i posted this on the bc section,
but thought i would throw it up here too
it is a good resource if you are looking into solar
simply find your town/city and pull up the data
http://pv.nrcan.gc.ca/index.php?m=s&lang=e&prov=alta
And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her;
for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones,...
and slaves, and souls of men.
It's part of the same site but this is my preferred login point. http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/maps/archives/3rdedition/environment/climate/020
For those of us fortunate enough to live there, southern Alberta is the sunshine mecca of Canada. I believe Medicine Hat is the sunniest city over 50K population in Canada. While it costs a bit to harvest (roughly $0.12 per KWH in the long term, so for me it's actually less expensive than grid power) sunshine will be pretty hard to tax and/or withhold. Getting set up is the hard part. Once you are set up it does take some maintenance but not a lot.
All of that said, if you hire someone to mow your lawn, I believe a hydrocarbon powered generator and storing lots of fuel would probably be a better choice for you. Nothing personal, just facing reality.
Radar
Than= I’d rather be rich than poor.
Then= I first became hungry then I ate.
There = She is there now.
Their = They have their things.
They're = They're going to the mall.
To = They came to the house.
Too = That's too bad.
i'm on dial-up so i avoid most maps
i agree about the gennie
a battery system would be nice too,
the agm's can handle the cold and storage
(not a perfect scenario, but then what is)
propane stores well long term,
i have heard gas/diesel with PRI-G additive stores well
and storing gas in metal jerry cans works long term also,
just run it through a paint filter before use to remove the precipitates
(this is something i read quite awhile back, no experience)
And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her;
for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones,...
and slaves, and souls of men.
I run AGM's (Absorbent Glass Mat) but for the average Joe giving up your firstborn male child might seen like a viable alternative. While AGM batteries are great to have, you still have to check them now and then. Fortunately you don't have to do it in the hydrogen laced sulfuric acid smelling air like with Flooded Lead Acid (FLA) batteries.
I would never store FLA's in my house because of the hydrogen (never mind the stink), call me silly but I don't like things than "make big boom" in my house. 😉 I don't even like multiple AGM's in my house. An insulated battery box outdoors is the best storage approach IMO. A means of collecting some solar heat for the battery box in the winter is a good idea. The information is out there, we just have to find and implement it.
Than= I’d rather be rich than poor.
Then= I first became hungry then I ate.
There = She is there now.
Their = They have their things.
They're = They're going to the mall.
To = They came to the house.
Too = That's too bad.
here's a pic of our bank (i do have a box w/vent and a poly front drape over them)
i haven't noticed any appreciable odors,
and the maintenance has been minimal (once a year top-up with distilled)
the hydrogen gas will rise to the top of the box and out the 2" abs pipe/vent
and this occurs somewhat rarely, but esp. at equalization
but we may be upgrading to AGM in the near future
i do consider it an upgrade, but not due to longevity over my flooded
And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her;
for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones,...
and slaves, and souls of men.
here's a pic of our bank (i do have a box w/vent and a poly front drape over them)
i haven't noticed any appreciable odors,
and the maintenance has been minimal (once a year top-up with distilled)the hydrogen gas will rise to the top of the box and out the 2" abs pipe/vent
and this occurs somewhat rarely, but esp. at equalizationbut we may be upgrading to AGM in the near future
i do consider it an upgrade, but not due to longevity over my flooded
Got freedom, that's a very nice battery bank indeed! I'm curious as to how many AH@ what voltage? (looks like 48V to me) Also, is that a shunt or a huge fuse on the wall behind the battery bank?
On the fieldlines/otherpower message board there is a fellow that got a smoking deal on a used forklift battery. I honestly don't recall how many cells were in it. (18 or more I believe) This gent got something like 20 years of service out of those cells and sang accolades for forklift cells compared to golf cart batteries. A search for 'forklift batteries' on the site http://www.fieldlines.com/index.php might pull up the string.
Than= I’d rather be rich than poor.
Then= I first became hungry then I ate.
There = She is there now.
Their = They have their things.
They're = They're going to the mall.
To = They came to the house.
Too = That's too bad.
the batteries are gnb classic nct-9's,
they are 1424Ah @ 12V
that is indeed a 200 amp fuse
if i was starting fresh i would definitely consider nickel-iron batteries
high up-front cost, but that is outweighed by their performance & longevity
http://www.beutilityfree.com/content/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=106:Ni-FeFAQ&catid=42:Nickel-Iron%20Batteries
there is a company in bc that imports them:
http://www.microsec.net/energy.html
fieldlines has some great info,
and some of the smartest/wisest people around
which can be a little intimidating,
when you are at my pay-grade it is best to just read and absorb
And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her;
for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones,...
and slaves, and souls of men.
With those GNB classics you need both a fat wallet AND a forklift! Very nice batteries though.
Than= I’d rather be rich than poor.
Then= I first became hungry then I ate.
There = She is there now.
Their = They have their things.
They're = They're going to the mall.
To = They came to the house.
Too = That's too bad.