The Solar Dog

Amidst the solar craze of the 70s, my father proposed a solution:  the solar dog.  He observed that our grumpy, tri-color Bassett hound sought the sunniest spots in the house or yard for naps.  With a black coat, the lazy dog absorbed a lot of heat.   

Dad suggested we get a pack of black Bassetts, send them out to the yard to sun, and then bring them back inside to heat the house.  He figured 10 dogs would be enough, if used in rotation. 

Calculating the cost of dog chow and adequate supply of treats to lure stubborn hounds back into the house, Dad considered his passive solar Bassetts to be far more economical than installing the solar panels championed by my mother.   

Amory Lovins, of Rocky Mountain Institute in Snowmass, had another approach.  He built a 4000-sf home and office so energy efficient that the building is comfortable with exterior temps from -47 to 90 degrees, without a furnace.  Lovins says, “We’ve heated the house with a 50-watt dog.  On really cold nights we’d adjust her to a 100-watt dog by throwing a ball.”

We recently adopted a 4-year-old chocolate Labrador.  Though we’d planned to get another yellow Lab, we saw Maddie’s photo at Safe Harbor Lab Rescue, and knew she was the girl for us.  She’s a social dog, and chases a ball as long as someone will toss it.  She works even harder for a toy that squeaks. 

We estimate that Maddie out-watts Amory’s dog, but of course, our home is far less energy efficient. 

The Solar Year

Yesterday marked the first anniversary of our solar panel installation. 

Our 2.7kW array produced 4024 kW of electricity in one year.  In that time, we drew 3060 kW from the grid.  We produced at least 57% of our electrical needs.  A bit more than the solar installer predicted.

We can make the most of that production by tweaking:

• Go after phantom electrical loads.  We did some of this, but there are little electronic devices around the house that still slurp electricity.
• Finish changing out CFL lightbulbs.  We’re about 70% there.  The hard-to-reach ones in ceiling & hall fixtures are waiting their turn.   
• Put the fax machine on a timer. We run a biz from our home, and leave that machine on 24/7.  I used to turn the fax off at night, but usually forgot to turn it on in the morning…
• Use our “Kill-A-Watt” meter to learn how much power things use, like the obnoxious central vacuum.  

 We could get real serious about this, too:

• Empty the chest freezer that stores forgotten food. 
• Dry clothes without the dryer.  We enclosed part of our west-facing deck.  It has a slate tile floor, perfect for drying…if I remember to get clothes out there during the day.  If I remember to do laundry during the day. 
• Update our 1995 fridge.  Which I still love.
• The hot water heater is due for replacement.  Tankless?  Standard high-efficiency?  Solar thermal?  (There’s some southwest roof just waiting for flat-plate collectors….)
• I’ve been dreaming of an automated smart-house system that could program outlets throughout the house from my computer.  I could set time ranges on outlets we only use during day hours, and zap more phantom load.  Technology is available, but expensive –- intended for high-end home theater and security systems.   
• Finish installing window coverings that insulate.  We installed plantation shutters upstairs to block out cold and heat, but I’m stumped about what to do with the oversized living/dining room windows, which came with useless mini-blinds.  At nighttime during the coldest months, we close the decorative velvet curtains that came with the house. 
• Have our insulation levels checked & increased.  I also dream of an infrared photo of my house, taken on a bitter January night, which shows me where the heat leakage is.  I would frame it, and put it on the mantle. 
• Hook a couple old bicycles to a generator and make the kids pedal if they want to watch TV.  Well, ok, that should probably be for me. 

 The quilt, called “Sun Dance” is by Catherine Kleeman. 

 

Sunshine on my shoulders

Makes me happy – our new solar panels have produced approx. 42% of our electricity since September. We hope the panels (Sharp 2.7 kilowatt array, Fronius inverter) will meet 55% of our electrical needs each year.  

Debate on how to calculate actual production involved a mathematician, a physicist, and a master electrician. The English major was clearly over-simplifying the math.

I’m learning that solar harvest, like a garden’s, is seasonal.  January’s production was discouragingly low.  March, with many snowy days, has been a surprise. The system often produces at capacity at mid-day. Fall and spring may be our top-producers. While folks in more temperate, low-lying parts of the country are planting tomatoes and ground cherries, feasting on spring peas, we harvest the sun.   

The panels were expensive, even with utility rebates.  At least this investment is outperforming the stock market.