Power rationing and personal electricity generation
While the rationing is forecast, It reminds me of the last time we had this. At that time, I designed a 2KVA invertor system from scratch with power MOSFETS which ran on 2 lead acid batteries with an external charger ( 100ah ). This thing ran for 7 hours continuos powering a 30amp load. This time around, no need for that as many things are cheaply available. noise free minimum requirements, power delivery at least 8 hrs at 40% load : - Power 2 energy saving bulbs. These are the AC philips 8watt ( 40 watt output ). DC load on good quality cable : 0.5amps max each - Laptop and charger. DC load on good quality cable : 2 amps max - Printer ( inkjet, not laser ) . DC load on good quality cable : 4amps max - Wifi Router. DC load on good quality cable : 0.1 amp max cheap options available : - For lighting, I can use DC flourecent tube 8Watt. These run on 12 VDC. run a separate DC line from the batteries @ 0.2amp each. - Use an invertor or modify a 650VA UPS for AC supply. split the DC and AC circuits while good ventilation is important - Purchase 2 batteries ( 100ah each stacked in parallel, total 200ah ) sealed maintainence free type ( must be in ventilated area ) - purchase a single solar panel with line charger or incase of UPS, increase charging transformer size. Or AC charger upto 10amps. sketch : !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! charging !------------! Invertor/ !-----------------AC Output ( fused protection) !system+batt ! ! UPS ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! !-------------------------------------------------------------DC Output ( fused protection ) ( correct as necessary )
Hi Aki, Excellent assessment - and ascii art ;) Just one small point: - it's not a good idea to put batteries in parallel. You will run into problems with charging, and the imbalance between batteries will lead to one battery discharging through another. That's why the cells of a battery are in series, and why larger ups have many batteries in series - hence working on very high DC bus. I saw one case of batteries in parallel where one of the batteries boiled off all the sulphuric acid, producing clouds of corrosive gas! - and the battery melted! There *are* systems which use batteries in parallel - but these systems have complex control systems to selectively connect or disconnect individual batteries from the common DC bus. The best way to get larger capacity is to use big individual (2V) cells - as telcos do for their 48V DC bus. Tony 2009/7/17 aki <aki275@googlemail.com>:
While the rationing is forecast, It reminds me of the last time we had this. At that time, I designed a 2KVA invertor system from scratch with power MOSFETS which ran on 2 lead acid batteries with an external charger ( 100ah ). This thing ran for 7 hours continuos powering a 30amp load. This time around, no need for that as many things are cheaply available.
noise free minimum requirements, power delivery at least 8 hrs at 40% load :
- Power 2 energy saving bulbs. These are the AC philips 8watt ( 40 watt output ). DC load on good quality cable : 0.5amps max each
- Laptop and charger. DC load on good quality cable : 2 amps max
- Printer ( inkjet, not laser ) . DC load on good quality cable : 4amps max
- Wifi Router. DC load on good quality cable : 0.1 amp max
cheap options available :
- For lighting, I can use DC flourecent tube 8Watt. These run on 12 VDC. run a separate DC line from the batteries @ 0.2amp each.
- Use an invertor or modify a 650VA UPS for AC supply. split the DC and AC circuits while good ventilation is important
- Purchase 2 batteries ( 100ah each stacked in parallel, total 200ah ) sealed maintainence free type ( must be in ventilated area )
- purchase a single solar panel with line charger or incase of UPS, increase charging transformer size. Or AC charger upto 10amps.
sketch :
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! charging !------------! Invertor/ !-----------------AC Output ( fused protection) !system+batt ! ! UPS ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! !-------------------------------------------------------------DC Output ( fused protection )
( correct as necessary )
_______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White
Hey Tony, thanks for the important battery issue as a safety precaution. :-) I'd like to add some general safety tips: - electricity is dangerious and KILLS. Get a skilled professional to do the wiring and setup or risk frying your equipment - When designing such, do not load with any device that has capacitiance, inductance loads eg a motor drive - Use sequential startup to devices as you do not want to create a load surge on the batteries. - Safety first. Wherever possible, including inputs and outputs add in-line fuses on DC /circuit breakers on AC lines to prevent risk of fire or shock or accidental shortcircuits - Use correct cabling and terminators. Eg on DC side from batteries to invertor/ups, always use heavy duty flame retardent cables. connectors should be anti-corrosive and covered with Gel to prevent moisture buildup. - ALL outlets must be clearly marked as BACKUP supply ( DC or AC ) - if you have kids, ensure the entire system is raised a few feet above ground and locked securely. Pls add/correct as needed.
Sometimes it is just impossible to use a pure series battery system. We have industrial inverters that run on 48V or 96V and with need to handle a lot of AH to provide uninterrupted supply of power. Now if you are to stick on a series connection only, you will only have 4 12V batteries connected by series to produce 48 V, and this reduces the AH. With a series-parallel connection, you can have as large a battery bank as you want. You can connect 48 V series systems in Parrnell to create a huge inverter/battery systems. I believe this is the kind telcos use for base stations. But also the quality of inverter and battert dpeneds. Cheaper batteries with acid may not do it. There are maintenance free sealed batteries which are more suited for this purpose. On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 10:39 AM, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Aki,
Excellent assessment - and ascii art ;)
Just one small point: - it's not a good idea to put batteries in parallel. You will run into problems with charging, and the imbalance between batteries will lead to one battery discharging through another. That's why the cells of a battery are in series, and why larger ups have many batteries in series - hence working on very high DC bus. I saw one case of batteries in parallel where one of the batteries boiled off all the sulphuric acid, producing clouds of corrosive gas! - and the battery melted!
