Archive for August, 2009

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How to Build a DIY Solar Power Generator

Saturday, August 29th, 2009

Homeowners can benefit greatly from a residential solar power system, specifically in the area of decreasing the cost of energy, which has caused a strain for many people by cutting into their budgets significantly. Even a do-it-yourself or DIY solar power generator can reduce energy bills down to considerable levels. In some cases where the solar power backup generator is efficient enough, energy bills can drop to zero and even negative levels, meaning the household is actually returning excess power back to the utility companies.

Several solar power kits are available from online and offline sources. Prices are dropping considerably as further advancements make it possible for solar panels to be more affordable to the average American household. Build solar power generator kits are also available, or you can make one on your own. The following describes a procedure on how to build a solar power generator for only a few hundred dollars.

A Basic Procedure in Building Your Own DIY Solar Power Generator

The following describes a procedure of building a DIY home solar power generator capable of generating 100 watt-hours of electrical energy from a daily solar exposure of just 5 hours. This is enough to power a 25-watt load like a laptop, an electric fan or a small television for four hours.

A 12v solar power already available in the market will be needed for this project. You will also need a 4-amp charge controller and a 32 amp-hour battery. This sealed battery can store up to 400 watts of electrical energy and the charge controller can prevent the batteries from overcharging.

  • When solar energy is converted into electrical energy by the solar cells, DC or direct current is produced. In order to convert DC to AC power, a power inverter will be needed since typical household appliances use either alternating current or AC.
  • To monitor the electrical load produced by the generator as well as the levels of electrical power during charging or usage, a voltage meter should be incorporated with your DIY solar power generator.
  • For the enclosure, you can use a wooden or plastic container where you can easily drill holes where you could pass the insulated wiring for the battery and inverter. The solar panels are packaged separately and should be installed in a strategic location on your roof where it can receive maximum exposure to sunlight.
  • Follow proper wiring diagrams for your solar panel modules, which you can obtain from the manufacturer. The negative and positive leads of the panels, the battery and the charge controller should be properly identified first before making any connections. Ensure that polarities are matched during connections, otherwise your components will be damaged during operation.

 

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How to Let the Subconscious Mind Work it’s Magic

Saturday, August 29th, 2009

One of the best movies that sends a message about the power behind your subconscious mind power has to be the Field of Dreams. You remember, it’s the story that revolves around the voice that says, ‘If you build it they will come.’ What if you asked yourself what will come? Well, actually it anything your heart (and mind) desires.

In the beginning it was difficult to follow this path, but by the end of the movie people were coming from all corners of the country to see these instant phenomenons. This is basically how your inner mind works and even though you may not know what is coming next, if you believe it will be good then it will be. What it comes down to is if you can use the power that comes from the subconscious mind power, you’ll be able to control your own destiny.

Is subconscious mind power real? Still skeptical? Don’t worry, I figured most of you were, which is why I went through all my research and picked a few examples out for you. The easiest way it can be explained is by acknowledging the Placebo Effect. This is where a study occurs with two different groups. One group receives the medication that is ‘the real deal,’ while the other is simply a placebo. However, neither one of them know which has the real medicine and which group doesn’t.

Scientists then look into the results from each group. It’s interesting to see how people are able to get better from taking the placebo. However, there are occasions where these same people contract side effects, even though there isn’t any. This is due to the negative thoughts that surface and allow the subconscious mind to believe its happening.

Think about this in your own situation. Perhaps you haven’t been involved in any medical trials, but when you go to the doctor, are you told a specific medication is going to give you side effects? If the doctor minimizes side effects to you, don’t be surprised. A doctor knows how powerful one’s mind is, and may actually think telling you will cause side effects; through the power of your subconscious mind. Therefore, a doctor may minimize these negative things, in the hopes that you won’t experience them. Suggesting them, in other words, may increase your chances of having side effects. And of course, they also want you to be compliant with taking the medication, so that’s another reason to minimize the negative effects of the drug.

Unfortunately, it has taken us far longer to reach this understanding then it should have throughout history. It was used thousands of years ago by ancient religions and then realized years later. Once we figured out that the power of suggestion combined with subconscious mind power could change anyone’s life, it was much easier to train the mind.

Or, you may want to use visualization to alter the way you see things. Visualization is a simple technique that really, truly works. You can do this a couple of ways. Try this; close your eyes and visualize what you want. See it as though you’re looking at it from your perspective, with it right in front of you.

Once you’ve accomplished this beginning stage, let’s move on to the physical side of things. Maybe you’ve been mowing with a push mower for years and couldn’t imagine the difference if you had a riding lawn mower. Well, do the step above and picture yourself riding around cutting the grass without any exertion. Then, go down to the store where you saw it and take a picture of yourself sitting on it. Once you do this, place those pictures around your house, work, and anywhere else you deem necessary.

