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Thread: Solar Power for dummies...off grid hook up.

  1. #11
    LHBA Member rreidnauer's Avatar
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    Technically, one *could* express energy as kilowatt-days, and be correct. It just isn't a good way to express it due to the time scale.

    Just sayin' cuz it's fun to be a pita.
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  2. #12
    LHBA Member StressMan79's Avatar
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    Indeed, I think it is the same as "my grill puts out 100,000btu." No it doesn't! Btu is a unit of energy. They mean "btu/hr." Misuse has been so rampant that it has become accepted practice.

    Sent from my Galaxy S4 using Forum Runner

  3. #13
    LHBA Member loghousenut's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by StressMan79 View Post
    Misuse has been so rampant that it has become accepted practice.
    Now that it is acceptable to interchange power and energy, I will commit a comment about Tin Hat and his video. I think he did a fairly professional outline for an amateur. It didn't appear that his target audience would be MIT students, but rather a bunch of normal burger flippers and truck drivers who wanted to know if they were too stupid to figure out solar power (energy).

    Over the years I have pieced together two solar energy (power) setups and several microhydroelectric systems, and it all seemed to happen with nothing more than hippie/farmer/trucker engineering skills on my part. This technology has made that possible. A person could still get in over her/his head and make a mess of things, but I think it is totally reasonable to think that a normal ole non-metric bumpkin can go off-grid without candles and kerosene. It IS rocket science but seems to be a technology that can be exploited, just like it is possible for a shade tree mechanic to muddle though OBD II and keep the old Dodge on the road.

    I watched the whole Tin Hat video and caught a few parts that I would have worded differently, but that happens all the time with me. I just wish I could learn to word differently some of the carp that comes out of my mouth. I think I need an editor.

    Didn't really like the hippie video... Too close to home.



    PS... Not meaning to offend the engineers here. I admire that thought process which you possess and I never will. Just pointing out that some of us seem to be able to make a life of it all even if we can't figure out what you folks is talking about.

    I also admire folks who speak Canadian, even though I can't understand them.

    (PLEASE DO NOT READ THAT LAST LINE)
    Last edited by loghousenut; 05-20-2015 at 08:51 AM.
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  4. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by rreidnauer View Post
    Technically, one *could* express energy as kilowatt-days, and be correct. It just isn't a good way to express it due to the time scale.

    Just sayin' cuz it's fun to be a pita.
    :-D


    Peter

  5. #15
    Is a smaller scale off gride system any more practical than a large one?

    If I am on well water and the power goes out- I have no water. If I have a wood boiler and have no power I have no heat. Would having a small sstem that could power the above and maybe an LED bulb or two be cost effective?

  6. #16
    LHBA Member rreidnauer's Avatar
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    Well, strictly for emergency backup power, a large UPS system would make more sense, instead of a standby solar system.
    All my bad forum habits I learned from LHN

    Rod Reidnauer
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  7. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by thoner7 View Post
    Is a smaller scale off gride system any more practical than a large one?

    If I am on well water and the power goes out- I have no water. If I have a wood boiler and have no power I have no heat. Would having a small sstem that could power the above and maybe an LED bulb or two be cost effective?

    Pumping into a potable water storage tank is a good backup for drinking water. The Well I have pumps into a 3,000 gallon tank then a psi pump off of the tank if power is out or other failures occur you can always fill a bucket from the tank . Also with this setup the Well pump does not cycle on/off as much.
    Last edited by rawson; 05-21-2015 at 12:33 PM.

  8. #18
    how long is a UPS good for?

    Even a small permanent generator would be 2-3 grand.

  9. #19
    LHBA Member edkemper's Avatar
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    Only if you wanted to power up every electrical appliance you have. A much smaller ginny for an emergency is enough. Well under a grand.
    edkemper

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  10. #20
    LHBA Member rreidnauer's Avatar
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    Would depend greatly on how big a UPS you get and how much you are running on it, but if you don't mind a power disruption until a generator starts up, it's probably most cost effective way to go. Just be careful on rated/surge watt ratings. They are usually inflated from reality. I have a 3250w that has a hard time even running my septic pump, and usually isn't able to start my table saw, and thats even after running it through a 5kva transformer to take advantage of the full phase of the genny.

    Cripes, last job I was at, we had three big UPS units lying around unused. (I disposed of 11,000 pounds of batteries from two of them) I think two were 80kva and one a 160kva. Probably could find one for free somewhere, and install fresh batteries.
    All my bad forum habits I learned from LHN

    Rod Reidnauer
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