power.

Darrin Russell of Southwest Windpower boasts that, although the $14,000 price tag may be an issue, the benefits from installing a household wind turbine are well worth the up-front expenditure. “It’s nice watching the [electricity] meter go backward. Sometimes it gets going pretty fast when the wind blows hard.” Russell said. He also made it clear that, with federal tax credit and state rebates, there is going to be much more cash coming in than flowing out after the initial installation. Russell asserts that after the first month of turbine usage, his energy bill was zero – a breath of fresh air from standard electricity charges. Unfortunately, municipal laws often condition that one-half acre of land is needed to construct wind turbines in residential zoning areas, probably due to neighbors not too enthused about viewing or hearing a large wind turbine next door.

Despite current state laws, GE spokesperson Kevin Skillern senses huge potential for small-scale wind energy: “The market is currently just $100 million in total sales, but has been growing 40 to 50 percent a year for a handful of years. What we see is really a transition point where the combination of stimulus programs and technology advancements make this a highly economic purchase for nearly half of the U.S. population.” Wind energy installations have soared from $3 billion in 2005 to $17 billion in 2008 and are projected to decrease to $13 billion this year, according to Reuters. The wind industry is eager to receive a government-backed security that would require 25 percent of electricity generated in the United States be produced using renewable energy by the year 2025. As of April 2009, U.S. wind power installation capacity exceeds 28,000 megawatts – enough to supply over 8 million households with green renewable energy and evade C02 emissions by over 50 million tons annually.

Check out the demo video here: Skystream 3.7 Compact Residential Wind Turbine

Via Green Energy NewsTM

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