Even though this has been known for centuries, it’s taken our world this long to embrace it. Scientists from all around the world are beginning to understand the positive effects this can have on your life.

Quantum physics has opened the door to ’seeing’ and observing this world at its essence. Subatomically, all matter is energy, and is not solid. And, quantum physics has also shown that this energy can be manipulated through thought. In fact, it has actually shown that energy cannot exist at all without being observed by someone.

See, it may be hard to understand your first time going over the subject, but the subconscious mind is the reason your matter and energy is obtained. In the past we believed it to be the other way around. It’s a true testament to the fact that everything is created through the mind and why the subconscious mind is so powerful.

Ancient religions have known this for thousands of years, but quantum physics has now brought this into the modern age and into modern science at last. Whatever your spiritual belief structure or paradigm, the science of quantum physics cannot be denied.

What it comes down to is figuring out whether or not it’s for you. If you could change your life by thinking about it, wouldn’t you at least try it? Just try it out for the next week by simply using the affirmations process. When you’ve implanted this into your daily routine, move on to the visualization techniques we discussed earlier. The end result is you’ll be training and developing the subconscious mind the way it was supposed to be used.

 

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Green Power Close to Home

Saturday, August 29th, 2009

When we hear about how thinking globally and acting locally, power is often not at the forefront of our minds. But perhaps it should be. The environmental impact of transporting electricity is easily as taxing on the world climate as transporting hard consumer goods can be. Transporting power creates a direct waste of that power, creating a larger carbon footprint.

An immediate question springs to mind, however. Isn’t all power produced at least somewhat locally? In short, it is. However, we have narrow down what we consider local. If your power is produced 100 miles away, that’s not terribly far in today’s world, but some of the electricity will be lost over that 100 miles. If the power is produced on your roof or in your backyard, none of it will be lost (or at least very little of it).

For a moment, consider the factors at play in producing power. First, one has to consider the source of the power (i.e. coal, solar, wind, etc.), then where it’s made (in a plant, in your backyard, etc.), then how far it has to travel (NY to CA or from the source to your breaker box). Something we often don’t realize is that electricity does not travel well. While our technologies for creating power have advanced rapidly, our technologies for transporting and storing power have not. Some new developments, such as hydrogen fuel cells, have promise, but the kinks are not all worked out yet.

To truly create green power, that power needs to be created close to home. There is a set of factors at play: 1. This will rely on a local resource (i.e. creating solar power in Phoenix rather than Seattle); 2. This will require little transport, and therefore less degradation of the power; 3. Ultimately, less power will have to be created for the same outcome.

As it becomes easier and easier to build solar cells and wind turbines (not to mention micro-hydro systems) at home, it is worth considering ones environmental impact. The benefits are numerous- it save the environment, saves your power bills, and could even make you money (think tax breaks or even selling power back to the power company). Numerous resources are available to the home builder of green power, allowing it to be used in many different environments (rural, urban, suburban). Between the guides available today, the necessity of saving the climate, the potential financial savings, and the long-term satisfaction of building green power, building your own home power system is more attractive than ever.

Damon Westchester is the editor of www.build-green-power.com.

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Land Fill Emissions and Landfill Waste Management Practice

Thursday, August 27th, 2009

The Problems with Land Fills (Landfills) - The Inside Structure of a Landfill

No-one, or almost nobody, likes a land fill.  But, that does not change the undeniable fact that Land fill is one of the most widely used methods of waste disposal of civil solid waste ( MSW ) and business and general commercial waste ( C&I Waste ) around the globe.  Even when a council recycles a lot there may still be a third of the waste going into a land fill.

As well as that more and more are being built as society produces more rubbish.

Once land filled, the refuse decomposes through a series of mixed physico-chemical and biological changes, that may take a period of more than 150 years.

Some waste in these states never even gets sent to landfills any more.  As an example, waste from electric and electronic hardware, white products ( e.g, washing machines, fridges ) and hazardous waste ( e.g, batteries, medicines, fluorescent tube lighting ) must not be thrown in the bin, but be left at the various civic amenity centres around the country for recycling and disposal. 

Where landfill is correctly controlled and minimised there are bring centres in all areas for the recycling of glass, cans and some plastics.  Sadly, in the nations land fill control is given a low priority with the result the landfills make plenty of pollution and emissions of dust flies and rodents such as rats, are common. 

Landfills are a bit like bathtubs.  Like bathtubs, they leak two ways : out the bottom or ott.  To avoid this the leachate must be removed before it builds up pressure.For this reason, leachate is pumped from the base (lowest) layer of the Land fill and discharges into holding tanks.

