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Sun Volt

Sun Volt Solar

earth, the final frontier

Clean Energy, Clean Environment

We are at a cross roads in human history, we can choose to continue on as we have been, or we can make a change to improve our future and quite possibly the future for several generations to come. We are here to promote energy independence, a better environment, a secure future and a higher return on investment for your hard earned dollar. It is what I believe in, it is why I am in the solar business.

Green jobs effort destined for wretched failure

31 Aug 10 | General

At least, according to one conservative talk radio host.  Yesterday, I was tuning around on the radio when I heard an interesting conversation.  The talk show host, we’ll just call him Denis, because, that is his name, and a caller were lamenting the about the green jobs effort.  The gist of the conversation was this; in ten years, nobody will remember the so called green jobs and it is a monumental waste of time and money.  They then went on to compare it to things like New Coke, Clear Coke, etc.

The specific reason for failure:  Re-hiring laid off workers.  This is where it gets interesting.  It seems that laid off workers are some combination of lazy, feckless and inept persons.  That is why they were laid off in the first place.  Any worker that was worth his/her salt would still be employed, regardless of the economy.

Ahh, so that’s it.  It has nothing to do with the technology, but rather the people who work in the green economy.

This is what I like to call “The great American disconnect,” where pundits of all stripes make broad general statements that they are little qualified to make; having no background, education, experience or training in the subject about which they are proclaiming.  Denis Miller is a stand up comedian, for God’s sake.  He was a journalism major.  What practical knowledge does he have of the economy, business, employment, renewable energy, green technology,  or really anything at all.

According to Webster’s Dictionary, a pundit is one who gives authoritative opinions on matters, usually through the mass media.  Sadly, I doubt Denis Miller has even an inkling of the electrical generation and distribution grid.  The very same system that allows him to sit in an air conditioned studio behind a microphone making such statements, which are then relayed across the country via satellite and broadcast out on any number of AM radio stations.  I doubt he knows that the electrical power generation system is about 29% efficient.  I further doubt that he cares much at all about energy independence, self reliance, pollution reduction or any other side benefit of green technology.  It is easier to cast dispersions on things not understood, than to go about learning truths, some of them painful, for long held beliefs.

I know several hard working people who were laid off, who would like nothing better than to gain meaningful employment and contribute to society again.  Sadly, in this time of record corporate profits, companies would rather sit on their hands than commit to re-hiring workers.  More sadly still, the highly partisan congress fiddles while main street burns.

The old system is being chipped away.  When it comes to green technology and renewable energy; either lead, follow, or get out of the way.

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31 Aug 10 | General | Comments (0)

Renewable Energy Storage, pumped hydro electric systems

23 Aug 10 | General, Technology

One of the issues with renewable energy, as opposed to fossil fuel based energy, is energy storage.  The sun doesn’t always shine and the wind doesn’t alway blow.  On any given day, solar and wind output can vary by large percentages.  With large grid interconnected generating systems, this can lead to large swings in output which need to be smoothed out by some type of conventional generating system.  In peak demand situations, it can lead to serious shortfalls in the electricity supply which need to be acted on quickly, or else a blackout will ensue.

On a small scale stand alone systems, liquid electrolite batteries are an acceptable solution.  A lead acid battery bank can store excess electricity generated by a wind or PV system for when it is needed.  The battery bank can be sized for known weather conditions to meet minimum autonomy requirements.  That is a pretty well known formula.

On a larger scale, battery banks are not practical in either expense or physical size considerations.  Imagine the size of the battery bank required to run New York City during a four day blizzard.

In a large scale setting, some other energy storage device is needed.  A hydro electric plant and can be designed to come on line quickly and run on a sliding output scale while depleting it’s reservoir up to 60%.  During peak solar and wind production times, when both of those systems are generating excess energy, that energy can be used to turn pump motors to fill up the reservoir.   When there are peak demand periods, the water will be discharged though generating turbines.   As the water level decreases, the amount of kinetic energy output also decreases, at some point, the turbine attached to the energy system will no longer function.  Since neither matter nor energy can be destroyed, the potential energy is equal to the height of the retaining dam, the volume of flow and the efficiency of the generators and pump motors.

Hydro electric does have some environmental aspects.  Creating dams and reservoirs floods previously ruins habitat for people and animals.  Frequently draining the reservoir down to 40% levels would have serious adverse effects on any marine life contained in it.  It would also be expensive to construct.  On the other side, using nuclear or fossil fuel baseline generation creates environmental impacts from mining, processing, shipping, storage and consumption.  The bottom line is, if we want to continue with our modern society, then choices (compromises) need to be made.

