solar

Here's a great tool I found that utilizes Google Maps to help you calculate the potential of your home for solar.

http://www.springwise.com/eco_sustainability/using_google_maps_to_calculate

RoofRay uses modeling tools, past weather data, and Google Maps to help consumers estimate how much potential their home could have for solar.

What a great way to evaluate your home's possibilities before taking the financial plunge to invest in solar energy!

It's been awhile since I've posted anything on solar cooking. I guess I just felt I hadn't made anything of note lately... when you solar cook, it IS convenient, but the novelty does wear off - I mean, how many people blog about what they make for dinner each day? (Suddenly a rush of web domains devoted to cooking overwhelms me! Never mind!)

For those of you on myspace, I have a whole album of solar cookin' successes (and failures), as well as posts in the green building group. But lately I've just been making... I don't know... normal stuff?

So today when I decided to "make something out of nothing" by looking through the icebox as I often do, I became a little more creative- and it occurred to me this dish could be photo-worthy. : )

In our family, we buy our meat from two families near us. That means we buy in bulk (I mean, when I buy lamb... I buy A lamb...) so our meat is usually frozen the day it's butchered. So I dug through the freezer and pulled out some beautiful pork chops from the Ault's, and defrosted them overnight. Then I found some grapes that the children were not devouring- they had been a little on the sour side. But if they were cooked? Dee-lish. So I threw in the chops, grapes, added cloves of garlic and a dash o' balsamic... and YUM! Tonight's dinner!

I also added a side o' potatoes. Solar cooked potatoes are frightfully easy and taste more earthy & delicious.

Feel free to try this at home! Cooking was never so easy- I'm off to play instead of hunkering over a hot oven: Let the sun do your work!

As they say here in the south:
"Myyyyyyyyyy it's hot!"

For weeks I've been ruminating over how to really cool an off grid house on those hot, dog day stretches of heat we get in Virginia. Despite the fact that our house kits are super insulated, passive solar and utilize the cross breeze, well, heck.

Until you've spent a summer in the south, well, until you've spent a stifling, still, searing summer languishing on the cool floor 'cause you were too hot to stand... listlessly spraying little bursts of misted water towards yourself out of an old hairspray bottle 'cause that was the closest you could get to cool, where even the fans blew hot... where the still farm fields were so heavy with heat it knocked the air outta you and even the grasshoppers wouldn't even leap, where the...

Oh, ahem. Did I digress? Ok, fine. It's frickin' hot here, 'K? : )

So you see why I aspire to a cooler solution.

Today, when I heard about Sun Utility Network's California Dream System- Solar Electric Cooling and Heating Sunstation, I was intrigued. Reading through, it makes sense! For our off grid house it could still work despite the electric piece as really, we wouldn't be aggressively cooling at night/when the sun was low.

I will post more information on this system as I get it/have an opportunity to speak with them; in the meantime enjoy their website- http://www.sunutility.com, and... I hope you all stay cool! : )

Come check out a new development we are going to be building in- Discovery at Spring Trails. It is located in Spring Texas. It is one of the firsts of its kind on this scale. This is a Canyon Gate Community and is in partnership with GE Eco-magination. Each and every home will have solar and all our homes will be healthy, green, sustainable and proven so by a certified third party rater. Each home will also have a GE smart home dashboard. Lots are going to go quickly so visit www.HomesbyGreenlife.com and http://landtejas.com/communities/discovery/ for more info or stop by our sales trailer in the development at the corner of Riley Fuzzel and Rayford rd. Hope to see you there!

It's sunshine, it's free, it's simple enough—right? With all the things to consider, from interpreting the power bill and reviewing solar proposals to comparing paying cash with lower-cost offerings, the process of switching to solar can leave a homeowner buried in paperwork and as confused as ever.

In recent years, a number of innovate companies and business models have emerged to help lower the initial costs and barriers to entry for consumers. Examples include New Resource Bank's solar financing initiative, CitizenRe's solar rental plan (still in pilot phase), and Solar City's group buying program, which also makes it easier to sell power back into the grid in states where this is possible. People can find lots of great information on financial and other aspects of solar at The Solar Guide website.

Another company who provides an innovative financing and service solution for consumers is Sun Run , who’s borrowed a model from commercial markets. We’ve written about them before , and we recently caught up with President and COO Nat Kreamer to get his thoughts on what people should be thinking about as they evaluate solar and solar service providers.