There *are* systems which use batteries in parallel - but these systems have complex control systems to selectively connect or disconnect individual batteries from the common DC bus.
The best way to get larger capacity is to use big individual (2V) cells - as telcos do for their 48V DC bus.
Tony
2009/7/17 aki <aki275@googlemail.com>:
While the rationing is forecast, It reminds me of the last time we had this. At that time, I designed a 2KVA invertor system from scratch with power MOSFETS which ran on 2 lead acid batteries with an external charger ( 100ah ). This thing ran for 7 hours continuos powering a 30amp load. This time around, no need for that as many things are cheaply available.
noise free minimum requirements, power delivery at least 8 hrs at 40% load :
- Power 2 energy saving bulbs. These are the AC philips 8watt ( 40 watt output ). DC load on good quality cable : 0.5amps max each
- Laptop and charger. DC load on good quality cable : 2 amps max
- Printer ( inkjet, not laser ) . DC load on good quality cable : 4amps max
- Wifi Router. DC load on good quality cable : 0.1 amp max
cheap options available :
- For lighting, I can use DC flourecent tube 8Watt. These run on 12 VDC. run a separate DC line from the batteries @ 0.2amp each.
- Use an invertor or modify a 650VA UPS for AC supply. split the DC and AC circuits while good ventilation is important
- Purchase 2 batteries ( 100ah each stacked in parallel, total 200ah ) sealed maintainence free type ( must be in ventilated area )
- purchase a single solar panel with line charger or incase of UPS, increase charging transformer size. Or AC charger upto 10amps.
sketch :
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! charging !------------! Invertor/ !-----------------AC Output ( fused protection) !system+batt ! ! UPS ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! !-------------------------------------------------------------DC Output ( fused protection )
( correct as necessary )
_______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
Ill give a more wholistic approach. First, do an audit of energy consumption. Discard those 40bob bulbs for their 18w equivalents. (for a modest 2br house, thats a saving of about 1000w, and more battery life. ) second, get rid of crt monitors for lcd or plasma on your comp and tv. Then look at other devices and try to cut down on peak power as much as possible. Then design your back up system on genuine, deep cycle systems. Dont kill yourself trying to get a 96v system, often youll need to factor in cost of equipment for that voltage setting, esp the inverters. From experience, 24 volt systems are quite manageable. Then hopefully youll be headed somewhere. Incidentally, if everyone in kenya did this there would be no need for the outages in the first place. On 7/17/09, Philip Musyoki <pmusyoki@gmail.com> wrote:
Sometimes it is just impossible to use a pure series battery system. We have industrial inverters that run on 48V or 96V and with need to handle a lot of AH to provide uninterrupted supply of power. Now if you are to stick on a series connection only, you will only have 4 12V batteries connected by series to produce 48 V, and this reduces the AH.
With a series-parallel connection, you can have as large a battery bank as you want. You can connect 48 V series systems in Parrnell to create a huge inverter/battery systems. I believe this is the kind telcos use for base stations.
But also the quality of inverter and battert dpeneds. Cheaper batteries with acid may not do it. There are maintenance free sealed batteries which are more suited for this purpose.
On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 10:39 AM, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Aki,
Excellent assessment - and ascii art ;)
Just one small point: - it's not a good idea to put batteries in parallel. You will run into problems with charging, and the imbalance between batteries will lead to one battery discharging through another. That's why the cells of a battery are in series, and why larger ups have many batteries in series - hence working on very high DC bus. I saw one case of batteries in parallel where one of the batteries boiled off all the sulphuric acid, producing clouds of corrosive gas! - and the battery melted!
There *are* systems which use batteries in parallel - but these systems have complex control systems to selectively connect or disconnect individual batteries from the common DC bus.
The best way to get larger capacity is to use big individual (2V) cells - as telcos do for their 48V DC bus.
Tony
2009/7/17 aki <aki275@googlemail.com>:
While the rationing is forecast, It reminds me of the last time we had this. At that time, I designed a 2KVA invertor system from scratch with power MOSFETS which ran on 2 lead acid batteries with an external charger ( 100ah ). This thing ran for 7 hours continuos powering a 30amp load. This time around, no need for that as many things are cheaply available.
noise free minimum requirements, power delivery at least 8 hrs at 40% load :
- Power 2 energy saving bulbs. These are the AC philips 8watt ( 40 watt output ). DC load on good quality cable : 0.5amps max each
- Laptop and charger. DC load on good quality cable : 2 amps max
- Printer ( inkjet, not laser ) . DC load on good quality cable : 4amps max
- Wifi Router. DC load on good quality cable : 0.1 amp max
cheap options available :
- For lighting, I can use DC flourecent tube 8Watt. These run on 12 VDC. run a separate DC line from the batteries @ 0.2amp each.
- Use an invertor or modify a 650VA UPS for AC supply. split the DC and AC circuits while good ventilation is important
- Purchase 2 batteries ( 100ah each stacked in parallel, total 200ah ) sealed maintainence free type ( must be in ventilated area )
- purchase a single solar panel with line charger or incase of UPS, increase charging transformer size. Or AC charger upto 10amps.
sketch :
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ! charging !------------! Invertor/ !-----------------AC Output ( fused protection) !system+batt ! ! UPS ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !
