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Solar Energy
By Editor | August 11, 2010
Solar energy is a light and heat from the closest star. Our star is 150 000 000 kilometres away, and amazingly powerful. The power of the closest star has been used by us since the beginning of our race but still only a slight fraction of the available solar energy is used. In fact , every minute , enough energy arrives at the Earth to meet our demands for months .
Collector and storage
The Earth receives 174 petawatts (PW) of incoming solar radiation at the atmosphere . About 30% is reflected back to space while the rest is absorbed by the earth (atmosphere, lands, oceans). The sun creates its energy through a thermonuclear process that converts about more then 650 000 00 tons of hydrogen to helium every second however only a very small fraction of the total radiation produced arrives the Earth.
Solar energy production requires two parts to work. These two components are a collector and a storage unit. The collector simply collects the radiation that falls on it and converts a fraction of it to other forms of energy.
The storage unit is required because of the non-constant nature of solar energy. The sun is not available at night. Storage can be done using thermal mass or water tanks for liquid based systems.
Uses of solar power
- Solar water heating
- Heating, cooling and ventilation
- Water treatment
- Cooking
- Process heat
- Electrical generation
- Solar chemical
- Solar vehicles
The future of the solar power is bright
In the begining of the 21st century, solar power became a part of our daily life. We have solar heated pools , solar powered homes. However there is one large problem we are facing. The amount of space required to build solar power is incredibly large. Currently, the one of the hugest solar power stations in the world covers more than 10 square miles and creates power to run about 200,000 homes. But what about bigger cities or industry ? It’s definitively not enough. The solution of this problem is more effecient solar cell. It has to increase from 10-20% to at least 50%. Scientists claims it will be possible in few years . So what do you say, is it the time of the solar power?
For more info about solar power and green solutions visit http://BeGreenBlog.com please. I highly recommend you to read articles Solar Power: cut your electric costs now or about water heaters.
Renewable Solar Energy for The Home of The Future
By Editor | July 28, 2010
The increasing public interest in renewable solar enery for housing , combined with the ever rising price of carbon based fuels used to produce commercial electric energy ensuring your home energy cost grow ever bigger , meaning that now we all would like to be able to benefit from an open-minded approach shown by a city in California .
San Francisco and the greater Bay Area have created a way forward to support the improved use of renewable solar energy not soley for big business, offices , sports facilities , maufacturing units but also for every home owner. The acessability of loans to property owners has been made much simpler and will greatly increase the use of solar panels for renewable solar energy systems throughout the whole city .
The loans supported by the city, are made readily available for all property owners that covers the price tag of fitting a renewable energy system to their house , which previously had been the main barrier for home owners. The city facilitates the repayments through increased property taxes The loans rise from a min. of five thousand dollars to a maximum of $50,000 or 10% of the homes value, whichever is the lesser . These loans are attached to the property not the owner and when or if the property is sold, the remainder of the outstanding loans transfer with it, repayments can be scheduled for a repayment period of up to 20 years.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if other states could be swayed to follow this lead and make renewable solar energy for homes the best way forward.
Until that occurs the rest of us who want to have renewable solar energy maybe with a DIY project like homemade solar panels either for ecological reasons , or simply to lower our utility bills, should examin some of the great homebuild solar energy kits that are available from the internet . The best of these packages will help you design a system suited to your exact requirements and needs, all the wiring diagrams and list all the materials you will need , step by step installation manuals and videos, so that you can see exactly what a ‘thingamabob’ is , what it looks like and how to fit it properly. As long as you a practical person you need no specific skills or knowledge to build your own complete unit .
The cost of a retail system for your home will be as high as $24,000 (taking the latest average)! You can make your own for a fraction of that price .
Once you have finished the bonuses are tremendous , you will have a hugely lowered or even a zero cost electricity bill, and at times when you energy needs are low you can sell your over capacity back to the utility company, how sweet is that. The Government will also contribute to your coffers by giving you Alternative Energy Rebates for your system once it is in operation .
At the beginning of this article we referred to the increasing public interest in the installation of renewable solar energy systems, home solar power is a great Green Business Opportunities for any local entrepreneur.
Taking the knowledge gained through the kits, manuals and videos and the experience from the planning and installation of your own system you can build systems for others, and help make solar power for homes the way forward.
Going Green – Do you know what the 4th “R” of recycling means?
By Diana | May 4, 2010
It’s time to expand our thinking and add another layer to our recycling strategy. How many of you know the 4 R’s of Recycling? What is the missing “R”? Well if you’ve been watching my events post you could probably make an educated guess. The fourth “R” is “Rot” I have listed all the composting events going on in Contra Costa County for 2010 in my events section. I highly recommend that if you don’t know a lot about composting that you attend a class. Last year I made an attempt to compost and I made a nice garbage can full of stinky sludge. The good news is after attending the class I learned about the scientific part of composting and I started over and now my composting pile is starting to do it’s job. It’s amazing what a little air will do to help in composting.
Another surprising benefit to composting is that my trash can is not full every week. Little did I know that this one small change would reduce my trash so much. I am so much more aware of what I’ve throwing away.
Did you know that composting has a significant impact of reducing the carbon dioxide released into the environment?
