Solar and Wind energy

John mac

Can anyone tell me where i can get some info on the above?
i would like to install a solar panel to heat the water and maybe a turbine to give me back up power.!!
i know this stuff is available but i can't find any site in this part of the world with pricing and specs etc..
any help would be apreciated.

Capt'n Midnight

Looking for something that will put out at least 2 amps at 5 volts
for battery charging and running some DC equipment.

Boat chargers look like the best option but are there cheaper / smaller / lighter options...

Victor

Try this thread http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?postid=888852#post888852

In Ireland, heat pumps seem to make much more sense than solar. That said designing your building to generally avail of solar gain is possible.

Typedef

The general wisdom, lends itself to a combination of Wind and Solar, and sometime Diesel, electricity generation.
Yes Diesel is a fossil fuel, however, if you get the Solar and Wind generation right, you shouldn't have to use a Diesel to recharge your batteries much.

The main problem for someone doing, their own electricity generation, is storing enough power for when you want to run, your television, micorwave and kettle at the same time, without having a wasteful amount of electricity capacity, sitting idle.

Capt'n Midnight

It's a Medusa generator €319.99

50Hz 230V 650W
Also has a 12V DC for battery charging (only 40AH so only a few Amps)
2 stroke (any one know how to get it running on turps and biodiesel / waste chipper oil ?)

Here's an idea - many equipment shops use compressed air for power tools - might be an idea to replace motors in a house - you can store compressed air - should be able to get a wind powered compressor..

Has anyone looked at sticking an alternator on an exercise bike - you get fit , electricity and save on heating - and the best bit is you can have another slice of cream cake.. (the trick they tried on kids in the US was to wire it in to the TV so they'd keep at it)

ednwireland

try a german mail order company www.conrad.de they will send catalogues out happily (you'll have to read some german though) they sell kits for all sorts of solar power stuff

John mac

Found links to irish sites.

http://energy.sourceguides.com/businesses/byP/solar/sWH/byGeo/byC/Ireland/Ireland.shtml

canker

www.cat.org.uk (The Centre for Alternative Technology). Lots of good 'green' stuff for sale. I've bought small scale stuff from there (solar panels and wind generators) that was very good but they do the big stuff too.

xonencentral

Manufacturer in the West www.surfacepower.com
Friend has one, he won't shut up about it, has a braking system and everything, blah, blah, blah, blah.

yop

Where in the West are these lads, would it be possible to visit a site and see it in action?

Nordic

Edited to say...
Blah Blah Blah...
instead of telling you how to save money.
Thank Gandalf and Keeks, and then go get a loan to buy!

gandalf

Nordic I would suggest you contact the admins of this site if you want to advertise your wares here? I am leaving your post intact until one of the forum mods see it, I am the cat mod for the whole of soc. I suspect they will delete or edit your post.

Pataman

I have been thinking about one of these wind generators for a summer house I am building. My question is when the house is empty and it is a windy day what happens to the electricity. I presume it is plugged into a socket like the Windsave unit.

Keeks

Have to agree with gandalf on the last post. You're just begining to pimp you warez now. I let previous post go simple because there was an awful lot of relevant information.

You've got to remember boards.ie is provoided free of use to users but costs a hell of a lot to run. And as such we don't offer free ads to businesses

Nordic

Fine guys.
I only went on here initially to clear up all the false infomation that people had been fed about heat pumps.
I'm sure there are plenty of forum users who appreciate the advice to date.
Don't ask the questions where & how much ... If you don't want to hear the answers!!!!
Everyone has been banging on about how they think they are paying so much more than they should be for solar & wind and I cut the deal to end that, and make no profit on it. Why?
Thinking about it now, I have better things to do than give free information and advice.
Some people winge when they pay too much, and they winge when they get a good deal. If I look in here in a year's time, they'll probably still be winging on.
I have deleted the prices and details, so go spend yer money without the right information and pay the full price andfind out the hard way.
I'm out of here.
Best of luck.
Bye!