"Californians know that solar power saves money and cuts global warming. Now homeowners are asking us how to go solar in the most financially responsible way, so they can avoid hidden costs or hassles down the road," said Nat. "We're all concerned about the same things: making smart spending decisions that also help protect our environment."

Here's a list of the top seven questions homeowners should answer before they can triumphantly watch the meter spin backwards.

Q: I know solar is great for the environment, but I want to know the economic benefits--How do I compare the long-term cost of solar to what I currently pay my utility?

Hi everyone!!!

I am thrilled to announce our prefab Green Cottage Kit design is here!

Although a modern enthusiast, I grew up (and my parents still reside) in a home built in 1801. A Virginia native, I appreciate old farmhouses, Victorian brownstones, colonial and happy, yes, exuberantly happy cottage architecture.

So, when people came to me on GreenModernKits.com asking for a cottage, I understood.

So I kidnapped Eric Drivdahl, an award winning architect with a heart of gold, and he designed a gorgeous, passive solar, SIPs, cottage kit with so many thoughtful details:

- 2,000 sq. ft. (and less: this house has 3 configurations)

- 3 bedrooms (or less)

- Structural Insulated Panels (SIP) for energy efficiency

- Passive Solar

- Trombe Wall

- Nooks and Crannies where you can curl up and read your books!

We haven't even named it yet, but we're so happy.

If you have any names you'd like to suggest, we'd love to hear them!

Sincerely yours,

Copeland

aka Green Modern Kits! : )

Ok, don't tell anyone, but I flat-out admit it:
As a sailor, I loathe powerboats.

I watch them speeding by with inept skiiers, waves crashing into my (no wake zone) dock, jarring and jostling my beloved boat... The high whine of the sea-doos as they zip about oncoming boats with no inkling of right-of-way much less port or starboard... UGH. The oily film they leave about the piers where they congregate... Ew, I'm making myself queasy when I think of it (or maybe it was last night's Green Drinks cocktails?)...

Any-hoo, to that segment of our seafaring population, I humbly submit:
The Solar-Powered Power Boat

Go check it all out (there's even a video) here:
http://ecoble.com/2008/04/15/awesome-solar-powered-bicycle-boat-design/

and make *sure* you visit the designer's site:
http://www.mj-design.fr/

Call me a geek (oh, yes I heard you!) but I have a green building group on myspace.

Normally I would never bring it up, it's more of a diversion from work when my eyes start to criss-cross-- I then head over and drop a silly post on passive solar gardening (get it, a cold frame?) or take pictures of my latest solar cooking endeavor just to annoy the architects and engineers...

But two posts I would like to share for several reasons...
One, regarding a solar powered plant being built by Arizona Power, perked the interest of a thermotechnic engineer reader in Serbia. Next thang ya know, I'm dialoging back and forth with a charming Renewable Energy dude from Arizona Power and the Serbian engineer as they ask each other questions...

It really makes you think about the power we have to effect change in our world... and as I pondered those intricacies, I realized that the engineer’s questions regarding Arizona Public building a solar power plant reminded me that such technology and innovation is not national, not global, but that we need to apply and educate people within our own local back yards.

Here, in Virginia, there is a proposed "Clean Coal Power Station" in Wise County, Virginia.
Read Dominion Energy’s take on it here:
http://www.dom.com/about/stations/fossil/swva.jsp

...and opposition here:
http://www.roanoke.com/editorials/commentary/wb/149689
http://www.southernenvironment.org/cases/wise_county/index.htm
http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org/news/news_detail.cfm?id=403
http://thegreenmiles.blogspot.com/2007/12/action-needed-help-stop-wise-c...
(and more...)

With technology such as Arizona Power is implementing... why are we even discussing coal?

Still dreaming of a solar powered house but think you can't afford it? Even with State and Federal assistance, installing a full solar system on your house can run you upwards of $10,000, depending on your location.

A new collection of companies are taking a lesson from the auto industry and are renting solar panels to consumers. Based out of San Francisco, Sun Run is one of the key companies in this new solar trend.

But just how does it work? Sun Run's solution is the first all-inclusive residential solar electricity package, offered for less than your current electric bill. You will lock in a below-market rate for the electricity the panels generate on your roof, and you can relax knowing that Sun Run will optimize, monitor, and maintain the system they install at no extra cost.

Such a sustainable and affordable option was one we couldn't resist investigating. Sun Run President Nat Kreamer was nice enough to take some time to chat with Building Green TV about his unique company and everything they offer for customers. Keep reading for details about Sun Run's beginnings, actual customer savings, expansion plans, and solar misconceptions. This is one interview you won't want to miss!