Green Private Energy Independence

[JohnRoberts]

French nuclear generation output is down due to cooling system maintenance issues (something about a strike by union workers delayed work ).

I am repeating myself but the low hanging fruit is better home insulation. I have seen dramatic savings and improved comfort since investing in a modern heat pump.

JR

PS; I like Elon's idea of solar shingles, sadly impractical (not cost effective yet), but maybe in his lifetime (not mine). Another likely candidate for government largess. Elon is attracted to the government teat like a hungry pup.

 

[AnalogPackrat]

The french decided to cover all parkings over 80 cars with a solar-cell roof. Doubles as a sunroof for the parked cars. Both will be needed.

That's happening in the US also. It makes sense as the mostly paved area isn't going to be a carbon sink anyway (though many lots have trees and other landscaping that looks nicer than a big solar array and does do something to convert CO2 to O2).

 

[AnalogPackrat]

I am repeating myself but the low hanging fruit is better home insulation. I have seen dramatic savings and improved comfort since investing in a modern heat pump.

I'm working on that as well. And a radiant barrier. Two old heat pumps will be upgraded to more efficient units before next summer. I doubt they'll last 18 years like the ones they'll replace.

 

[living sounds]

I don't think that's going to work when you add in all of the cargo trucks, big rigs, and buses. Then factor in efficiency drops due to latitude, cloudy weather, snow, dirty panels, etc. They hint at this, but fail to explain it fully. Finally they do admit that storage is necessary and expensive.

I'm not anti-PV--considering installing some here where I can save on summer AC costs (I'm around 34N latitude). But it isn't economical for everyone. It also isn't affordable for many people. In my state we have significant nuclear generation (~30%) which is reliable and safe. We also have hydro. Both have predictable output, unlike solar. Outages here are rare compared to California which has far too much dependence on weather-dependent sources and is actively removing predictable generation plants.

Yes, I think we all agree that storage is the big problem. One simple solution (probably not for the small scale, though) seems to be concrete blocks:



https://singularityhub.com/2021/09/...y-in-concrete-blocks-just-raised-100-million/
But as stated above, I think the better solution would be chemical energy, we need to figure out how to converter renewable energy efficiently into easily storeable and burnable liquid or gas. It has the added advantage of creating heat when burned. I am thinking of tanks getting filled during the warm season that are used during the cold season.

Longer term fusion is inevitable for resilliance, since this is the only energy source signficantly independent of sun reaching the surface and hard to get nuclear fuel sources. Wind and solar isn't of much use when a catastrophic event like a huge volcano outbourst, large meteor or significant nuclear exchange happens.

 

[JohnRoberts]

I'm working on that as well. And a radiant barrier. Two old heat pumps will be upgraded to more efficient units before next summer. I doubt they'll last 18 years like the ones they'll replace.

I am really happy with the Mitsubishi split I bought a few years ago. Since I replaced in-wall resistance heat and live in a moderate climate the savings are notable.

JR

 

[living sounds]

Even more on gravity energy storage:

https://www.wired.com/story/energy-vault-gravity-storage/

 

[AnalogPackrat]

I am really happy with the Mitsubishi split I bought a few years ago. Since I replaced in-wall resistance heat and live in a moderate climate the savings are notable.

JR

That's what I'm looking at for the smaller unit that handles my over-garage man cave. Did you DIY? The other one is spread across multiple rooms and will just have new outside compressor and attic air handler updated. Existing ductwork is tight.

 

[JohnRoberts]

That's what I'm looking at for the smaller unit that handles my over-garage man cave. Did you DIY? The other one is spread across multiple rooms and will just have new outside compressor and attic air handler updated. Existing ductwork is tight.

No I hired a commercial installer to get the proper warranty, etc. I have a friend in GA who went the DIY route and volunteered to assist me with charging the unit but I passed.

In hindsight the only decisions I would rethink is to go for even more capacity. My original plan was to size it based on old air conditioners I replaced. The dealer talked me into a larger unit, I am glad I took his advice. I already experienced one heat wave last summer where the unit was not able to maintain temperature. That said I am using a single split wall mounted unit to cool/heat my entire house. It does remarkably well. I installed a 8"diameter blower with ducting to pull cool/warm air from right by the wall unit and pump it into my back bedroom. It does not take much air flow to equalize temperatures.

It seems like a huge luxury to just set a temperature and forget about it. The only awkwardness is switching between heating and cooling season and we can get warm (hot) days after that switch... I am expecting a cold system coming in this weekend.

JR

 

[JohnRoberts]

Japan has just announced progress in an alternate solar panel technology. A very thin film, iodine based, solar technology is apparently capable of 25% efficiency so comparable to silicon technology (that China pretty much controls). The apparent weakness to the new Japanese solar cells is that they are sensitive to water/moisture. They are working on scaling up production with glass sealed cells. The target is 10 year life.

Not ready for prime time, but interesting.

JR

 

[JohnRoberts]

My one heat pump to heat/cool my entire house is marginal. These mini-split models are designed for one room. After the recent cold spell I am semi seriously considering adding a second heat pump to my back bedroom. This does not make strong economic sense as I can use the existing in-wall resistance heat for serious cold snaps.

On topic I notice that heat pump technology is pushing the limits of extreme cold weather operation with two stage compressors, to compress the already compressed refrigerant. I like heat pumps, but they aren't cheap.
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On a related subject I have been wondering who wrote the memo that in the future all cars will be battery EVs. Apparently the market customers didn't get that memo and are instead embracing hybrid EVs that avoid the range anxiety with IC motors JIC. Sadly this defeats one major benefit of battery EVs namely that they are supposed to be simpler and cheaper to build. The hybrids clearly add a layer of complexity. This should make the labor unions happy who were not looking forward losing auto factory jobs.

JR