What other alternative energy items do you own?

I am seriously looking at solar panels to supplement & mariginally replace home electric.

I have a hand crank/solar radio. I have a hand crank charger for my cell phone. These two are more for outages, though i have used both when electric recharging was not available or impractical.

A generator for emergencies, but that really doesn't count I suppose as alternate energy.

 

Let's see. We've got the battery-operated lawn-care equipment.

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There's the photovoltaic system on the house that provides power for the house ANY my main vehicle.

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There's the Electric Vehicles.

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Since you even brought up the watch, I'll go with my Junghans solar/atomic jobbie:




I have solar powered flashlights, solar-powered battery charger for all my wireless devices. Solar light in the shed, solar light in my car-top cargo box. I'll stop now before I hurt myself.

 

The garden lights in my front yard are solar powered.

I have two lawnmowers...an electric one and a reel one. The electric one is for when I miss the narrow window of opportunity to get a good cut with the reel one.

In addition to the Toyota hybrid, I also own a Trek hybrid:

[Broken External Image]:http://www2.trekbikes.com/images/bikes/large/7300_blueballburnished.jpg

 

Built it myself very simply. I have a small lead-acid battery from a UPS in my office, and it is fed by a small 15W solar panel outside the office. Just keeps it topped up, and I have 12V outomobile chargers having off it for my various devices. I'll betcha anything there something similar on the market now though! As far as I'm concerned all devices should run off of 12V, and we should just have a feed from the computer power supply to run them. None of this wall-wart crap for each device!

 

That is a great idea! Is this something easy to build for a layperson? I have little transformers all over the place, would love to do a quick little jog into solar to support these wall-warts (love the term) if I could.....

 

It couldn't be more simple. The PV panel has two leads coming out of it - you need to leave that in the sun and bring the wires to your battery. Get the polarity right, and presto, you have a battery charger. (This only works with small panels - anything bigger, and you should use a charge controller). Now pick up some 12V automotive outlets (you know - used to be called cigarette lighters) from Radio Shack or wherever you like to go... and also hook THAT up to your battery. Now go find appropriate 12V automotive chargers for all your devices and you're off to the races. Just because something runs off a wall-wart doesn't mean it is 12V. I think everything should be standardized on *something* and we might as well make it 12V. But if you have the proper automotive charger for a device, it'll take that 12V that we're making with the solar panel and converter to what the device needs.

In the summer, I make enough extra power from this little panel to also run my 12V attic exhaust fan for free.

 

Solar landscape lighting, solar front yard light, solar driven water garden, and one of those eco-drive watches as well.

 

I’ve got that battery lawnmower too. It’s so nice not dragging power cords. It’s even nicer not messing with gas, oil, spark plugs, filters, winterization, failures to start, choking on pollution, and disturbing the neighbors with noise.

 

I have three of these.

 

This is me on my HPV which I drove 3022 miles in the last year. I personally generated all of the energy required for that travel from non fossil sources. It is way more cool than the Trek hybrid shown above since I can take a solar powered nap on this HPV. By the way, it fits in my Prius when I need to carry it around.

 

love my diamondback, the 05 response sport is the best light trail bike i've had yet. with better tires, it would be awesome on hardcore trails. now if only i could use it to get to work and live to tell about it...

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Maggie will want of of those!

 

I think my Siamese model is defective. He couldn't care less about soaking up the sun.
If only I could rig-up some kind of collector . . . I'm sure I could keep a small electrical generating system running off all the methane he produces. :lol: Smelly Cat! :huh:

 

Those of you with the rechargable lawn mower or trimmer, how do you like them? I've considered buying one but I'm not sure how good they are at cutting grass. Also, have you thought about hooking them up to solar panels for recharging? Yes Darell, I know you have...

 

At my age, that might still be considered fossil fuel powered. :lol:

 

A super efficient energy conserving house that costs less than $30 per month for utilities year round (R-100 ceiling, triple pane windows, air locks, fully insulated garage, ceramic tile floor, two sunpipes, 60-year tile roof), 5 Trek bicycles, no front lawn (drought-tolerant, gentically prostrate, native plants). The house is climate-appropriate and properly oriented with 1-meter eves (shade in summer, sun in winter).

A high quality "alternative energy" device emphasizes efficiency first, add-on devices second.

 

Not much. Used a 12V battery which needed frequent charging and had to be renewed after 2 summers use (cost about $100). Electric lawn mowers need a lot of power. I got rid of mine.
Best is a goat, or chickens, and you get milk from the former and eggs from the latter. Much more efficient. Also you can eat them when they stop producing

 

My 24 volt cordless Black and Decker with a three year old battery has no problem finishing my yards (total approx. 3700 sq ft) with enough spare power to also do my ultra busy med student neighbor's yard when she was too busy.

For both battery and corded:
Pros: No need to run to the gas station to buy gas. Don't have to store gas. No gas to spill on the mower. No need for winterization. No spark plugs to foul. No need for tune-ups. No pollution to gag on. Quieter. No worry if it will start. Easy one-touch height adjustment.
Cons: Not as powerful as most gas mowers. Doesn't like wet/moist grass.

For corded models only:
Pros: Slightly more powerful than battery model. Will not run out of energy unless there is a blackout.
Cons: Need for nearby plug or power cord long enough to reach. Having to drag and avoid running over the cord. Keeping the plug from snagging or disconnecting.

Like a Prius, an electric lawn mower has its advantages and disadvantages. Too Much Power vs Adequate for the Job Power . . . Dirty Air vs Clean Air . . . Noisy vs Quiet . . . Convenience vs Same Ol', Same Ol' . . . More Reliable vs Less Reliable.

Also like a Prius, an electric lawn mower needs to be operated slightly different for maximum benefit. For the battery model, the steadier you are (EV mode) the longer it will last. Even long grass (like driving up hill) is no problem as long as you don't rush.

Since buying a Prius, I will never go back to a gas only car.
Since buying a battery lawn mower, I will never go back to gas or corded. (Not that corded aren't a smart option, but for me, with my tricky yards (trees), the cord was just a little too inconvenient.)