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Puerto Rico's Solar Microgrids Beat Blackout

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Re: Puerto Rico's Solar Microgrids Beat Blackout

#111

Post by kccqzy »

rtkwe wrote: post #106
kccqzy wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Europe it's somewhat common to have a small solar panel just on your balcony (i.e. not permanent attached to the building) and simply plugs into a nearby wall receptacle. https://www.theverge.com/24150901/ecoflow-powerstream-review... For those wondering, the article did discuss the safety matter of using a power outlet as an inlet. And the article also points out that while this is allowed in several countries in…

Wild. I wonder how they deal with the back feeding issue. Is there something about the home wiring in those countries that prevents it? (or do they just not care and line workers know to check if a line is truly dead?)

The device detects that and prevents back feeding. So in case of a power outage it completely shuts itself down.

Re: Puerto Rico's Solar Microgrids Beat Blackout

#112

Post by thmsths »

rtkwe wrote: post #106
kccqzy wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Europe it's somewhat common to have a small solar panel just on your balcony (i.e. not permanent attached to the building) and simply plugs into a nearby wall receptacle. https://www.theverge.com/24150901/ecoflow-powerstream-review... For those wondering, the article did discuss the safety matter of using a power outlet as an inlet. And the article also points out that while this is allowed in several countries in…

Wild. I wonder how they deal with the back feeding issue. Is there something about the home wiring in those countries that prevents it? (or do they just not care and line workers know to check if a line is truly dead?)

I feel the real danger of back feeding is not that american line workers can't be bothered to check if the line is truly dead before starting to work. It's that the line could be reenergized at any time.

Re: Puerto Rico's Solar Microgrids Beat Blackout

#113

Post by tclancy »

rtkwe wrote: post #104
WillAdams wrote: post #77

Does anyone have a good link/step-by-step for doing some sort of home solar system where: - it's sufficiently small-scale that no building permit is required - it looks nice enough that neighbors won't complain - the wiring is essentially plug-and-play The best approach I've been able to come up with is to purchase a medium size battery pack such as is used for glamping (glamour camping), plug it into the wall and co…

> no building permit is required This will be the main issue. No matter what you're going to be doing work inside the main service panel on your house adding new feeds and you'll need to install a transfer switch to disconnect your house in case of a power outage. Most electrical work inside a panel like adding circuits will require a permit in the US. Seems like your plan doesn't involve any of that though so you sh…

It would also be nice to think of your neighbors in terms of not starting a fire and someone capable of doing permitted work will be handy when you go to sell the place and bright red flags show up during inspection.

Re: Puerto Rico's Solar Microgrids Beat Blackout

#114

Post by bryanlarsen »

kccqzy wrote: post #111
rtkwe wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wild. I wonder how they deal with the back feeding issue. Is there something about the home wiring in those countries that prevents it? (or do they just not care and line workers know to check if a line is truly dead?)

The device detects that and prevents back feeding. So in case of a power outage it completely shuts itself down.

So when the power goes out it no longer powers your fridge or whatever else you need powered. But it's easy enough to unplug the fridge from the wall and directly into the battery.

Re: Puerto Rico's Solar Microgrids Beat Blackout

#115

Post by bryanlarsen »

greenie_beans wrote: post #103

my prediction, for the US: electricity demand from AI will exceed supply at least in the short and medium term, driving up electric prices for consumers

Increased demand for air conditioning in the US is increasing demand at about the same rate as AI is. We're expanding the grid fast enough to handle one, but not both.

Re: Puerto Rico's Solar Microgrids Beat Blackout

#117

Post by bloomingeek »

blitzar wrote: post #92
EcommerceFlow wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Remove the Chinese Tariffs on them, then just import massive amounts.

That would be playing right into the Chinese evil plan to spend trillions giving away solar panels to America so Americans go woke (and have cheap electricity) /s

Your vaporizing is forth coming.

Re: Puerto Rico's Solar Microgrids Beat Blackout

#118

Post by bryanlarsen »

closewith wrote: post #47
Dylan16807 wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Solar panels are already so cheap that household solar is mostly about the installation price. And more people affording their own panels is still a lot more expensive than fixing the grid.

But batteries aren't, and batteries are both the key technology for load shifting and the biggest expense in modern installations.

5kWh of batteries is under $1000. That's enough for load shifting for most people. Even if you need several of them, that's still going to be cheaper than installation labor.

Re: Puerto Rico's Solar Microgrids Beat Blackout

#119

Post by blackjack_ »

kccqzy wrote: post #99
WillAdams wrote: post #77

Does anyone have a good link/step-by-step for doing some sort of home solar system where: - it's sufficiently small-scale that no building permit is required - it looks nice enough that neighbors won't complain - the wiring is essentially plug-and-play The best approach I've been able to come up with is to purchase a medium size battery pack such as is used for glamping (glamour camping), plug it into the wall and co…

In Europe it's somewhat common to have a small solar panel just on your balcony (i.e. not permanent attached to the building) and simply plugs into a nearby wall receptacle. https://www.theverge.com/24150901/ecoflow-powerstream-review... For those wondering, the article did discuss the safety matter of using a power outlet as an inlet. And the article also points out that while this is allowed in several countries in…

We are starting to have this in the US, in fact I have a company coming by to do an install of a system like this on Monday. Technically you should be able to mostly diy it, but it uses a smart panel that gets attached to the main to prevent backflow, which needs an electrician, and for now they are running its own circuit.

Re: Puerto Rico's Solar Microgrids Beat Blackout

#120

Post by cjaackie »

tencentshill wrote: post #91
brk wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is a ton of DIY solar info online, but it is very much regionally dependent. Both for permits and system design. Here in Florida, I can get high output from an average panel, but there are a lot of permit issues (and rightly so, a poorly installed panel can become a severe hazard in a hurricane). Where I lived in Michigan, there weren't many permitting or zoning issues, but I'd need 3-4x the number of panels to…

True energy independence in even a small capacity has a value beyond just money.

True [x] independence in even a small capacity has a value beyond just money.

..water.. ..food.. ..housing.. ..information..

I get what you are trying to conveying, I just wanted to highlight the semantic generality of the statement if it stands alone.

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