!-------------------------------------------------------------DC Output ( fused protection )
( correct as necessary )
_______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange these apples then you and I will still each have one apple. But if you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas. George Bernard Shaw
@Areba, energy saving bulbs are great, esp the new generation ones. I stick to philips. I'll give an example. In the last power rationing, my 2kva ( 24 volts ) design invertor would run ES 10pcs 10 watt and 3 pcs 22watt bulbs at 4 hour tests, all at one go. the small apt looked lit like a stadium and the neighbors would " borrow " a connection for one ES bulb. When testing completed, I'd run my 21inc Sony TV and DSTV decoder for 4 hrs with 3 bulbs. The system was risky as I did not have time to design an overload trip. Times have changed, even a basic ups has builtin checks. Here's the interesting part that got me started then : light and DC oscillation. my first test was using a 6volt bike battery powering 2 mosfets and a 21watt ES bulb. Blindingly bright.... Now it is so much easier. ( "electricity is dangeriuos disclaimer" ) On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:04 PM, Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com>wrote:
Ill give a more wholistic approach. First, do an audit of energy consumption. Discard those 40bob bulbs for their 18w equivalents. (for a modest 2br house, thats a saving of about 1000w, and more battery life. )
True. My highest watt bulb is a 36 watt energy saver giving an equivalent of 200w! Only reason i got it is the roof in that room is a wooden brown, absorbing all the light. I always wonder what would happen if the government banned the old filament bulbs totally. On 7/17/09, aki <aki275@googlemail.com> wrote:
@Areba, energy saving bulbs are great, esp the new generation ones. I stick to philips. I'll give an example. In the last power rationing, my 2kva ( 24 volts ) design invertor would run ES 10pcs 10 watt and 3 pcs 22watt bulbs at 4 hour tests, all at one go. the small apt looked lit like a stadium and the neighbors would " borrow " a connection for one ES bulb. When testing completed, I'd run my 21inc Sony TV and DSTV decoder for 4 hrs with 3 bulbs. The system was risky as I did not have time to design an overload trip. Times have changed, even a basic ups has builtin checks. Here's the interesting part that got me started then : light and DC oscillation. my first test was using a 6volt bike battery powering 2 mosfets and a 21watt ES bulb. Blindingly bright.... Now it is so much easier. ( "electricity is dangeriuos disclaimer" ) On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:04 PM, Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com>wrote:
Ill give a more wholistic approach. First, do an audit of energy consumption. Discard those 40bob bulbs for their 18w equivalents. (for a modest 2br house, thats a saving of about 1000w, and more battery life. )
-- If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange these apples then you and I will still each have one apple. But if you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas. George Bernard Shaw
"Energy Saving" bulbs are *not* great! - if by 'energy saving' we mean the 'compact fluorescent' bulbs - for the following reasons: Compact Fluorescent Lamp Characteristics: Benefits ... Low energy usage Relatively efficient Long life (typically 8,000 - 15,000 hours claimed) Deficiencies ... Comparatively expensive Medium to high technology Wide variety of non-reclaimable materials used in manufacture Poor Colour Rendering Index (CRI) - typically 60 - 70 Commonly fail prematurely if subjected to repeated switching cycles * Cannot be used at very low temperatures (< -20°C, but often higher) Cannot be used at high temperatures (> 60°C, but often lower) Relatively poor power factor (around 0.52 seems typical for better versions) Cannot be dimmed with common light dimmer circuits May suffer instantaneous failure with moisture ingress (condensation, etc.) Disliked by many people (not always for valid reasons) Will not fit (and cannot be made to fit) many fittings designed for miniature lamps Unsuitable for totally sealed light fittings (they will get too hot, and the electronics will fail) Moderately high initial (inrush) current when switched on (20-100 times operating current !) Must be recycled, or no tangible environmental benefit can be claimed May (will?) cause local interference on AM radio and possibly TV picture (analogue TV only) because of EMI For a *very* detailed analysis of CFL bulbs, please have a look at: http://sound.westhost.com/articles/incandescent.htm Have an 'energy conservative' weekend, guys Tony 2009/7/17 aki <aki275@googlemail.com>:
@Areba, energy saving bulbs are great, esp the new generation ones. I stick to philips. I'll give an example. In the last power rationing, my 2kva ( 24 volts ) design invertor would run ES 10pcs 10 watt and 3 pcs 22watt bulbs at 4 hour tests, all at one go. the small apt looked lit like a stadium and the neighbors would " borrow " a connection for one ES bulb. When testing completed, I'd run my 21inc Sony TV and DSTV decoder for 4 hrs with 3 bulbs. The system was risky as I did not have time to design an overload trip. Times have changed, even a basic ups has builtin checks. Here's the interesting part that got me started then : light and DC oscillation. my first test was using a 6volt bike battery powering 2 mosfets and a 21watt ES bulb. Blindingly bright.... Now it is so much easier. ( "electricity is dangeriuos disclaimer" ) On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:04 PM, Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com> wrote:
Ill give a more wholistic approach. First, do an audit of energy consumption. Discard those 40bob bulbs for their 18w equivalents. (for a modest 2br house, thats a saving of about 1000w, and more battery life. )
_______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White
What would you recommend as a proper Energy Saving Bulb as tungsten and rare gas filled are out of my power use? Price and availability. On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 8:15 PM, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
"Energy Saving" bulbs are *not* great! - if by 'energy saving' we mean the 'compact fluorescent' bulbs - for the following reasons:
LED looks the best candidate for the future: http://sound.westhost.com/lamps/led-lighting.html Tony 2009/7/17 aki <aki275@googlemail.com>:
What would you recommend as a proper Energy Saving Bulb as tungsten and rare gas filled are out of my power use? Price and availability.
