Solar is a scam

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

bushmaster06

Hoist the black flag.
Supporting Member
Special Hen Supporter
Joined
Aug 13, 2012
Messages
1,233
Reaction score
2,759
Location
Luther
Well, I was just brainstorming, but 1" ID plastic pipe will hold a little more than a gallon per 10 feet. So a 50' loop should provide at least 5 gallons of preheated water heater input during most daylight hours in warm months. You'd still have to power the WH coils, but at least you won't be flooding the tank with cold water on the feed side every time some hot is drawn. Could shirt tail engineer a lightweight black plastic pipe loop mounted on a single 4x8 sheet of exterior plywood lag-screwed through the shingles into the roof decking. Weather/hail proof, no maintenance involved, no moving parts, no electricity, no valves except for a bypass. I'll admit it wouldn't be pretty, though. :)
I'd think that you'd want way more than 5 gallons of water in the coil to be practical. I also wonder what insurance companies would think of having all of that screwed through the shingles and decking.
 
Joined
Jun 25, 2009
Messages
1,244
Reaction score
1,166
Location
OKC
Going back to solar panels .....
Even though the ROI isn't there (unless DIY), I could see some huge advantage of solar from a de-centralized power generation aspect.

If (***IF***) the local government/ local building codes implements 1) higher insulation requirements (lower home energy demand), and 2) Minimum of X wattage of solar installed with all NEW home construction, then the local power grid would have huge redundancy for power delivery.

Of course the power company would fight this all the way to the bank, hence why gov/ building codes would need to be involved.
This can only be done based on NEW construction of homes.

BUT..... A robust power grid with decentralized power generation (/redundancy) built into the system would benefit all users.
 
Last edited:

THAT Gurl

Sharpshooter
Special Hen
Joined
Mar 25, 2020
Messages
8,956
Reaction score
22,012
Location
OKC
For me it’s an investment in having more options if power goes out, not saving money.
This is the ONLY reason I am only mildly interested in it.

I'm pondering a small set-up just to power the shed. But the neighbor's ******* oak tree keeps me from even trying. :grumble::grumble: Damn I loathe that tree.
julia louis dreyfus do not want GIF
 
Joined
Apr 5, 2007
Messages
8,487
Reaction score
9,850
Location
Yukon
This is the ONLY reason I am only mildly interested in it.

I'm pondering a small set-up just to power the shed. But the neighbor's ******* oak tree keeps me from even trying. :grumble::grumble: Damn I loathe that tree.
julia louis dreyfus do not want GIF
I’m prob going to do it on a camping vehicle to a battery charged to power a fridge, lights, fan, maybe starlink eventually.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom