Energy Conscious Consultant

Solar Your Refrigerator

This is the most popular post I wrote back in 2008 but is still valuable today!

If a hurricane is heading straight for your area, do you evacuate? You should. But stop and think about your refrigerator. How long will it be before you can return to your home? Two days, a week, or maybe longer?

If you have no whole house generator back up, your refrigerator will stink and may need replacing. If you have a whole house generator, and leave for an extended period of time, your refrigerator will continue to work and you may be able to save your food. But what about maintenance? It is absolutely necessary for any generator.

If you run your generator on propane, your generator will continue to run until your power comes back on or you run out of fuel. Generators need maintenance. They need oil and filter changed every 100 hours, or every four days, if it is running continuously. If you do not perform maintenance, you may blow up the generator. If that happens, you will have to buy a whole new generator.

If you run your generator on natural gas, it will run until the power comes back on, no matter how long that takes. If you come back in 8 days, and your generator has been running continuously, you should have changed the oil and filter twice.

Generators are great but need maintenance. Is there a way around the maintenance so that you won't have to worry about it? Yes, solar. You can install a small start up system that will run your refrigerator and a few lights. There is no maintenance on a solar system - at least not for 25 years. And you won't need to worry about blowing up your solar system due to lack of maintenance. Consider solar with a back up generator.

And now I invite you to leave a comment below. Let me know how you take care of food in your refrigerator when you leave town for an extended period of time.

Is Global Warming True?

Global warming is the hot topic of conversations. A scientist determined to deny or prove that scientists were wrong has had an enlightening moment. He looked at the earth surface temperatures and found that the temperature has increased since the 1950’s and even before then. Global warming is happening. What is it and how does it affect you?

Impact on the Environment Effects Children

Could our environment be hurting our children? Children are more vulnerable to our environment because they are still growing. Forty years ago, lots of kids rode their bikes to school. These days, children are driven to school in a vehicle that increases pollution in the air. Children need to be our focus. Their bodies are still developing. Adults and children interact with the environment in a different way.

Solar Installers Pay Attention

Solar power for homeowners is changing again due to the DOE’s (Department of Energy) Sun Shot initiative. They designed a program to lower the cost of solar energy. They hope to make it competitive by cutting the installation costs.

Electrical Costs For Solar Installation

Electrical costs can vary for each type of project you have.  Your projects can run between adding a receptacle to installing a solar powered system.  Many times an electrician must come out to your house to view your particular situation instead of giving a price over the phone.

Solar Installers and Training

Electricians are trained as an apprentice up to 4 years (depending upon how fast you learn and understand): then trained as a journeyman for another 2 to 4 years under a master electrician.  There are trainings available for electricians who want to specialize or just learn. But some industry trainings are discouraging to those who went through the training especially if they automatically failed you on your first test. Some training falls short. They think that their training and knowledge is better than anyone else’s that’s been doing electrical work longer than 30 years.  If you want to deceive and discourage somebody on a test, it is very easy to do that. But I disagree with computer generated tests that cannot be reviewed.

Danger High Voltage

High voltage systems can be very dangerous. It is described as “electrical circuits in which the voltage used is the cause of particular safety concerns and insulation requirements.”   High voltage is commonly used in electrical power distribution. There are two factors that are considered when classifying high voltage.  One is with a spark in the air.  The second is the danger of electric shock by contact or just being close.  These can refer to the voltage either between two conductors of a system or between any conductor and a ground.

Solar Installation Projects: DIY or Pro

DIY or use a solar pro? That’s a question many homeowners have. If you buy a product, you can do whatever you want with what you buy. Some people are able to change the oil in their automobile. But can they take apart the engine and put it back together? I believe the same is with purchasing and installing a PV system for your home. You shouldn’t attempt any kind of installation of a solar powered system. And I’ll tell you why.

Home Safety: Tamper Resistant Outlets

Home safety is always a priority. But, we sometimes go overboard. The 2008 National Electric Code came out with code for installing receptacles within your home that are designed to prevent electrical shock and other dangers. But I think kids can overcome almost anything.  Why should we get tamper resistant outlets or TRO? 

Backup Generators With Illegal Hookups

When installing a generator in your home, I recommend a professional licensed electrician perform the job. But some electricians are not qualified to do this job.  Since I am an electrician, does that surprised by that statement?