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.

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.

Solar Power 101

Solar power converts sunlight into electricity.  A solar powered system can be made up of different parts. These parts can include modules, inverter, and a meter.   A grid tie system connects your system to utility power. If a surplus of power is produced, you can sell it back to your local power utility company.

Solar Power Track Racking Device

A solar power system can be placed on your roof as a stationary system or it can be mounted on a pole.  If you mount it on a pole, you can also place a solar tracking device on it.  This tracking device will ‘track’ or follow the sun as it moves around the curvature of the Earth.  The angle of your solar modules is directly related to where you live.

Solar and The Summer Solstice

Solar power is free energy from the sun. It is a clean energy choice and a reliable one. It converts sunlight into electricity. Solar panels can be installed at your home or business. When using solar power for your personal utilities, you are reducing the greenhouse gas emissions. According to the Energy Information Administration, “solar radiation, which is nearly constant outside the Earth's atmosphere, varies with changing atmospheric conditions (clouds and dust) and the changing position of the Earth relative to the sun.” 

Alternative Energy Ideas From Germany

Alternative energy “refers to any source of usable energy intended to replace fuel sources without the undesired consequences of the replaced fuels” according to Wikipedia. Instead of nuclear power, it is utilizing other sources for power like solar or wind to power your home and business.  Germany has been called an economic powerhouse because of its energy produced.  Germany announced this week that it plans to eliminate nuclear energy completely.  Presently, they rely on nuclear for its main power source.  But because of the Fukushima disaster that happened in Japan recently, Germany will eliminate nuclear power within the next 11 years.  Instead, they will use renewable energy sources.

Information On Solar Power and Alternative Energy

This is an article I wrote that I thought you would be interested in reading.

Information on solar power can be researched online. You can find research on solar powered products and how they will affect you personally. But the biggest question I have been asked is 'how much do I need to power my home?' This question can be answered but it is a little complicated. There are many factors that come into play when considering the answer.

Solar Installer Needs To Educate Public

Solar installer needs to educate public. Many people who want a solar installed system have high expectations from a small (solar installed) system.  A customer with too high of expectations can misunderstand the solar installation. Having solar installed in your home doesn’t necessarily mean you will have a zero electric bill.  Solar installers are required to explain this to their customers.