wpns
Solar Joules are catch and release
This is where Net Metering (aka: The Grid Is My Battery) really shines. It's infinitely large, and there are no infrastructure costs. Also why Net Metering is under attack, and going away in many places.
You don’t have to net meter.This is where Net Metering (aka: The Grid Is My Battery) really shines. It's infinitely large, and there are no infrastructure costs. Also why Net Metering is under attack, and going away in many places.
Also why Net Metering is under attack, and going away in many places.
12" of rain on a 3000 sqft roof @ 62.4 lb/cu ft is 187,000 lbs. Sounds promising!I've thought of downspout power. We get 20+ inches of rain some months here.
It's even worse than that, my house is only 1k sqft, shop is another 1k sqft.12" of rain on a 3000 sqft roof @ 62.4 lb/cu ft is 187,000 lbs. Sounds promising!
187,000 lbs with a 10 foot drop is 1.87 million ft-lbs or 2.5 million joules
2.5 MJ = 2.5 million Watt seconds / 3600 seconds/hour = 705 Wh = 0.7 kWh
About a dime's worth of electricity. Per month.
Well check it out then...It's even worse than that, my house is only 1k sqft, shop is another 1k sqft.
Yes but water IMHO is the only way you could possibly store enough energy.12" of rain on a 3000 sqft roof @ 62.4 lb/cu ft is 187,000 lbs. Sounds promising!
187,000 lbs with a 10 foot drop is 1.87 million ft-lbs or 2.5 million joules
2.5 MJ = 2.5 million Watt seconds / 3600 seconds/hour = 705 Wh = 0.7 kWh
About a dime's worth of electricity. Per month.
The question: "Is it possible to havest and store enough solar in summer to carry you through winter"Yes but water IMHO is the only way you could possibly store enough energy.
You just have to go at it on a much larger scale!
By my rough calculations you would need a reservoir of about 1.5 Acres in size with 10ft depth and a drop of 10ft or more to produce about 50KWh per day for 90 days.
The land you would need to run off and collect that amount of water would be dependent on rainfall.
A 5000Kwh battery bank would also do it, but it would cost about $1.5 Million and then you have to get the panels to charge it in the summer and deal with the normal energy loses that come with natural discharge over time.
Anything is possible if you throw enough $ at it..The question: "Is it possible to havest and store enough solar in summer to carry you through winter"
Answer: Yes.
The question was NOT -"is it economical "
Absolutely, but getting from here to there isn’t trivial. I mean, we’re still using QWERTY keyboards, we’re still doing daylight savings time, all kinds of things that everyone agrees ought to be fixed have not been because “that’s the way it’s always been”. There needs to be a significant financial incentive for the power companies to make a change, and I don’t even know what that would be. Remember, their bottom line isn’t the climate or the weather, or the ecology or our descendants, it’s a guaranteed rate of return for the stockholders. in most cases, they are legally prevented from making the kinds of changes that would benefit our grandchildren.So we ought to find a way to use it, while being fair to consumers, utilities, and rooftop PV owners.
It is economical and possible by harvesting solar in the form of biomass for heating fuel, growing a garden and storing the harvest and wearing clothing made from natural materials are just a few.The question: "Is it possible to havest and store enough solar in summer to carry you through winter"
Answer: Yes.
The question was NOT -"is it economical "
I live rural - I have to take my garbage to a dump 6 miles away. I pay per pound to use their service.There needs to be a significant financial incentive for the power companies to make a change, and I don’t even know what that would be