http://www.neutralexistence.com/index.php/begreen/ en bjmcconnell@alltel.net Copyright 2008 2008-05-01T15:21:00-06:00 http://www.neutralexistence.com/site/wind-power-for-the-home/ http://www.neutralexistence.com/site/wind-power-for-the-home/#When:17:32:00Z Wind power is the conversion wind energy into a useful energy source such as electricity. This is accomplished by using devices called wind turbines. Wind turbines use an electrical generator to convert the electrical current produced by the rotations of the wind turbine blades into a usable form of DC electricity, which can be further converted into an alternating current (AC). Wind power currently produces about 1% of the worlds electricity usage, with Denmark, Spain and Germany accounting for the majority of this usage. This plentiful, renewable energy source can be used on large scales to help power national electrical grids, or they can be used in individual residences providing enough electricity to sustain its owners. Not only is this wind energy free and renewable, the technology is very cost efficient. Contrary to popular belief, recent studies show that per Mega Watt hour, wind turbines can produce electricity at a comparable price to that of coal and natural gas generated electricity. In 2006, the British Wind Energy Association released a report which showed the compared cost per unit energy between onshore wind turbines, coal and natural gas: wind cost was estimated at $55.80 per MWh, coal at $53.10/MWh and natural gas at $52.50. With the current trends showing a decrease in production cost for wind turbines, wind generated electricity will soon cost less than coal and natural gas. This is also due to the fact that after the initial capital investment, wind farms have close to zero fuel and maintenance cost, making them that much more of a threat to current generation methods. The Science Behind Wind Energy Wind energy is actually produced by the sun. About 3% of the energy from the sun hitting the earth’s surface is converted into wind energy. This conversion happens because of a phenomena called “differential heating” which is a result of the many different types of landscapes and water ways, heating and cooling at different rates causing a global atmospheric convection system (aka: wind). The majority of this wind energy can be found at very high altitudes in excess of 100 miles per hour. It is this high altitude wind that causes our weather patters. The low altitude, slower winds are what we use to turn wind turbines and create electricity. Although this lower altitude wind only accounts for a small portion of total available winds, it is more than enough to supply all of our energy needs. Wind turbine effectiveness varies by location, as each city and state have different wind conditions. Unfortunately, wind turbines will not work anywhere, they must be sized and located according to previously recorded imperial data. Although, as a rule of thumb, wind turbines are only practical in places where the average wind speed is over 10 mph. The following map will layout the best locations for wind turbines. This map of the available wind power over the United States indicates the wind power density class by using a color chart. Compliments of Wikipedia. Full resolution? (1,130 x 713 pixels, file size: 163 KB, MIME type: image/png) If you live in an area where it is practical to use wind power, you should seriously consider buying a smaller residential wind turbine for your home. For a relatively low price, a wind turbine can produce a substantial amount of electricity to be used by your home. Wind turbines can be grid connected to eliminate the need for a battery backup system, which would also drastically cut your monthly electricity bill. If you cannot afford to buy a turbine outright, there are financing options which can often get the monthly cost to a lower price than your monthly savings making it quite feasible to harness the wind in your area. For more information on wind turbine options please take a look at our eco store and check out the Whisperer and Skystream wind turbines Green Your Electricity 2007-12-24T17:32:00-06:00 http://www.neutralexistence.com/site/solar-power-for-the-home/ http://www.neutralexistence.com/site/solar-power-for-the-home/#When:22:03:01Z Solar energy is getting allot of press these days and for good reason. The fact is the earth receives more energy from the sun in just one hour than the world uses in a whole year. So, an endless supply of energy is there, we just have to “tap in” to it. There are many different ways that you can “tap in” to the sun’s energy to fuel your home, most of which are very effective. One of the most common and popular methods is photovoltaic or solar panels. In order to get the most from solar energy and make it cost effective, you need to drastically reduce your wasted electricity first. Solar power is not the end all solution so you can continue to live a wasteful lifestyle. In fact, if you don’t start by cutting down your energy use you will end up having to spend tens of thousands of dollar more on solar panels, then you would if your house was more energy efficient. If you use the methods in the Home efficiency section, you can drastically cut down your monthly energy usage enough to make buying a solar panel system very cost effective. There are a couple of options when it comes to solar power solutions; you can buy or you can rent. Of course both have their positive and negative attributes and I’ll spend a little time going over each. Buying a Solar Panel System: Buying a solar panel system is definitely the best way to go simply because not only do you get the energy you need, but you will also increase the value of your home. Unlike renting, you own the solar panels and when these solar panels are installed on your home, they will increase the value of your home. Not only will the panels increase the resale value, but if you have your home reappraised, the added value will allow you to acquire more equity in your home. Not only that, but in some cases you can even prematurely stop your