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  • From: Leslie <cayadopi AT yahoo.com>
  • To: homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Homestead] Shaking the grid
  • Date: Sat, 20 Feb 2010 21:05:38 -0800 (PST)

Great answer !
 
I wasn't thinking in terms of money.  :-)
In today's value of the dollar, ex- all other factors, solar is not cost
efficient.
I.E. I use about $20/month of electricity max at today's billing rates.
Round that up to $250 year for electricity.
 
Assuming no price increase for 10 years (not rational, but for the
example)....
 
(6) 200w solar panels is about $7000.........
$7000 / $250 is about 28 years to pay for the panels , not including the
wires, charge controllers, batteries etc.
 
The only way solar is potentiall cost effective is in anticipation of price
hikes for grid source electricity.
 
What I was really just thinking about, is as long as I'm riding the
stationary bike anyway, why not feed that little bit of extra into the
battery instead of wasting
the 200 watts (not even KW, LOL) that I might produce?
 
I don't know if it is worth it for those in windy areas, but on Sam's website
they have a wind generator for a tad over $500.
 
Some might focus on the environmental benefits of solar panels.  I'm thinking
more along the lines of lots of digit inflation issues.  My #1 concern is
electricity for refrigeration. 
 
On another note:
Such luck today.  I got a phone call from a stranger in response to a
freecycle thing and we started to talk..... he knows a local source for
California rabbits, knows lots of farmers who let people pick for free after
the professional pickers have gone thru, etc.  He told me a funny story about
his veggie garden (there are a lot of backyard gardeners out here!) how he
grew a patty pan squash crossed w/ pumpkin.  He said it was the oddest shaped
thing you could imagine, but tasted great.  He's giving me lots of tin siding
tomorrow, and I'm going to give him a few seeds for him to try.  They raised
rabbits for food for years also.  Looking forward to meeting another like
minded person.
 
 
 
I

> >Don, do you have any idea how one might be able to hook up a stationary
> bicycle to an ??? alternator???? and then to a battery to help charge them
> while exercising?

This is going to fall into the 'no free lunch' category.  How much exertion
are you going to have to expend to generate one kilowatt hour of
electricity?

If you weigh 150 lbs and can run a mile in 8 minutes, you will burn about
128 kilocalroies of energy doing so ... about what's in one slice of bread.

One kilowatt of electricity is 860 kilocalories.  If you could convert your
muscular activity directly into electricity with no loss (100% efficiency),
you would be doing the work equivalent of running six and three quarters
miles in a little less than an hour.

But alas, you're body is not 100% efficient, nor is your bicycle,
generator, nor batteries.  A optimistic estimation of the cumulative
inefficiencies
would put your kilocalorie of food conversion into electricity at 50%.

This means to charge your home electrical system with one kilowatt hour of
electricity, you will do the work equivalent of running (running, not
walking or jogging) more than thirteen miles in two hours.  And that's if you
weigh 150 lbs and are unbelievably fit.

In practical terms, if you wanted to run one fluorescent shop light fixture
(80 watts) for one hour, you have work out on that bicycle the equivalent
of running that 8 minute mile.  (factoring in my above 50% efficiency in the
system). 

And if you are on the grid, you will have saved a little more than half a
cent.

James

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From: "Clansgian AT wmconnect.com" <Clansgian AT wmconnect.com>
To: homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
Sent: Sat, February 20, 2010 11:24:45 PM
Subject: Re: [Homestead] Shaking the grid




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What if you gear that bike up, when on the generator?


Dr. Raymond Zentz

It is better to die a free man, than to live, a slave.



-----Original Message-----
From: Clansgian AT wmconnect.com
To: homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
Sent: Sat, Feb 20, 2010 9:24 pm
Subject: Re: [Homestead] Shaking the grid


I
> >Don, do you have any idea how one might be able to hook up a stationary
bicycle to an ??? alternator???? and then to a battery to help charge them
while exercising?
This is going to fall into the 'no free lunch' category. How much exertion
re you going to have to expend to generate one kilowatt hour of
lectricity?
If you weigh 150 lbs and can run a mile in 8 minutes, you will burn about
28 kilocalroies of energy doing so ... about what's in one slice of bread.
One kilowatt of electricity is 860 kilocalories. If you could convert your
uscular activity directly into electricity with no loss (100% efficiency),
you would be doing the work equivalent of running six and three quarters
iles in a little less than an hour.
But alas, you're body is not 100% efficient, nor is your bicycle,
enerator, nor batteries. A optimistic estimation of the cumulative
nefficiencies
ould put your kilocalorie of food conversion into electricity at 50%.
This means to charge your home electrical system with one kilowatt hour of
lectricity, you will do the work equivalent of running (running, not
alking or jogging) more than thirteen miles in two hours. And that's if you
eigh 150 lbs and are unbelievably fit.
In practical terms, if you wanted to run one fluorescent shop light fixture
80 watts) for one hour, you have work out on that bicycle the equivalent
f running that 8 minute mile. (factoring in my above 50% efficiency in the
ystem).
And if you are on the grid, you will have saved a little more than half a
ent.
James
</HTML>
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