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To: Sedohr Nod who wrote (245904)	4/7/2002 6:48:12 PM
From: MSI	Respond to of 769667

I'm hoping to make it part of a mostly-off-grid system. I'll run the line from the utility myself, since they charge $13/ft and I can do it for $2. But I want off-grid capability, which so far breaks down into about 1kw wind, 1kw solar, and the balance from diesel and grid as a last resort. I should be able to maintain all regular household activities on 5-10kwh/day, and only fire the diesel 1/2day/wk to top-off the batteries, and use grid power when I use the shop for some energy-intensive project (or the diesel). In a few years I expect increased utility costs, and decreased solar panel costs, and to increase panels then. Also, there's some nifty engingeering by ex-nuclear weapons designer Ted Taylor at Princeton, who designed a solar pond, with a pretty good capture ratio, for possibly unlimited hot water at the several houses I'm planning on the property. It's over 10%, so a 1/2 acre pond gives you all you need. I'm also (slowly) researching Stirling engines to convert Taylor heat to mechanical, for a generator, and produce things like (maybe) hydrogen for on-ranch equipment. All experimental stuff, to prove a point, and have fun as well. Israeli scientists and Lawrence Livermore have done lots of large-scale solar, but what I'm looking for worldwide are practical methods low in exotic materials. The ideal is a kind of 1/2 acre blanket spread out on a field that generates hot water to a low-delta engine for mech and electric power, at a net ratio of 5%. Or on a roof, looking like roofing tiles. But cut total cost to $2/watt ... So when I talk w. the Israelis I get fantastic formulas for whizzy exotic materials to get the last .005% efficiency to 20.005%, at thousands of $$ per kw... Hey, man, there's lots of solar, just give me cheap engineering, and folks in the country, we'll do the rest ... But there's no gov't or private grant money for the practical, so we'll have to do it on our own.