The leachate is then pumped into the land fill, allowing it to flow over the waste repeatedly.  It percolates thru the land fill, picking up impurities as it travels.  The bottom layer of the dump rests upon a land fill liner.  The liner regularly has several layers.  The top, or primary, liner might be for instance, a composite section with 60-mil high-density polyethylene ( HDPE ) and a bentonite subliner. 

Leachate is produced by a mix of liquids from waste material, rainwater and other liquids that are produced in the decomposition of waste.  It may contain contaminates that could pollute water supplies if permitted to enter the aquifer.

Depending on characteristics of the Land fill and the wastes it contains, the leachate may be relatively safe or highly toxic. 

To ensure that a land fill does not pollute the groundwater below it, groundwater monitoring wells are installed thru each site to make sure that Land fill operations aren’t impacting groundwater quality. 

Usually, each one of the wells is sampled on a once per month basis, with the results sent to the Environmental Protection (EPA) and Water Resources Board.  Groundwater monitoring stations continually test for land fill seepage, sometimes for so long as 50 years after Land fill closure.  That is needed since there is little oxygen and moisture in Land fills, rubbish does not break down terribly quickly.

Additionally, a Land fill gas system will be installed to collect gas through wells and treat the gas by burning in enclosed flame flares or by other authorized techniques such as changing the gas to electricity. 

Air quality is monitored downwind of landfills, with additional samples are also taken ‘upwind’ of the land fill.  These samples are called the ‘background’ samples, because they show gases that are routinely present but are not produced by the Land fill.

Methane has 21 times the global warming potential of CO2, thus in the near term and in the case of Controlled Landfill Sites, it is better to have CO2 going into the atmosphere than methane.  Land fill gases travel freely for very long distances into the environment.  Methane burns very simply and often is used as natural gas for cooking and heating.  It is lighter than air and collects at the top of enclosed spaces.
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Solar Power Residential Systems - Considerations and Costs of Solar Home Power

Thursday, August 27th, 2009

Solar home power is a choice that more families are now considering as the use of clean, renewable energy resources becomes more of priority across the globe. In some regions therefore, solar power residential systems are being proactively encouraged with funding available.

As part of your costing factors for a solar home power project, it is a good idea to check out whether local tax credits for such a project are offered in your local area. Different regulations will apply depending upon where you live but this is definitely worth looking into right at the start.

The next thing to bear in mind when considering a solar home power system is your power bill and your utility company. Some utility companies have policies where they buy back the excess power generated by a solar power residential or windpower system and this can also affect your costings, so you need to check out what the options are with the power companies in your particular region.

There is certain additional information your electricity company should be able to provide you with. Ask them for analysis of your recent energy bills. Then you can see more clearly the peaks and troughs in your energy usage and requirements.  This information could also affect your ultimate selection of solar power residential setup.

You will need to study both the costs and the prospective savings of the different types of solar power residential systems to make an informed evaluation. For example, solar thermal solutions and home solar electricity installations will entail different initial investments and offer different savings.

Basically a solar thermal system is used to heat hot water and is generally regarded as the most efficient sort of solar home power setup. As heating water is always a major energy usage for all households, using solar power for heating water ought to without doubt be an option you consider.

A home solar electricity installation usually uses solar home panels to collect the sun’s energy. So that the electricity produced can be use by both the utility grid and your home, the direct current (DC) is converted to alternating current (AC) using an Inverter. A solar home electricity system may also usually have a battery setup for storing the energy produced for later use.

The solution most effective for your own individual requirements need not necessarily be just one kind of solar power residential installation. You could find that a combination of solar home power setups is more effective than investing in a full-blown installation of just one sort. For instance, you may have rooftop solar home panels positioned on a rooftop heat exchanger that heats up water in your home.

Please don’t forget that a fundamental aspect of any solar home power considerations should be a commitment to doing whatever you can to conserve energy. It makes sense not to waste energy no matter what solar power residential system you select.

Finally, don’t rule out the feasibility of building and installing your own solar power residential system. This reduction in your original outlay means that your return on investment period will be much shorter and you may even find that you can recoup your whole outlay on one month’s energy bill. This is a significant option these days and you don’t have to be a DIY guru to do this. You’ll find that you can even make the solar home panels yourself very easily and incredibly cheaply. There are now step-by-step guides available to help the average homeowner build and install these solar home power systems themselves for much less than a commercially made and installed system. This DIY option is now proving both very cost-effective and a practical, realistic alternative for lots of homeowners and is therefore an option that is certainly worth considering when finally deciding upon a solar power residential solution for your own home.

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