On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 8:15 PM, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
"Energy Saving" bulbs are *not* great! - if by 'energy saving' we mean the 'compact fluorescent' bulbs - for the following reasons:
_______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White
@ Tony (Youve made me rummage my stack of documents for my electric bill today ! - unsuccessfully) Here is my arguement on the "energy" saving bulbs vs cost. I guess your other arguments (medium to high technology & non reclaimable parts dont matter that highly to me because i dont consider the same for the other bulbs -> cause i simply love smashing bulbs! ) Now, cause i did not get my bill, ill use an empirical formula to prove my argument. Current Electricity cost: X Ksh per KWH. Cost of "old" filament bulb (100W) -> Ksh 40 Cost of equivalent (18W) filament bulb -> Ksh 250. But just for the heck of it, lets get a super bright 200KW equivalent (36W) at Ksh 900. My house has a total of 19 bulbs. (including 2 at the gate and 4 external lighting). Peak power demand Case 1 ("old bulbs"): -> 19 X 100W -> 1900W. Peak Power demand Case 2 ("new bulbs") -> 19 X 36W->684W. In one hour, ill pay Ksh 1.9x for case 1 and 0.684x for case 2. which means the cost per unit of electricity is 64% cheaper for the more expensive bulbs. Conclusion: it has to be more than 64% more expensive within the shorter lifespan of the two to qualify as more expensive. Ideas and opinion invited. . On 7/17/09, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
"Energy Saving" bulbs are *not* great! - if by 'energy saving' we mean the 'compact fluorescent' bulbs - for the following reasons:
Compact Fluorescent Lamp Characteristics:
Benefits ... Low energy usage Relatively efficient Long life (typically 8,000 - 15,000 hours claimed)
Deficiencies ... Comparatively expensive Medium to high technology Wide variety of non-reclaimable materials used in manufacture Poor Colour Rendering Index (CRI) - typically 60 - 70 Commonly fail prematurely if subjected to repeated switching cycles * Cannot be used at very low temperatures (< -20°C, but often higher) Cannot be used at high temperatures (> 60°C, but often lower) Relatively poor power factor (around 0.52 seems typical for better versions) Cannot be dimmed with common light dimmer circuits May suffer instantaneous failure with moisture ingress (condensation, etc.) Disliked by many people (not always for valid reasons) Will not fit (and cannot be made to fit) many fittings designed for miniature lamps Unsuitable for totally sealed light fittings (they will get too hot, and the electronics will fail) Moderately high initial (inrush) current when switched on (20-100 times operating current !) Must be recycled, or no tangible environmental benefit can be claimed May (will?) cause local interference on AM radio and possibly TV picture (analogue TV only) because of EMI
For a *very* detailed analysis of CFL bulbs, please have a look at:
http://sound.westhost.com/articles/incandescent.htm
Have an 'energy conservative' weekend, guys
Tony
2009/7/17 aki <aki275@googlemail.com>:
@Areba, energy saving bulbs are great, esp the new generation ones. I stick to philips. I'll give an example. In the last power rationing, my 2kva ( 24 volts ) design invertor would run ES 10pcs 10 watt and 3 pcs 22watt bulbs at 4 hour tests, all at one go. the small apt looked lit like a stadium and the neighbors would " borrow " a connection for one ES bulb. When testing completed, I'd run my 21inc Sony TV and DSTV decoder for 4 hrs with 3 bulbs. The system was risky as I did not have time to design an overload trip. Times have changed, even a basic ups has builtin checks. Here's the interesting part that got me started then : light and DC oscillation. my first test was using a 6volt bike battery powering 2 mosfets and a 21watt ES bulb. Blindingly bright.... Now it is so much easier. ( "electricity is dangeriuos disclaimer" ) On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:04 PM, Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com> wrote:
Ill give a more wholistic approach. First, do an audit of energy consumption. Discard those 40bob bulbs for their 18w equivalents. (for a modest 2br house, thats a saving of about 1000w, and more battery life. )
_______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- http://www.itspossible.afraha.com Where Green Dreams are Born!.
Collins, I was not suggesting that CFL bulbs are not energy efficient for the end-user - only that they are not overall environmentally efficient, because of the higher 'energy' cost of production, higher VA rating, and toxic pollution on disposal. I use them myself! - but as soon as the LED bulbs come down in price, I'll use those instead. Tony 2009/7/17 Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com>:
@ Tony (Youve made me rummage my stack of documents for my electric bill today ! - unsuccessfully) Here is my arguement on the "energy" saving bulbs vs cost. I guess your other arguments (medium to high technology & non reclaimable parts dont matter that highly to me because i dont consider the same for the other bulbs -> cause i simply love smashing bulbs! )
Now, cause i did not get my bill, ill use an empirical formula to prove my argument.
Current Electricity cost: X Ksh per KWH.
Cost of "old" filament bulb (100W) -> Ksh 40 Cost of equivalent (18W) filament bulb -> Ksh 250. But just for the heck of it, lets get a super bright 200KW equivalent (36W) at Ksh 900.
My house has a total of 19 bulbs. (including 2 at the gate and 4 external lighting).
Peak power demand Case 1 ("old bulbs"): -> 19 X 100W -> 1900W.
Peak Power demand Case 2 ("new bulbs") -> 19 X 36W->684W.
