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Re: Off grid solutions
Thank you Homerbask for your contribution.
No worry about languages, we all here share IDEAS
Your first YT exemple is fine in terms of recycling but it lacks one very important element in the process: Methane gas produced should not be released in the air as it participates to the greenhouse effect. In many off-grid endeavours this highly flammable gas is redirected into a flexible chamber (or container) then redistributed through gas pipeline to feed household cooking, or else, as alternative source of burned energy. This has been implemented in many countries of Africa and Asia.
I’d try to provide some visual exemples of it, later on.
España
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Re: Off grid solutions
Here I have some photos of the construction process , there are several methods , each appropriate to use here more than anything to SH3D and sketchup programs that were used although it was the first time you use sketchup . as you can see the front ranks of strawbales are well placed but according taking height will I begin to put on each other , that was because he was tired
España
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Re: Off grid solutions
I think the methane gas produced by your excrements is not a problem . imagine the droppings of animals also produce methane gas imagine an elephant or a horse ... thing to do is try to pollute as little as possible and thus at least you avoid your excrements end up in water such as a river and you make sure you end up being food for other living creatures such as worms and plants and trees because after making your excrements is made to the toilet a little sawdust wood dregs of coffee, a mixture of wood chips .. . that helps your droppings decompose and serve as food for earthworms and plants
Joined: May 12, 2013
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Re: Off grid solutions
nice house-cottage. Where is it located?
Norway (Noruega) - 60,5°N, 900 metres altitude.
.. a dry bath. It is economical, easy to do and also you get your own compost for vegetation...
Thanks for this. Yes, it is a good idea and the method is similar to the traditional way of building toilets. The problem is that the compost process is slow at high altitude, especially in the winter months = risk of smell. For me, a separate house is difficult to use (imagine a snow-storm) and almost impossible to build.
..hot water solar heater can help you in summer but seeing those snowfall I do not think it is very hot there...
Warm in summer, cold in winter. Actually, a solar thermal collector (colector solar) should work well with cold/snow because of the high altitude and reflection from the snow. The collector would be mounted almost horizontally on the South wall to catch the low winter sun and avoid being covered by snow. Tests indicate an indoor temperature rise of 10°C or more with dry air. Additional heating will be necessary in winter, but it seems even a small solar collector could make a big difference. A water based system would not be a good idea in cold temperatures, though. Also, the air based systems are simple, easy to install, light weight and inexpensive. One manufacturer's pictures* seem to illustrate the point .
España
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Re: Off grid solutions
nice house-cottage. Where is it located?
Norway (Noruega) - 60,5°N, 900 metres altitude.
.. a dry bath. It is economical, easy to do and also you get your own compost for vegetation...
Thanks for this. Yes, it is a good idea and the method is similar to the traditional way of building toilets. The problem is that the compost process is slow at high altitude, especially in the winter months = risk of smell. For me, a separate house is difficult to use (imagine a snow-storm) and almost impossible to build.
..hot water solar heater can help you in summer but seeing those snowfall I do not think it is very hot there...
Warm in summer, cold in winter. Actually, a solar thermal collector (colector solar) should work well with cold/snow because of the high altitude and reflection from the snow. The collector would be mounted almost horizontally on the South wall to catch the low winter sun and avoid being covered by snow. Tests indicate an indoor temperature rise of 10°C or more with dry air. Additional heating will be necessary in winter, but it seems even a small solar collector could make a big difference. A water based system would not be a good idea in cold temperatures, though. Also, the air based systems are simple, easy to install, light weight and inexpensive. One manufacturer's pictures* seem to illustrate the point .
ok
so you see a solar collector is very similar to a Trombe wall just to spend more money and giving publicity to a company. I think you should to look at it because it is easy to make economical and can increase the temperature a few degrees http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trombe_wall
according to information in English I see the walls trombes see using a hole in the wall. say that the system is even easier because with putting a window "glued" to the south wall is sufficient. I mean a window mounted on the wall without opening the window. not if I explain but it's just a window without opening the interior of the house more than 2 small one at the bottom round holes for the cold air out the house Trombe wall and upper to allow air to be a warmed in the Trombe wall between your home.
on dry bath is true that in winter will be difficult composting. but it is also true that you can build indoors and simple windows with mosquito nets and a small ventilation system not think it smells. besides being indoors I do not think they're that low temperatures.
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Re: Off grid solutions
..publicity to a company...