mandatory Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance, this alone can save you hundreds of dollars every month. There are a few drawbacks to buying a solar power system, the biggest of which is price. The average solar installation will run you around $40,000 depending on size and energy requirements, which is no small amount. Home owners may take out low interest home equity loans to help pay for the system, however some home owners will not have enough equity in their home to get a loan. If this is the case there are low interest, non secured loans which can be used to acquire a solar power system for your home. There are also energy efficient mortgages available, where one can get about 15% more money when they re-finance their home, to do energy efficient renovations to their home. Most people can also take advantage of all of the tax breaks, state buyback programs and incentives to make their solar panel purchase a good bit cheaper. Another drawback of buying, is that you are responsible for maintenance, repairs and installation. Even so, in my opinion the benefits of buying a solar system highly outweigh the drawbacks, so owning a solar system is definitely the way to go. For more information, check out our “Solar Calculator” and then go to our solar products page to see our available solar panels and grid tie systems. Renting a Solar Panel System: So why would you even consider renting? Well, for some people, buying is simply not an option. A typical solar panel installation will run on average about $40,000. For a person without equity in their home, and who does not have a huge savings account or good credit, this option is simply unrealistic. So, for this type of situation, renting is the perfect solution. By renting, you eliminate the equipment & installation cost, the maintenance fees, the permit hassles and with this company, you are able to lock in your current electricity rates for up to 25 years. Now the drawbacks of renting a solar panel system is that you do not own the system and therefore your homes value will not increase nor will your equity increase. You will also have to add the solar panels to your home owners issuance so they will be covered in case of disasters, which could increase your rates a little bit. In my opinion renting is an excellent option as you will lock in your current energy rates thereby stopping the constant inflation rates that we have been seeing all across the U.S. If you would like more information about renting a solar power system for your home, check out this site and see if you are eligible. Green Your Electricity 2007-12-23T22:03:01-06:00 http://www.neutralexistence.com/site/green-your-electricity-alternative-renewable-energy/ http://www.neutralexistence.com/site/green-your-electricity-alternative-renewable-energy/#When:15:01:00Z Alternative energy or green energy is an environmentally friendly, renewable and non-polluting source of power. Alternative energy comes in many different shapes and forms such as solar power, wind power, tidal power, geothermal power, hydro-electric power, hydrogen power, biomass power, and wave power. Although many of these alternative energy sources are clean and renewable once they are up in operation, many of them use dirty energy to manufacture and transport the devices to their final destination. However, this necessary evil allows us to have more and more clean energy being pumped back into the grid which brings us closer to a total crossover. This allows manufacturers of alternative energy devices to use alternative energy to power their production facilities. Alternative Energy For The Home A great way to offset your personal carbon footprint is by using alternative energy to power your home. There are many different alternative energies that can be utilized to supply electricity to your home, the most common are solar power and wind Power, however there are plenty more to be taken advantage. In addition, there are combination systems which incorporate a few different alternative energies into one complete system. These alternative energy systems are very cost effective in the long run, but are generally quite pricey up front. However, over the life span of the product you can expect to save allot of money and drastically reduce and/or eliminate your emissions. In many states, home owners can actually sell excess electricity back to the utility companies in an arrangement called net metering. Net metering is essentially a storage method whereby home owners can put excess electricity back into the grid to use at a later time. If all of the excess electricity is not used, the utility company will generally be required to pay the home owner either retail or wholesale prices for that extra electricity. Each state and country have different rules and regulations regarding this type of excess energy production, so consult with your local authorities before designing an over sized alternative energy system for your home. Even though alternative energies are a great and easy way to reduce and/or eliminate your carbon footprint, they should be the last step you take. The first step is always “efficiency”, meaning that certain steps must be taken to make the home more efficient, by reducing electrical loads, eliminating air exchange and heat loss and many other efficiency reduction methods. Then steps should be taken to conserve energy, this means changing certain habits to conserve more energy. Then and only then should alternative energies be put into place. By following these steps, the cost of the alternative energy system will be drastically reduced making it very feasible and worth doing. If the “efficiency” steps are not taken first, then the cost of an alternative energy system will be much more expensive making it not as feasible to implement. With our current emission rates causing global warming and climate change, alternative energies will play a major role in saving our planet and ensuring a future for our children and grandchildren. Do your part, increase your homes efficiency, conserve and implement some sort of alternative energy. Green Your Electricity 2007-12-21T15:01:00-06:00