In one hour, ill pay Ksh 1.9x for case 1 and 0.684x for case 2. which means the cost per unit of electricity is 64% cheaper for the more expensive bulbs.
Conclusion: it has to be more than 64% more expensive within the shorter lifespan of the two to qualify as more expensive.
Ideas and opinion invited. .
On 7/17/09, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
"Energy Saving" bulbs are *not* great! - if by 'energy saving' we mean the 'compact fluorescent' bulbs - for the following reasons:
Compact Fluorescent Lamp Characteristics:
Benefits ... Low energy usage Relatively efficient Long life (typically 8,000 - 15,000 hours claimed)
Deficiencies ... Comparatively expensive Medium to high technology Wide variety of non-reclaimable materials used in manufacture Poor Colour Rendering Index (CRI) - typically 60 - 70 Commonly fail prematurely if subjected to repeated switching cycles * Cannot be used at very low temperatures (< -20°C, but often higher) Cannot be used at high temperatures (> 60°C, but often lower) Relatively poor power factor (around 0.52 seems typical for better versions) Cannot be dimmed with common light dimmer circuits May suffer instantaneous failure with moisture ingress (condensation, etc.) Disliked by many people (not always for valid reasons) Will not fit (and cannot be made to fit) many fittings designed for miniature lamps Unsuitable for totally sealed light fittings (they will get too hot, and the electronics will fail) Moderately high initial (inrush) current when switched on (20-100 times operating current !) Must be recycled, or no tangible environmental benefit can be claimed May (will?) cause local interference on AM radio and possibly TV picture (analogue TV only) because of EMI
For a *very* detailed analysis of CFL bulbs, please have a look at:
http://sound.westhost.com/articles/incandescent.htm
Have an 'energy conservative' weekend, guys
Tony
2009/7/17 aki <aki275@googlemail.com>:
@Areba, energy saving bulbs are great, esp the new generation ones. I stick > to philips. I'll give an example. In the last power rationing, my 2kva ( 24 > volts ) design invertor would run ES 10pcs 10 watt and 3 pcs 22watt bulbs at > 4 hour tests, all at one go. the small apt looked lit like a stadium and the > neighbors would " borrow " a connection for one ES bulb. When testing > completed, I'd run my 21inc Sony TV and DSTV decoder for 4 hrs with 3 bulbs. > The system was risky as I did not have time to design an overload trip. > Times have changed, even a basic ups has builtin checks. Here's the > interesting part that got me started then : light and DC oscillation. my > first test was using a 6volt bike battery powering 2 mosfets and a 21watt ES > bulb. Blindingly bright.... Now it is so much easier. ( "electricity is > dangeriuos disclaimer" ) > On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:04 PM, Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com> > wrote: >> >> Ill give a more wholistic approach. First, do an audit of energy >> consumption. Discard those 40bob bulbs for their 18w equivalents. (for >> a modest 2br house, thats a saving of about 1000w, and more battery >> life. ) >
_______________________________________________ > Skunkworks mailing list > Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke > http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > Other services @ http://my.co.ke > Other lists > ------------- > Skunkworks announce: > http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce > Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science > kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general > >
-- Tony White _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- http://www.itspossible.afraha.com
Where Green Dreams are Born!. _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White
FYI more info on LED bulbs: http://www.lighting.philips.com/in_en/global_sites/led_lighting/products/mas... Tony 2009/7/18 Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com>:
Collins,
I was not suggesting that CFL bulbs are not energy efficient for the end-user - only that they are not overall environmentally efficient, because of the higher 'energy' cost of production, higher VA rating, and toxic pollution on disposal.
I use them myself! - but as soon as the LED bulbs come down in price, I'll use those instead.
Tony
2009/7/17 Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com>:
@ Tony (Youve made me rummage my stack of documents for my electric bill today ! - unsuccessfully) Here is my arguement on the "energy" saving bulbs vs cost. I guess your other arguments (medium to high technology & non reclaimable parts dont matter that highly to me because i dont consider the same for the other bulbs -> cause i simply love smashing bulbs! )
Now, cause i did not get my bill, ill use an empirical formula to prove my argument.
Current Electricity cost: X Ksh per KWH.
Cost of "old" filament bulb (100W) -> Ksh 40 Cost of equivalent (18W) filament bulb -> Ksh 250. But just for the heck of it, lets get a super bright 200KW equivalent (36W) at Ksh 900.
My house has a total of 19 bulbs. (including 2 at the gate and 4 external lighting).
Peak power demand Case 1 ("old bulbs"): -> 19 X 100W -> 1900W.
Peak Power demand Case 2 ("new bulbs") -> 19 X 36W->684W.
In one hour, ill pay Ksh 1.9x for case 1 and 0.684x for case 2. which means the cost per unit of electricity is 64% cheaper for the more expensive bulbs.
Conclusion: it has to be more than 64% more expensive within the shorter lifespan of the two to qualify as more expensive.
Ideas and opinion invited. .