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23 Aug 10 | General, Technology | Comment (1)

NYSERDA funds PV rebate program through 2015

06 Aug 10 | Solar Electric

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has updated it’s PV rebate program, formerly known as PON 1050, now known as PON 2112.  In the new program, 2 million dollars per month is allocated to PV installations.  Rebates are capped at various levels, 7 KW DC for residential, 25 KW for non-profits, and 50 KW for government installations.  The cash rebate is $1.75 per installed watt, however, if demand exceeds 2 million dollars in any particular month, that amount can be adjusted downward.

The prices of PV panels have dropped from the highs seen two years ago, leveling off in the $2-3 per watt range.  The balance of system parts also have more options available, so system prices are still edging downward, slowly.  Eventually, those prices will bottom out and begin to climb as energy prices in general increase.

Installation season is in full swing, so if you would like to get in on the action, give us a call.

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06 Aug 10 | Solar Electric | Comments (0)

New York A7557A fixes some of it’s net metering law

30 Jul 10 | Solar Electric, Wind Power

New York legislature has fixed at least one issue with the net metering law (PSL 66) with A7557A, which was signed by the Governor last March.  The law took effect yesterday.  Here are some of the issues addressed:

  1. Removed the requirement that solar generating equipment not exceed customer’s peak load.
  2. Removed the requirement that wind generating equipment not exceed customer’s peak load.
  3. Make certain provisions for commercial customers to pay for the installation of safety equipment

Increasing solar and wind generating capacities are a step in the right direction.  If a customer has a resource that is available to be used to generate power for other electrical customers, there is no reason not to take advantage of it.

The utility companies buy this power at wholesale rates and sell it for retail to the next few customers down the line.  Everyone wins.

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30 Jul 10 | Solar Electric, Wind Power | Comment (1)

New York to chart a Solar Thermal course

26 Jul 10 | Solar Hot Water, solar thermal

New York state has been providing incentives for photovoltaics  (PV) for several years now through NYSERDA.  Solar Thermal (ST) has relied mainly on tax incentives from the federal and state governments without direct rebates.  On average, about 500 ST systems have been installed per year in NY, vs. 20,000 systems per year for PV.  That is about to change.

According to the Customer Sited Tier Program released on June 29, 2010:

The following guidelines are expected to be incorporated into the solicitation(s):

1. Eligible measures are solar water heating for residential (single and multifamily), commercial buildings, and non-profits that replaces or displaces electric water heating. Equipment and systems must be certified by the Solar Rating and Certification Corporation (SRCC).
2. Expected performance will be based on the Solar Rating and Certification Corporation (SRCC) estimates or standard industry software such as RETScreen.
3. Incentives will be based on expected performance in $/kWh/yr or $/MMBtu/yr up to a maximum of 40% of installed cost after all other tax credits have been applied, with a set dollar maximum for residential and non-residential systems.
4. The program will be first-come, first-served. The residential program is likely to be implemented as a simple incentive process, as the typical residential system is small and often pre-packaged.
5. Solar Thermal hot water systems will receive incentives as an alternative to electric water heating only. MWhs saved due to electric water heating replacement/supplementation with solar water heating will be calculated and scored towards the RPS goal.
6. Installers will be required to conduct annual follow-up visits for a designated period of time.

Customer Eligibility Criteria:

  • customers must pay into the RPS
  • new or existing homes and buildings will be eligible
  • five-year warranty for the system will be required
  • residential customers must have a New York ENERGY STAR® home or have a “clip board”” or walk through energy audit conducted to determine cost-effective energy efficiency measures related to electricity use. Customers will NOT be required to implement energy efficiency measures to receive an incentive.

The largest cost savings gains can be realized by those who use electric to heat their hot water.  As I discovered first hand, about three years ago, my electric bill dropped by 1/3 when I installed a Solar Domestic Hot Water (SDHW) system.  My electric use went from over 12,000 kWh per year to just under 8,300 kWh per year.  In today’s money, that equates to $600.00 annual savings in electric costs.

The goal of NYSERDA in creating this incentive is to raise awareness of ST and increase installations to the same level as PV, which is about 20,000 installation per year in NYS.   As I have outlined in the past, the benefits of ST are:

  1. Less expensive than PV.  Consumers that use electricity to heat there water can make an apples to apples comparison and find that a SDHW system will cost about 10-15% what a PV system costs for the same energy output.
  2. Faster payback times.  Because of the reduced costs, paybacks range in the 5-6 year time frame with fewer rebates.
  3. Less regulator concerns.  A PV system requires many, many layers of bureaucracy to complete.  A ST system permitting and installation is usually straight forward.
  4. Energy output from ST is stable and does not decline with time.  PV systems age and slowly reduce the power output from individual panels.  ST systems have no such issues.
  5. More tolerant to shading and siting problems.  Not that a system should be intentionally installed in a shaded location, however, they will not drastically reduce their output if subject to some minimal diffused shading such as deciduous trees in winter time.

