@claralistensprechen3rd@friendica.myportal.social
2026-02-21 18:35 UTC
Replies (2)
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@xChaos@f.cz 2026-02-21 18:47
@claralistensprechen3rd @Gustodon@mas.to I have extensive experience with both several designs of solar powered bicycles and with small FVE system, back-uped from grid, used only during 3 summer seasons (not during in winter). Even during summer, the solar bike struggles to recharge, when there are heavy clouds. 12V system without inverters would be better choice in winter, but generally, power generation is really limited during winter season. You could get some advantage with mixing with wind power, but it does not perform well for small scale systems (unlike FVE), and for most location it is not enough (but it is probably ok, if you live on the shores of North Sea..) I am all for solar and I promote it as much as possible: but we need long term storage, and the only publicly promoted alternative, hydrogen, is both expensive and inefficient (in terms of loses during charging and discharging of the storage). The most energy intense is heat generation (generally, something 50% of all energy consumption is heating). Heat pumps, exchangers, better insulation and waste heat recycling can help - but it means rethinking just everything about our civilization and way of life.
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@meltedcheese@c.im 2026-02-21 19:00
@claralistensprechen3rd @Gustodon@mas.to @xChaos@f.cz My water conditioning system consumes more energy in the few hours it runs each week than all my other appliances combined. Without it, the water has way too many minerals and metals to drink safely IMO. There are other appliances such as sump pumps where continuous power is essential. I’m gradually adding power consumption sensors to everything in the house that uses electricity. I think a big part of a solar solution is figuring out what you can do without, what you need for quality of life, and what you need for rare but high demand events. Our houses are also not wired very well for active management of consumption. I think of Star Trek when the Captain says, “Divert all power to the forward shields!” Or, “Reduce life support to bare minimums!”