Did you know that you can link to your business in your signiture, just giving the web address.
People can work out whether they want to click on it then.

Over on ICDG, we have quite a few who are in the business that we talk about there and who post fine but dont entertain specefic questions about buying of them in threads.
That sort of thing goes to pm or if they click on the signiture link, it goes to email from a link on your website.

I only came across this thread today because of the activity on it and I'm interested in this wind energy thing.

So don't go, you arent being treated differently to anyone else, its a standard rule as the owners of the site do have to make money somehow and free advertising would ruin that.
Surely you must be able to appreciate this?

Nordic

Earthman wrote:

Did you know that you can link to your business in your signiture, just giving the web address.
People can work out whether they want to click on it then.
Over on ICDG, we have quite a few who are in the business that we talk about there and who post fine but dont entertain specefic questions about buying of them in threads.
That sort of thing goes to pm or if they click on the signiture link, it goes to email from a link on your website.
I only came across this thread today because of the activity on it and I'm interested in this wind energy thing.
So don't go, you arent being treated differently to anyone else, its a standard rule as the owners of the site do have to make money somehow and free advertising would ruin that.
Surely you must be able to appreciate this?

If I was trying to advertise I'd have advertised.
I was informing the forum users of deals I had cut to cut out the middle men and bring to reality EXACTLY what they've all been complaining about on here. - give cheap alternative products to people who seemed to be interested.

All I got was the more of the same, typically Irish winge, winge, winge.

If I joined the others selling wind turbines and charged what they do... I'd have got complaints, but I'd be selling at the manufacturer's price, with handsom profit margins.
I wasn't. I brought about exactly what they all "wanted" and what did I get - complaints. So why bother getting complaints when you can get complaints and make a profit?
Anyone who reads my posts can see I gave more information than any possible benefit I could get.
So no. I'll just sell to my own customers. So only our own customers can avail of the deals. At least our customers appreicate us, sine they know what we're about.

I won't go, I'll observe, but I expect to just see more of the same.

Keeks

Nordic wrote:

If I was trying to advertise I'd have advertised.
I was informing the forum users of deals I had cut to cut out the middle men and bring to reality EXACTLY what they've all been complaining about on here. - give cheap alternative products to people who seemed to be interested.

But you didn't state that in the original post. All you posted was that your were offering product X for price Y. But even still this is advertising.

I think you kinda missing the whole point of why we've intervened. the original post was just an advert for too different wind turbines. Wheather or not you have cut out the middle man, or offering the best deal is irrelevant. The point is you are in business to make money. Boards.ie is not. All the admins and mods who look after the boards do so on a voluntary basis, giving a lot of time and a hell of a lot of service so that users can share they opinions and experiences whith others.

What we want to see (or what i prefer to see) is lot of information and very little product placement or prices from commercial organisations. If we made an exception for you we would have every commercial vendor on the forum trying to drum up business.

Your previous post were just fine. Plenty of of excellent information. If people ask you direct questions about you of you products I won't stop it just as long as it is not a sales pitch.

Nordic

With all due respect Keeks (whoever you are), I have made it very clear from the outset who I really am (no alias). How do you know some of the people who (and read their posts) keep on "advertising" by repeating their names and links to their web-sites - surface power and windsave, aren't affiliated to those companies but use an alias (whoever they are). You (whoever you are) don't know. They could be anybody including employees of those companies.

I'm not hiding anything and had a genuine offer - like it or not, call it advertising or not, call it a bargain or not, call it exacty what the users wanted or not - thanks to you I'm now not going to offer it.

I do see your point but the fact that I could and did get it down to the best price, and wasn't making anything on them just shows what surface power and windsave really are making. Remember mine included an 8m tower!

I won't be selling them at that price. I'll sell them at the manufacturer's price but at the cheaper price only to our customers.

So as I said ... I'm out of here.

wind man

To answer patamans question;

Wind turbines dump their power into a battery and you draw from the battery source through an 220 Volts mains inverter as you require it. This should be all part of a wind turbine solution when you purchase one. (but it isn't always so be careful). This is an "off-grid" system.