Composting helps the climate! The US EPA estimates that simply increasing our national recycling rate from its current level of 30 percent to 35 percent would reduce GHG emissions by 10 million metric tons of so-called carbon equivalent (MTCE). That amount is equal to the average annual emissions from the electricity consumed by roughly 4.6 million households. (2.)
There is a great article on the Central Contra Costa Solid Waste Authority website pertaining to the impact of the 4r’s on our climate. Did you know the EPA ranks landfills the second largest source of human released methane gas?
I challenge you to think about making one small change and consider composting. Worm composting is a small way to start and it’s something you can do in a small tub that doesn’t use very much space.
Here is a link to a quick guide to worm composting at www.savvygardener.com.
What did Uplifting Green Learn Since Earth Day Last Year?
By Diana | April 22, 2010
My journey this past year into becoming a more responsible, sustainable and environmentally good steward of the earth and the resources has proven to me that I can change. Through my diligent writing, research and undying curiosity of needing to know the truth, I’ve made friends and have started developing a like-minded audience.
Let me preface my accomplishments this year by stating that when I made the proactive and conscience decision to live a “greener” life I was definitely “talking the talk” but did not know how to begin to “walk the walk.” Now I have the drive and ambition to peel another layer off the onion this next year and I hope to achieve more and pass my knowledge and experience along to whomever wants to listen.
So how did I start becoming an actively conscience steward of my environment?
First, I needed a broad view of what comprises of my worldy sustainable issues. For me, I realized I consume too much of everything. I use too many resources, I aimlessly throw away anything and everything not fully realizing the impact of my actions.
What did I do with this information?
Second, I asked lots of questions. I follow treehugger.com, planetgreen, mygreenpurse, I watch “Living with Ed” I read books two especially good ones were, No Impact Man by Colin Bevin
What did I learn?
Well, everyone has there own opinions, some more drastic then others but the end result is there are many people who want to change their ways and many people are changing their lifestyles, careers and attitudes based on wanting to live a more sustainable, responsible and eco friendly lifestyle.
What did I specifically do to change this past year?
1) I made friends and I started this blog, I’ve joined many green forums and green groups. I want to know as much as I can and I want to tell everyone about what businesses and services are doing it right.
2) I made a few personal changes. I try to carry a commuter cup into Starbucks and my friends always commetn on it but I do make a statement and an impression.
3) I started really recycling. I compost my food scraps and some of my lawn trimmings. My daughter is earning money from our recycling efforts too. My trash can is usually only half full by the end of the week.
4) I joined freecycle.org and instead of buying new things I try to reuse and repurpose. It’s really kinda fun.
5) I became a Contra Costa County Bay Area Green Certified Business. That was pretty exciting and it really got me motivated to make changes around the house. We know have all CFL lighting and I’m much more aware of my energy consumption. This is an area I want to work on for the next twelve months.
What do I want to accomplish for the next twelve months?
I want to write about all the businesses in my area that are doing it right. I want to share their ideas and visions so we can start making better purchasing decisions and spend our dollars more wisely. I realize there are many greener options than I’m aware of and if I was unaware of them how could you know about them? How are we going to start supporting the right people producing the best products and services that are sustainable, responsible and eco friendly?
3 Steps to Save Money, Save Energy, and Reduce CO2, Doing Your Laundry
By Diana | April 9, 2010
I’ve been pondering ways to save money and reduce my energy consumption around the house and I stumbled upon interesting ways to save money doing my laundry.
First a few facts:
1) According to a laundry article I found on the City of Concord’s website, doing your laundry has a significant impact on our environment. Did you know that over the lifetime of a T-shirt up to 9 lbs of carbon dioxide can be release in the air just through washing and drying?
These are general usage cost for a family of 4 for a washer and dryer
Clothes washer (with hot water) -
Electricity kWh/yr – 1,080
Cost /Year – $86
CO2 emitted/yr 1,544
Clothes washer (minus hot water)
Electricity kWh/yr - 99
Cost /Year $8
CO2 emitted/yr 142
Clothes dryer
Electricity kWh/yr - 1,060 -
Cost /Year $85 -
CO2 emitted/yr- 1,516
Surprising huh?
So what is my plan? Well, I have a few obstacles but I can still make a difference. First the simple fix……
1) Wash my clothes in cold water. I had no idea that the hot water consumed 90 percent of a washers energy usage.
Second fix a little more challenging but doable……
2) Line dry my clothes. This is FREE SOLAR ENERGY and another big way to save on energy, laundry supplies and to preserve the longevity of your clothing. Have you ever smelled line dried sheets and towels? They are the best! Did you know the sun is a natural whitener as well as a natural antibacterial? A couple of challenges are living in a community that doesn’t let you hang your laundry as mine doesn’t allow you to hand your laundry outside. I’m thinking about hanging my laundry in the garage or you can watch this funny video clip that is trying to get a petition signed so it is a right to hang your laundry. Check it out here.
Another advantage to line drying is you don’t need to use bleach or fabric softener, just shake, snap and hang your clothes upside down. If you really don’t like the stiffness of your jeans just toss them in the dryer for a couple of minute on wrinkle release.
3) Finally, use a really good biodegradable phosphate free laundry soap.
Here’s a link to some laundry soap options