Just for the record, the link was not intended as a recommendation of a company. I have no opinion of manufacturers. In many cases, I also agree that a Trombe wall could be a better solution. The principle is the same. I could build both myself. In my case, however, I will opt for a dedicated solar air collector with all components in one package for several reasons: transportation (< 10kg), thermostat included, quicker installation and predictable output. Especially the reversible thermostat driven fan, appeals to me. I need the ventilation to reverse on hot summer days. ok
on a simple hot water solar heater can help you in summer but seeing those snowfall I do not think it is very hot there ...
Geothermal systems are a bit complicated in Canada, only the southern part of the country can implement it properly while the Northern (and coldest) part soil is frozen all year long, even in summer (permafrost ) down to 3 meters deep.
Apart from downtown cities, almost all individual housing is built out of timber old England style. Fortunately for Canadians, the country has a very low inhabitants ratio compared to its vast land surface. But we have a serious problem with big login corporations harvesting forests like crazy.
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Re: Off grid solutions
Geothermal systems are a bit complicated in Canada,
I have been wondering about this. Shouldn't a decent borehole still give good conditions for a ground source heat-pump? If you drill beneath the permafrost and then some, isn't the temperature also pretty stable - at least out of the deep Arctic? Scandinavia doesn't do permafrost, even if further north than Canada, thanks to the Atlantic currents. But it gets cold. Very cold. Easily with a metre of frozen soil. And ground source heat pumps are enormously popular.
..big login corporations harvesting forests like crazy...
Interesting. Here the problem is opposite. Houses are built in wood and firewood consumption in areas averages on 500 kg/capita/year. Apparently Norway uses equivalent to a wood pile 60 cm wide, a metre high and 7200 km long every year for heating. Yet this constitutes only some 12% of forest growth and the total forest volume is increasing dramatically.
In terms of SH3D, what is important though, is that whoever wants to use firewood needs to consider stove/chimney location and wood storage space. A kg of pure wood gives 5,3 kWh. So normal firewood (<20% moisture) in a good stove (80% efficient) should provide 3,3 kWh/kg worth of heating. Nice heating. But some storage space is needed for your SH3D construction .
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Re: Off grid solutions
For heating using a fireplace, are you considering pipes in your fireplace? These draw in cold air from the bottom and shoots out hot air as the log burns within the recess area of the pipes. Though expensive here, you could probably make one for a lot less cheaper with the right tools: http://www.woodlanddirect.com/Fireplace-Acces...earance-Fireplace-4-Tubes
There are fences one can use on "wind mill" generator if it is a vertical spinning turbine. If you use a Globe Style Turbine with external bracing (a few seen here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/321857326306 ) you can wrap thin chicken wire fencing around it with no wind loss. I've seen these (but as exhaust vents) all over NYC, with some buildings having as many as 10 on a roof, most used by restaurants for their kitchen exhaust. I've never heard of an animal crawling or crashing into one. Adding a shaft to a generator (some are built for that) is easy.
The Wind generator noise comes from the gearing from the shaft of the wind blade to the generators. Direct drive units are practically noiseless. I forget the company name but there is a firm in Massachusetts that has an old style windmill connected directly to a car's alternator for its generator and has a braking system in case the RPMs get too high. It is noiseless and though it looks like an old style windmill, its about 1/2 to 1/4 the size; their small unit as a blade span of 4ft across. But their larger units which are gear driven are not noiseless but it low noise as it in a sealed transmission box.
One thing I have not seen, maybe I skipped it, is have you figured out how much power you are going to need? Because no matter how much power you need, you need to generate twice as much. With Solar - 1/2 of it to run your daily needs and the other 1/2 to charge you batteries at the same time for night use. For wind for 24 hour usage, the same thing if not 4X as much as the wind is not always there for you when you need it. If you have a nearby stream, then you can go for Hyrdo-electric power with an old fashion water wheel, but you still need to make double of what you need.
And don't forget the batteries.
Last thing - upkeep and replacements! Ugh, a touchy subject here. With Wind and Water, they are basically maintenance free and last a life time if taken care of right. Just shut them down and clean and lube them up every 6 months or so - no more than an hour per unit. But solar? You need to wash them down every month, daily if it snows, and solar cells only last 10 - 15 years and then you need to replace them all! Over time their power output will drop and continue to drop to zero. Also one bad solar panel can screw up the others as they would try to run at the level of the damaged one, which I find strange but seen it demonstrated. Not saying that Solar is bad, it is great! But it is not as maintenance free as some people make it out to be. And batteries - they need to be replaced every 1 to 3 years, depending on the battery. The best solution is to mix all of these up and get a balanced output, and always have that gas generator back up.
1400W sounds like a lot, but I know hair dryers that use that much power! LOL!