Solar heat ideas!

[MOP]

Would like to get a forum together to discuss the pros cons and best products, many of us can benefit. I have done a little poking around and it seems to be a better path then high performance burners, they say savings of between 30-70% can be realized.

[chappy]

http://www.solarexpert.com/heatpanel.html

I'm in. I've been working with this site for ideas.

[Ed Donnelly]

Mop; Domestic hot water as a booster is ok
As a hot water heating medium in your location is a different story
Limited sunlight hours when needed most.

Cost versus life expendature is something to check out...Ed

I am using magnetic radiation for low voltage lighting

[Carl C]

Mop; Domestic hot water as a booster is ok
As a hot water heating medium in your location is a different story
Limited sunlight hours when needed most.

Cost versus life expendature is something to check out...Ed

I am using magnetic radiation for low voltage lighting I agree. The sun just isn't hot enough or shining enough in the north when needed the most. Burn wood, it's easy to find for free.

[gcarter]

Move to Arizona, there's lots of sunlight there.....also it's already hot there.

[vonkamp]

Here's a forum on all things solar.
http://www.solarpowerforum.net/forumVB/index.php

That said, I have done a lot of research on solar. Some friends of mine had a 4kw grid tied system installed at their house. They have averaged about $50 off on their electric bill. Hardly worth the cost. In doing reasearch, they would have needed at least 8kw worth of solar panels just to break even on their bill. That is a LOT of panels and a lot of money.

[Carl C]

Here's a forum on all things solar.
http://www.solarpowerforum.net/forumVB/index.php

That said, I have done a lot of research on solar. Some friends of mine had a 4kw grid tied system installed at their house. They have averaged about $50 off on their electric bill. Hardly worth the cost. In doing reasearch, they would have needed at least 8kw worth of solar panels just to break even on their bill. That is a LOT of panels and a lot of money. When it comes to making electricity, a windmill is probably more cost effective.

[Cuda]

One of the most effective power saving things I've found, is a big tree over the house. Keeps the sun off during the summer, keeping the house cooler, and less leaves during the winter, keeping the house warmer. God's own temperature control.

[VetteLT193]

One of the most effective power saving things I've found, is a big tree over the house. Keeps the sun off during the summer, keeping the house cooler, and less leaves during the winter, keeping the house warmer. God's own temperature control.

That is the absolute truth.

Another good one is awnings over windows. The old Florida Capitol building has them for this reason. The new building has shields over the windows too.


As for solar power it has proven most cost effective in heating pools. Tougher sell for other items as of now. There is a new method of building panels that drastically reduces the cost. The company that makes them is backed up for over a year. As they ramp up production we will see them come to market and it will be more cost effective at that point.

[gcarter]

I was telling Barry that the cost per W is coming down from about $3.40 to about $1.80 by 2010 due to increased production using improved production methods in China.
Unfortunately, the area reqd. doesn't go down any. You still end up w/a yard full of panels.

[Kirbyvv]

Insulation!!!! A friend just went through the first winter with a solar heated super insulated house. They never turned on the auxilary gas furnace. The house is oriented so the low winter sun shines into the main portion of the house with a thermal mass (sand bed) beneath the floor. Hot water was from solar on the roof, suplimented with an instataneous HW boster. Even in our area of NY, they claimed the solar effect was enough to heat the house and water even on a cloudy day. They used one cord of wood for the entire winter as a suplimental source. But the basis for this house was insulation...12" foam walls with no thermal breaks. All wiring was on the inside, behind baseboard type panels. Pretty cool house, but..Kind of hard to retro-fit an existing house. Interesting.

[Cuda]

I had a huge oak tree in my back yard in Pinellas County. It got some kind of disease, that we first noticed because of some white bark. Two weeks later, it was stone dead, with big branches falling out of it. I was afraid to let my dogs out back. I had to have it cut down, and after that, the a/c would never go off in the afternoon, and still wouldn't cool under 80 degrees, and it was a new a/c.

[samjannarone]

Its too bad that tree died, they do work the best. We have a bunch of huge maples in the back yard, and they work like a dream. As far as mega-insulation, a bunch of studies have shown that air infiltration is the biggest problem... think about it, if the front door is open on a 25 degree day all the insulation in the world won't keep you warm. There are a lot of kool products like foam kits, polyurethane gaskets and construction sealants that can be used to fix infiltration--labor intensive but real cheap. Good payback.

[Cuda]

Where I live now, I have big oaks keep the sun off the house during the morning. In the afternoon, there are big oaks on my lot across the street that keep the sun off the house. It only gets an hour or two of direct sun a day.