On 7/17/09, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
"Energy Saving" bulbs are *not* great! - if by 'energy saving' we mean the 'compact fluorescent' bulbs - for the following reasons:
Compact Fluorescent Lamp Characteristics:
Benefits ... Low energy usage Relatively efficient Long life (typically 8,000 - 15,000 hours claimed)
Deficiencies ... Comparatively expensive Medium to high technology Wide variety of non-reclaimable materials used in manufacture Poor Colour Rendering Index (CRI) - typically 60 - 70 Commonly fail prematurely if subjected to repeated switching cycles * Cannot be used at very low temperatures (< -20°C, but often higher) Cannot be used at high temperatures (> 60°C, but often lower) Relatively poor power factor (around 0.52 seems typical for better versions) Cannot be dimmed with common light dimmer circuits May suffer instantaneous failure with moisture ingress (condensation, etc.) Disliked by many people (not always for valid reasons) Will not fit (and cannot be made to fit) many fittings designed for miniature lamps Unsuitable for totally sealed light fittings (they will get too hot, and the electronics will fail) Moderately high initial (inrush) current when switched on (20-100 times operating current !) Must be recycled, or no tangible environmental benefit can be claimed May (will?) cause local interference on AM radio and possibly TV picture (analogue TV only) because of EMI
For a *very* detailed analysis of CFL bulbs, please have a look at:
http://sound.westhost.com/articles/incandescent.htm
Have an 'energy conservative' weekend, guys
Tony
2009/7/17 aki <aki275@googlemail.com>:
@Areba, energy saving bulbs are great, esp the new generation ones. I stick > to philips. I'll give an example. In the last power rationing, my 2kva ( 24 > volts ) design invertor would run ES 10pcs 10 watt and 3 pcs 22watt bulbs at > 4 hour tests, all at one go. the small apt looked lit like a stadium and the > neighbors would " borrow " a connection for one ES bulb. When testing > completed, I'd run my 21inc Sony TV and DSTV decoder for 4 hrs with 3 bulbs. > The system was risky as I did not have time to design an overload trip. > Times have changed, even a basic ups has builtin checks. Here's the > interesting part that got me started then : light and DC oscillation. my > first test was using a 6volt bike battery powering 2 mosfets and a 21watt ES > bulb. Blindingly bright.... Now it is so much easier. ( "electricity is > dangeriuos disclaimer" ) > On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:04 PM, Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com> > wrote: >> >> Ill give a more wholistic approach. First, do an audit of energy >> consumption. Discard those 40bob bulbs for their 18w equivalents. (for >> a modest 2br house, thats a saving of about 1000w, and more battery >> life. ) >
_______________________________________________ > Skunkworks mailing list > Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke > http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > Other services @ http://my.co.ke > Other lists > ------------- > Skunkworks announce: > http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce > Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science > kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general > >
-- Tony White _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- http://www.itspossible.afraha.com
Where Green Dreams are Born!. _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White
-- Tony White
LED is the way to go. I find the CFL bulbs too artificial especially the quality of light. I feel it does not project real light, but depends from person to person. But they do save energy. If you sole purpose is to save energy without worrying about the quality of light, you can go for them. I hear the Government will be dishing them out freely. On Sat, Jul 18, 2009 at 2:29 AM, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
FYI more info on LED bulbs:
http://www.lighting.philips.com/in_en/global_sites/led_lighting/products/mas...
Tony
2009/7/18 Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com>:
Collins,
I was not suggesting that CFL bulbs are not energy efficient for the end-user - only that they are not overall environmentally efficient, because of the higher 'energy' cost of production, higher VA rating, and toxic pollution on disposal.
I use them myself! - but as soon as the LED bulbs come down in price, I'll use those instead.
Tony
2009/7/17 Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com>:
@ Tony (Youve made me rummage my stack of documents for my electric bill today ! - unsuccessfully) Here is my arguement on the "energy" saving bulbs vs cost. I guess your other arguments (medium to high technology & non reclaimable parts dont matter that highly to me because i dont consider the same for the other bulbs -> cause i simply love smashing bulbs! )
Now, cause i did not get my bill, ill use an empirical formula to prove my argument.
Current Electricity cost: X Ksh per KWH.
Cost of "old" filament bulb (100W) -> Ksh 40 Cost of equivalent (18W) filament bulb -> Ksh 250. But just for the heck of it, lets get a super bright 200KW equivalent (36W) at Ksh 900.
My house has a total of 19 bulbs. (including 2 at the gate and 4 external lighting).
Peak power demand Case 1 ("old bulbs"): -> 19 X 100W -> 1900W.
Peak Power demand Case 2 ("new bulbs") -> 19 X 36W->684W.
In one hour, ill pay Ksh 1.9x for case 1 and 0.684x for case 2. which means the cost per unit of electricity is 64% cheaper for the more expensive bulbs.
Conclusion: it has to be more than 64% more expensive within the shorter lifespan of the two to qualify as more expensive.
Ideas and opinion invited. .