Not that I want to beat up on PV, that too is a fine system.  Solar Thermal, however, has several distinct advantages over PV, especially for a homeowner on a budget.

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26 Jul 10 | Solar Hot Water, solar thermal | Comment (1)

Off grid solar system for construction site

18 Jul 10 | Solar Electric

This was a unique and fun project.  A fellow is constructing an off grid home in upstate NY.  His idea, since the house is going to be off grid anyway, why not put in a temporary system to power tools and such while building the structure.  When the house is completed, the system can then be moved inside.  He is also living onsite in a yurt, so having electricity available to charge laptops, run the well pump and other things that most of us take for granted would be a great side benefit.

To start, he purchased a portable saw mill and began clearing the lot.  Using trees he cut down on site, he built this temporary power shed to house the inverter, charge controller and batteries:

Temporary power shed made from onsite harvested and milled lumber

We used a bit of left over rubber roof membrane to water proof the roof prior to installing the PV panels.  The PV panels are Sharp NU-235F1 mounted on Unirac rails.

Power shed with roofing and solar panels attached

The inverter is a Xantrex XW-6048 with a XW-MMPT solar charge controller.  Also used are the XW power distribution panel, the XW control panel and generator start panel.  Since this system is going to be used in the finished house, we choose the larger inverter.  This house has a well that is 380 feet deep and uses a Goulds 1 1/2 HP submersible pump.  This pump is the largest single draw in the entire system, starting surge of about 5,000 watts and using 2,100 watts when running.  The 6 KW inverter is able to handle this without problem.

Balances of system parts, off grid system

The batteries are  16 Surrette S-530 flooded cells.

The wall between the batteries and the inverter has 30 pound roof felt to act as a corrosive barrier between the batteries and the electronics.  Ventilation is copious.  The tarp is placed over the opening when the system is not in use.

The house itself is in progress, with the foundation completed and the floor slab being prepared for pouring soon.

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18 Jul 10 | Solar Electric | Comments (0)

The New York Solar Industry and Jobs act (S. 7093b A. 11004a)

11 Jul 10 | Commentary, Incentives

I have stated before, renewable energy needs to compete head to head with fossil fuels based energy in order for it to thrive.  At the current time, that does not seem likely because of all the corporate welfare being doled out to the big oil, coal and gas companies in the form of tax breaks and subsides.  Those subsides are a hidden cost that we all pay in our income taxes.  The real way to get people to reduce or stop using oil is to raise the prices.  Cutting subsides would do exactly that and lead to reduced government spending at the same time.

In New York State, a move is afoot to increase the RPS standard by increasing an already existing surcharge on all publicly traded NY based electric utilities.  As the report indicates, it would cost the average utility costumer about $0.39 per month additional.  For this amount, it is estimated that 22,000 jobs will be created in the solar power sector and $20 billion in additional economic output will be realized.

I normally cast a jaundiced eye toward job creation claims in pending legislation, those claims are usually highly optimistic and never fully pan out.  Even so, if this proposed bill produced even half the estimated jobs, it would be a good thing.  Further still, when all the publicly traded utility companies in NY ban together in strong opposition of said bill, it is worthy of a second look.  Things that highly agitate the utility companies are likely good for the consumer.

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11 Jul 10 | Commentary, Incentives | Comment (1)

It’s raining oil, and that is not a good thing

23 Jun 10 | Environment

I am still at wonder with the oil leak (spill?) in the gulf.  The latest thing is this video from New Orleans showing and oily sheen on pavement after a rain storm:

The camera operator seems to think it is coming from the rain, it may be, it may not be.  According to NOAA:

National Weather Service Science and Operations Officer Charlie Paxton says while it’s always possible a water spout could pick up some oil and carry it a short distance, the notion of black rain is just not possible. Paxton says that’s because oil does not evaporate. As a result, talk of black rain is just a myth.

Alright, black rain, myth, I’ll buy that, but crude oil does evaporate, even at low vapor pressures found on the surface of the ocean in the Gulf of Mexico. I don’t know the chemical composition of the crude bubbling out of the broken well head in the gulf, but if it is similar to other gulf crude, then it has a lot of VOC’s mixed in with heavier components. Sunlight shining on a patch of brown crude sludge floating on the surface would more than likely raise the vapor pressure high enough to cause it to evaporate. Based on what I learned in chemistry 101, it would be a safe bet to say that 10-20% percent of the surface oil will evaporate.