Connecting to the grid is not legal in Ireland using a product like windsave, it's also not as efficient as an "off-grid" system. You get to use all your power generated with off-grid system's. Connecting to the grid only makes sense if you can "net meter", i.e. sell your extra unused power back to the grid, (requires second meter, generating licence, ESB approvals, legislation from the government to make it legal, etc), only for the big boys who are approved suppliers to ESB networks (the grid operator). These new wind farms and gas powered stations such as Viridian.

Nordic

wind man wrote:

To answer patamans question;

Wind turbines dump their power into a battery and you draw from the battery source through an 220 Volts mains inverter as you require it. This should be all part of a wind turbine solution when you purchase one. (but it isn't always so be careful). This is an "off-grid" system.

Connecting to the grid is not legal in Ireland using a product like windsave, it's also not as efficient as an "off-grid" system. You get to use all your power generated with off-grid system's. Connecting to the grid only makes sense if you can "net meter", i.e. sell your extra unused power back to the grid, (requires second meter, generating licence, ESB approvals, legislation from the government to make it legal, etc), only for the big boys who are approved suppliers to ESB networks (the grid operator). These new wind farms and gas powered stations such as Viridian.

Windman
The turbines we have are "off grid", 2kW with 3.6m diameter turbine on 8m towers.
Can you verify what I have been saying on the comparison between this and the 500W surfacepower 1.4m diameter turbine.

wind man

I don't really want to get into endosing any product, it's really down to the customers use of a product but if I think I can summarize the importance of two factors in the technology of renewable energy in a domestic situation; which I believe is the area you are trying to make a point:

Firstly; the major surge in domestic green energy is in "micro" wind, hydro, and solar energy. The primary reason for this is that there are EU Directives in place to REDUCE the consumption of energy and SUPPORT the use of green energy (non-oil), i.e. The solution under EU Directive is not to provide current power by green sources but to reduce consumption with new technologies FIRST over the next 10 years and then provide future power for that reduced requirement with green energy. This will mean a lot of green energy going forward. The reason off-grid power is rampant is that there are little ways to stop it. I CAN TELL YOU WITHOUT QUALIFICATION that state utilities are not impressed with this situation but powerless to influence off-grid technologies as there is no requirement to connect to the grid. Governments couldn't be seen to regulate it; so the only options to control it are using current laws and regulations. There in lies the second point:

What can be done using influence to stop uncontrolled green energy in Ireland by the incumbent utilities, other vested interests even wind utilities;

Firstly planning, In nearly all cases (once your neighbours are OK), micro-solar, micro-hydro and micro-wind up to a blade span of 1.5 metres/500Watts or less which are COMPLETELY SILENT in operation will not need planning permission depending on its site situation. (I looked at the earlier mails on a product and it suggests they have done their homework on this one) and its the exact same situation in the UK, Germany, Austria and Denmark as well so maybe they put their heads together or the "micro" spec is EU driven. (A commercial wind-farm or hydro-farm is determined by the turbines size and not its use or whether it will be used in a domestic setting, STUPID I KNOW, but there are a lot of vested interests out there)

Once you cross into larger green energy sources, you have entered the commercial arena (in the planning officers eyes) and this is where they drop the hammer, (there are guidlines for commercial wind farms issued by government which must be complied with and a domestic situation fails the criteria straight away). I don't know who came up with the micro spec but my experience tells me that it must be from vested interests having influenced government successfully.