On 7/17/09, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
"Energy Saving" bulbs are *not* great! - if by 'energy saving' we mean the 'compact fluorescent' bulbs - for the following reasons:
Compact Fluorescent Lamp Characteristics:
Benefits ... Low energy usage Relatively efficient Long life (typically 8,000 - 15,000 hours claimed)
Deficiencies ... Comparatively expensive Medium to high technology Wide variety of non-reclaimable materials used in manufacture Poor Colour Rendering Index (CRI) - typically 60 - 70 Commonly fail prematurely if subjected to repeated switching cycles * Cannot be used at very low temperatures (< -20°C, but often higher) Cannot be used at high temperatures (> 60°C, but often lower) Relatively poor power factor (around 0.52 seems typical for better versions) Cannot be dimmed with common light dimmer circuits May suffer instantaneous failure with moisture ingress (condensation, etc.) Disliked by many people (not always for valid reasons) Will not fit (and cannot be made to fit) many fittings designed for miniature lamps Unsuitable for totally sealed light fittings (they will get too hot, and the electronics will fail) Moderately high initial (inrush) current when switched on (20-100 times operating current !) Must be recycled, or no tangible environmental benefit can be claimed May (will?) cause local interference on AM radio and possibly TV picture (analogue TV only) because of EMI
For a *very* detailed analysis of CFL bulbs, please have a look at:
http://sound.westhost.com/articles/incandescent.htm
Have an 'energy conservative' weekend, guys
Tony
2009/7/17 aki <aki275@googlemail.com>:
@Areba, energy saving bulbs are great, esp the new generation ones. I stick to philips. I'll give an example. In the last power rationing, my 2kva ( 24 volts ) design invertor would run ES 10pcs 10 watt and 3 pcs 22watt bulbs at 4 hour tests, all at one go. the small apt looked lit like a stadium and the neighbors would " borrow " a connection for one ES bulb. When testing completed, I'd run my 21inc Sony TV and DSTV decoder for 4 hrs with 3 bulbs. The system was risky as I did not have time to design an overload trip. Times have changed, even a basic ups has builtin checks. Here's the interesting part that got me started then : light and DC oscillation. my first test was using a 6volt bike battery powering 2 mosfets and a 21watt ES bulb. Blindingly bright.... Now it is so much easier. ( "electricity is dangeriuos disclaimer" ) On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:04 PM, Areba Collins < arebacollins@gmail.com> wrote:
Ill give a more wholistic approach. First, do an audit of energy consumption. Discard those 40bob bulbs for their 18w equivalents.
(for
a modest 2br house, thats a saving of about 1000w, and more battery life. )
_______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- http://www.itspossible.afraha.com
Where Green Dreams are Born!. _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White
-- Tony White _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
Anyone seen this ? http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Company%20Industry/-/539550/637156/-/item... <http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Company%20Industry/-/539550/637156/-/item/2/-/15qq2g5z/-/index.html>for about 300-400k - a decent house should be powered. How much does KPLC charge (if they do) to get connected? I'm thinking 400k over 25 years is a decent deal for power - comes to about 1300 a month (excluding regular servicing) Anyone tried this ? I'm curious. Josiah Mugambi +254 738 504418 http://blog.josiahmugambi.com * SK Classifeds... Visit stockskenya.co.ke for more info. * Get a .ke @ 2900/- a year VAT incl. @ pct.co.ke On Sat, Jul 18, 2009 at 10:57 AM, Philip Musyoki <pmusyoki@gmail.com> wrote:
LED is the way to go. I find the CFL bulbs too artificial especially the quality of light. I feel it does not project real light, but depends from person to person. But they do save energy. If you sole purpose is to save energy without worrying about the quality of light, you can go for them. I hear the Government will be dishing them out freely.
On Sat, Jul 18, 2009 at 2:29 AM, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
FYI more info on LED bulbs:
http://www.lighting.philips.com/in_en/global_sites/led_lighting/products/mas...
Tony
2009/7/18 Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com>:
Collins,
I was not suggesting that CFL bulbs are not energy efficient for the end-user - only that they are not overall environmentally efficient, because of the higher 'energy' cost of production, higher VA rating, and toxic pollution on disposal.
I use them myself! - but as soon as the LED bulbs come down in price, I'll use those instead.
Tony
2009/7/17 Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com>:
@ Tony (Youve made me rummage my stack of documents for my electric bill today ! - unsuccessfully) Here is my arguement on the "energy" saving bulbs vs cost. I guess your other arguments (medium to high technology & non reclaimable parts dont matter that highly to me because i dont consider the same for the other bulbs -> cause i simply love smashing bulbs! )
Now, cause i did not get my bill, ill use an empirical formula to prove my argument.
Current Electricity cost: X Ksh per KWH.
Cost of "old" filament bulb (100W) -> Ksh 40 Cost of equivalent (18W) filament bulb -> Ksh 250. But just for the heck of it, lets get a super bright 200KW equivalent (36W) at Ksh 900.
My house has a total of 19 bulbs. (including 2 at the gate and 4 external lighting).
Peak power demand Case 1 ("old bulbs"): -> 19 X 100W -> 1900W.
Peak Power demand Case 2 ("new bulbs") -> 19 X 36W->684W.
In one hour, ill pay Ksh 1.9x for case 1 and 0.684x for case 2. which means the cost per unit of electricity is 64% cheaper for the more expensive bulbs.
Conclusion: it has to be more than 64% more expensive within the shorter lifespan of the two to qualify as more expensive.
Ideas and opinion invited. .