It is also not at all a stretch to say that those compounds could condense with the low temperatures at high altitude, the same way water vapor does.  So, while black rain might not be possible, light brown or clear oil rain is possible.  What is not clear in this video is whether or not this is spilled oil seeping up through the pavement and washing away, or if it is light oil coming down with the rain.

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23 Jun 10 | Environment | Comment (1)

Fixing the blame for the Gulf oil Spill

06 Jun 10 | Conservation, Environment

The Japanese have a very good saying, “Fix the problem, not the blame.”  With all of the anger flowing toward BP for their part in the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico, I thought it might be interesting to examine those reactions a little bit.  I understand the frustration, especially of those that live and work on those waters.  Many of the fisherman have been doing that for all their lives, their father’s lives too.  Watching the brown goo wash up on shore, the horrible pictures of birds covered in oil, dead sea turtles, and sharks is heart rending.

Watching the enraged public demonstrating in front of BP service stations and the somewhat muted anger of our chief executive is an interesting contrast to the true situation.  Deep water drilling and production is a hugely complicated and expensive enterprise.  To be sure, no one at BP could foresee these events and perhaps the actions of the drill rig crew were a little lax.  But the truth of the matter is, BP would not be drilling in deep water if there were not customers for their product.  They certainly would not go through all that trouble, expense and exposure to produce a marginal product that might or might not be sold.

To be certain, BP and the drill rig operator, Trans Ocean are culpable, there is a long list of others that contributed.  All of those that drive cars, trucks, ships, ride on trains, aircraft, buses, use electricity from the electrical grid, and use petro chemical products like plastic containers are also responsible.  Without end users, BP would have no reason to be in deep water drilling for oil.   So, while it is all good fun to drive home after the demonstration and upload the photos to the internet, look in the mirror; you can blame that person too.

We know what the problem is, an addiction to oil, it is up to all of us to fix that problem, each in his or her own way.

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06 Jun 10 | Conservation, Environment | Comments (2)

Gulf oil spill and our energy future

30 May 10 | Commentary

There is not much that I can add to the online discussion about the Gulf oil spill.  It is disheartening to say the lest, the oil spill will have environmental impacts for decades if not generations.  I have been gathering information from several websites, the most informed from an oil production standpoint seems to be The Oil Drum.  There, based on pressures and volumes of mud used in the failed top kill attempt, they have estimated the oil flow to be about 17,000 barrels (715,000 gallons) per day.  On this, the thirtieth day of May, that equates to 680,000 barrels (28,560,000 gallons) of oil spilled.  Add to this the hundreds of thousands of gallons of chemical dispersant and the picture in the Gulf becomes bleak to put it mildly.

In all likelihood, this will continue until the relief well is completed in August.  By that time 1.7 million barrels (71.4 million gallons) of oil will have been released into the Gulf.

There are a few things to keep in mind:

  1. Oil breaks down naturally in sunlight into mostly CO2 and water.  A great majority of oil formed in the past eons has seeped to the surface to evaporate and be broken down by the sun.  Only oil trapped under impermeable rock has formed reservoirs.  This is less than 5% of the hydrocarbons created.  The oil released into the Gulf will go the same course, over time.
  2. The US alone burns 19,498,000 barrels of oil per day.  To give some perspective 29 Gulf oil spills will be needed to equal one day of oil consumption in the US.
  3. An active Hurricane season may hasten the breaking up of oil globs and cause it to break down faster, so long as the storm surge does not push large amounts of oil inland and contaminate shore side marshes.

The bad news is that as the oil breaks down, especially the underwater oil plumes, they will rob oxygen from the surrounding water creating huge dead zones.  There will also be deposits of residual chemicals such as sulfur and heavy compounds that will settle to the bottom of the sea.  No one really knows what effect the chemical dispersant will have on life in the Gulf, but one can hazard a guess that it will not be positive.

So, what effects has this had on the energy discussion in the US?  Sadly, not much.  There are a number of outraged persons demonstrating in front of BP gas stations, that is true.  Unfortunately, unless members of congress can be swayed, nothing bad will happen to BP or the oil industry in general.  I would expect the oil lobby to contribute handily to many re-election campaigns this year, ’cause thats how business is done.  Once the spill is capped, everyone will calm down and it will be business as usual for the oil business.

As an energy and environmentally conscious individual, all I can do is turn inward and make sure that I and my family do everything possible to reduce our own use of fossil fuels.  That is all any of us can do.

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30 May 10 | Commentary | Comments (0)
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