This is where the big risk is: ONE complaint to the local authority will result in an inspection, if your green energy solar, wind or hydro is deemed micro in nature and under 7 metres in height, you will be OK. If you recieve ONE complaint for noise and the noise pollution officer tests the db and agrees, you will be served; and your green energy product is history. (7 metres is dependent on not being able to see the green energy system from the front of the house, it could be lower)(solar is generally OK,and micro-hydro could have the fisheries board on your back as well)

If you wish to join the green energy bandwagon, solar should be OK, micro-hydro can be OK, but micro-wind is the cheapest but the riskiest. ALWAYS go and see the wind product you wish to buy in action. If it is not COMPLETELY SILENT, walk away, you'll get served notice to remove and you'll be awake at night. (Low tech wind turbines can be as loud as an Aer Arann engine at full speed-imagine that in your back garden), Rule of thumb, always buy one of the modern ones with an electromagnetic braking system.(this is an EU spec for wind turbines) Its also a fact that as the size of the blades increase so does the noise. (This is the planners nightmare), if you apply for planning for a larger system and it isn't a silent running system (certified and once you go over 2m, they aren't), he will want a db measurement before giving planning approval, he will need to go and see one somewhere and have it tested, this might be just an excuse to say no anyhow).

You need to talk to anybody who has done the larger ones successfully before. I operate in a large Irish Ultilitiy and the only turbines I am aware of are the original market gardeners, etc who have net metering arangements of old. (Try getting one at the moment)

Sorry if this is not what people want to hear but this is a highly regulated, controlled market place driven by EU directives, vested interests, planners, lobbyists, etc. Energy is BIG business and it won't be surrendered easily to the consumer.

IN SIMPLE TERMS, before investing in green energy, always make sure the product stacks up, you can visit an installed example and validate the noise on wind products in gusty weather, which shouldn't be hard in Ireland and it has been a complete accident that "micro" green energy slipped through the control net.

In summary on the reduction strategies (which are not being supported by state ultilities-by the way), the example is the 100 year old 100 Watt light bulb transforming into an 18 Watt CFL which provides the same output. Expect this to happen to all uses of electricity; heat, water, cooking, etc, etc. The technology is there today to do this. The reason why; is that the EU has mandated that 40% of the energy expended in the EU is via buildings, In their eyes alot of waste. (EU is not an OIL producer, and a Directive by the EU is law in 10 years time wheter we like it or not)

CJhaughey

Capt'n Midnight wrote:

Has anyone looked at sticking an alternator on an exercise bike - you get fit , electricity and save on heating - and the best bit is you can have another slice of cream cake.. (the trick they tried on kids in the US was to wire it in to the TV so they'd keep at it)

Do you know what a very fit cyclist will put out on a non-continuous basis?
answer 300w
sorry those kids probably don't even make enough energy to light up a 20w bulb let alone power a TV and heating..

Capt'n Midnight

CJhaughey wrote:

Do you know what a very fit cyclist will put out on a non-continuous basis?
answer 300w
sorry those kids probably don't even make enough energy to light up a 20w bulb let alone power a TV and heating..

You'll produce a quite a bit of heat peadling fast and because you are warm you will be able to tolerate a colder room further saving on the need for external heat. :rolleyes: Expect about half this wattage unless you are really fit. It would cover lighting, you could run a laptop computer. (some of the PSU's are now up to 90W - but they are designed to run AND charge at the same time)

Back from 1999 - home entertainment power usage - if your TV uses 300W then it's either got valves or plenty big and even then could turn down the brightness too !

The main thing about pedal power is fitness and feel good factor. It wouldn't replace solar or wind - think of it as a backup generator.

The real killer for homebrew power would be things like dishwashers and washing machine..

Re: heat wastage. In the US it's been estimated that paying for insulation for factories would be cheaper than building power stations to supply the extra power.

CJhaughey

Maybe what we should be looking at is the "Passive House" concept.
I know of one in Ireland so far built by the same gang that I hope to get to build my house.
900w is the only active heat source.all the rest is passive , solar etc.
the technology already exists but is being kept away from most people by vested interests.
As Windman says , look at the available technology to reduce your consumption before anything else.
I think this tech. is brilliant and fully intend on fitting one or possibly 2 turbines, however I also think that LED lighting and CFL lighting could also play a big part in reducing electricity demand.
I haven't seen many on here advocating it but GU10 bulbs (halogen type) are now available in LED format with very low energy demands.
have a look at this site www.ultraleds.co.uk and look at the light bulbs section.