On 7/17/09, Tony White <tony.mzungu@gmail.com> wrote:
"Energy Saving" bulbs are *not* great! - if by 'energy saving' we mean the 'compact fluorescent' bulbs - for the following reasons:
Compact Fluorescent Lamp Characteristics:
Benefits ... Low energy usage Relatively efficient Long life (typically 8,000 - 15,000 hours claimed)
Deficiencies ... Comparatively expensive Medium to high technology Wide variety of non-reclaimable materials used in manufacture Poor Colour Rendering Index (CRI) - typically 60 - 70 Commonly fail prematurely if subjected to repeated switching cycles * Cannot be used at very low temperatures (< -20°C, but often higher) Cannot be used at high temperatures (> 60°C, but often lower) Relatively poor power factor (around 0.52 seems typical for better versions) Cannot be dimmed with common light dimmer circuits May suffer instantaneous failure with moisture ingress (condensation, etc.) Disliked by many people (not always for valid reasons) Will not fit (and cannot be made to fit) many fittings designed for miniature lamps Unsuitable for totally sealed light fittings (they will get too hot, and the electronics will fail) Moderately high initial (inrush) current when switched on (20-100 times operating current !) Must be recycled, or no tangible environmental benefit can be claimed May (will?) cause local interference on AM radio and possibly TV picture (analogue TV only) because of EMI
For a *very* detailed analysis of CFL bulbs, please have a look at:
http://sound.westhost.com/articles/incandescent.htm
Have an 'energy conservative' weekend, guys
Tony
2009/7/17 aki <aki275@googlemail.com>:
@Areba, energy saving bulbs are great, esp the new generation ones. I stick to philips. I'll give an example. In the last power rationing, my 2kva ( 24 volts ) design invertor would run ES 10pcs 10 watt and 3 pcs 22watt bulbs at 4 hour tests, all at one go. the small apt looked lit like a stadium and the neighbors would " borrow " a connection for one ES bulb. When testing completed, I'd run my 21inc Sony TV and DSTV decoder for 4 hrs with 3 bulbs. The system was risky as I did not have time to design an overload trip. Times have changed, even a basic ups has builtin checks. Here's the interesting part that got me started then : light and DC oscillation. my first test was using a 6volt bike battery powering 2 mosfets and a 21watt ES bulb. Blindingly bright.... Now it is so much easier. ( "electricity is dangeriuos disclaimer" ) On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 12:04 PM, Areba Collins < arebacollins@gmail.com> wrote: > > Ill give a more wholistic approach. First, do an audit of energy > consumption. Discard those 40bob bulbs for their 18w equivalents. (for > a modest 2br house, thats a saving of about 1000w, and more battery > life. )
_______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- http://www.itspossible.afraha.com
Where Green Dreams are Born!. _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Tony White
-- Tony White _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
_______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Skunkworks announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi - http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
Not bad at all... But we are still not thinking that way i.e constructing energy efficient houses/buildings etc etc. Such that they produce their own elec and sell excess to the national grid. france has gone far enough to design trains that generate elec when they brake contributing to the national grid. Countries like ireland are experimenting with tidal enegy and so on. Anyway i think that its a developmental process and we will get there somewhere along the line. My two pence.... Sent from my BlackBerry® -----Original Message----- From: Josiah Mugambi <jmugambi@gmail.com> Date: Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:06:56 To: Skunkworks forum<skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke> Subject: Re: [Skunkworks] Power rationing and personal electricity generation _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
@ josiah, its really simple. Most of the money you pay goes to the following guys, GOK, energy regulatory commission, engineers registration board and then the supplier of energy. Now if they are using generators to make about 40 per cent of elec, tell me how much you will save. I know it works, perfectly! On 8/10/09, Georg <cheez.mode@gmail.com> wrote:
Not bad at all... But we are still not thinking that way i.e constructing energy efficient houses/buildings etc etc. Such that they produce their own elec and sell excess to the national grid. france has gone far enough to design trains that generate elec when they brake contributing to the national grid. Countries like ireland are experimenting with tidal enegy and so on. Anyway i think that its a developmental process and we will get there somewhere along the line. My two pence.... Sent from my BlackBerry®
-----Original Message----- From: Josiah Mugambi <jmugambi@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:06:56 To: Skunkworks forum<skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke> Subject: Re: [Skunkworks] Power rationing and personal electricity generation
_______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
-- Its Possible! http://www.itspossible.afraha.com Collins Areba Omwoyo +254 735 824872 / +254 720 516758 arebacollins[at]gmail[dot]com
At least our own CCIE lady is contributing to green energy http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/-/539444/646416/-/rxlu6g/-/index.html -----Original Message----- From: Georg <cheez.mode@gmail.com> Reply-to: cheez.mode@gmail.com, Skunkworks forum <skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke> To: Skunkworks forum <skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke> Subject: Re: [Skunkworks] Power rationing and personal electricity generation Date: Tue, 11 Aug 2009 16:47:49 +0000 Not bad at all... But we are still not thinking that way i.e constructing energy efficient houses/buildings etc etc. Such that they produce their own elec and sell excess to the national grid. france has gone far enough to design trains that generate elec when they brake contributing to the national grid. Countries like ireland are experimenting with tidal enegy and so on. Anyway i think that its a developmental process and we will get there somewhere along the line. My two pence.... Sent from my BlackBerry® -----Original Message----- From: Josiah Mugambi <jmugambi@gmail.com> Date: Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:06:56 To: Skunkworks forum<skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke> Subject: Re: [Skunkworks] Power rationing and personal electricity generation _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general _______________________________________________ Skunkworks mailing list Skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Other services @ http://my.co.ke Other lists ------------- Announce: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks-announce Science: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/science kazi: http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/admin/kazi/general
________________________________ From: Areba Collins <arebacollins@gmail.com> To: Skunkworks forum <skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke> Sent: Friday, July 17, 2009 5:04:08 AM Subject: Re: [Skunkworks] Power rationing and personal electricity generation Ill give a more wholistic approach. First, do an audit of energy consumption. Discard those 40bob bulbs for their 18w equivalents. (for a modest 2br house, thats a saving of about 1000w, and more battery life. ) second, get rid of crt monitors for lcd or plasma on your comp and tv. Then look at other devices and try to cut down on peak power as much as possible. I hear that plasma tvs use require more power that CRTs? Is this true?
participants (8)
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aki -
Alex Nderitu -
Areba Collins -
Bernard Owuor -
Georg -
Josiah Mugambi -
Philip Musyoki -
Tony White