Erich Stauffer

Tag: Alternative Energy

  • Plug-In Solar Panels

    No electrician necessary.

    While white roof paint is a great way to save energy, sometimes you want to make more energy too. This UL-listed 120-Volt AC solar kit is truly “plug & play”. The 240-Watt “DeckPower120” is designed for ease of use and allows you to simply mount to a deck or outside post with included deck bracket. Simply plug the DeckPower120 into a standard dedicated outside electrical receptacle, and that’s it, no electrician required!

    Buy one panel, or buy up to five at any time for up to 1,300 watts of household AC electricity on one circuit! NO costly installation, NO headaches, and NO worries: the “DeckPower120” is a technological breakthrough that offers up to a 50% reduction in wiring requirements by eliminating all DC-side design and installation issues! The deck bracket assembles quickly and attaches to your deck railing as-is with no modification of your deck, and it’s adjustable for a “just right” angle to the sun year round!

    DeckPower120 kits are eligible for the 30% Federal tax credit, and additional State tax credits may apply, further reducing your payback time! With SpinRay Energy’s advanced technology, our panels require no maintenance, are easily expandable, and have a 15-year limited warranty. Just sit back and enjoy the lower electric bills!

    Plug-In Solar PanelsHere’s what one reviewer had to say, “This is a great way to get started in “green” energy. When combined with the SpinRay deck mounting kit this was made for the “do-it-yourselfer”. It took about 30 minutes to unpack the panel and mount it on the home deck railing. The customer designed mount allowed the solar panel to be mounted securely and easily to the deck rail. After mounting, just plugged it into the outdoor deck electrical outlet nand it was creating over 200 watts of power that was feeding into the house electrical system. Just need to find which deck railing direction had the most sun exposure. What is great about the solar power system, is that additional solar panels can be easily added and plugged together and do not require additional outdoor outlets. Really like all the water proof components and electrical connections.”

    Another reviewer said, “Well, purchased both the 120 and 240 volt AC panel and kits from SpinRay Energy. I plugged in the 240 watt panel a few days ago and today I did the same to the 120 volt system. Was super easy to get running. I opened the 2 boxes, panel in one and mounting kit in the other. I put the deck mounting kit together and mounted the panel on it. Took about 20 minutes to assemble. After I got it put together I went over to my deck and it easily hooked onto it, AMAZING….lol. Then I plugged it into an outside plug that I use for my hedge trimmer, outside lights, etc. I also purchased a “kill a watt” electrical monitor from them and to check to see if this panel/inverter worked correctly. After 5 minutes of the system getting electricity from the house plug the inverter turned on and started producing about 218 watts, when you unplug the house plug the solar panel stops producing power, just like it supposed to. The system came with UL certifcates that say the solar panel and the inverter are UL approved and listed so I guess nothing is more safe then that. And after plugging in and unplugging a dozen times I feel safe that this system works as advertised.”

  • 7 Tips on How to Sell a Cool Roof with a White Coating

    The best way to sell white roof coatings is by selling the two primary values to the customer: energy savings and the extension of the roof life.

    A roof consultant or salesman with experience and training in this subject can provide a valuable service to a building owner by selecting the right coating for a given roof and ensuring that it is properly installed and maintained, but the first step is to sell the service in the process. Here are seven tips that will help.

    Sell the value – White roof coatings protect roof membranes with a chemical barrier to prevent leaks and reflect sunlight, which both saves money on cooling costs, but also protects the life of the roof by protecting the surface from ultraviolet (UV) damage. Savings will be greatest in states like California and other southwestern states that enjoy more sunny days and more intense sunlight than other regions of the country, but savings can also be realized in northern climates during the summer.

    Show the math – Various models exist for computing energy savings based on various climates.  Use online calculators to estimate the energy savings from reflective roofs have been developed by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Cool Roof Calculator and Cadmus Group’s Roofing Comparison Calculator.

    Dispel bad information – For those wondering if a reflective roof causes increased heating costs in the winter, studies by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory indicate that in most U.S. climates, summer air-conditioning energy savings significantly exceed any winter penalty, so there is little or no concern that energy costs will increase with a cool roof. Moreover, temperatures can soar in temperate climates as well.

    Save on hardware costs – More than the ongoing energy savings is the up-front savings on air conditioning systems, which are often based on requirements for the hottest days. The total cost of not having a cool roof, including cooling systems and insulation, could be considerably higher than the immediate cost of energy for running the air-conditioning systems.

    Use a metaphor – Lower energy use is not the only benefit that accrues from the use of white surfaces. Just as the main reason for using sunscreen is to prevent burns, white roof coatings not only prevent large energy bills in the summer, but can extend the life expectancy of many different types of commercial roofing systems simply by avoiding the high roof temperatures and associated with exposure to the sun.

    Reduced roof replacement costs – Most people appreciate that white surfaces result in savings on cooling costs, but enhanced roof longevity, especially in northern states, can be another major benefit that results in at least as much savings.

    It can waterproof – Many white coatings are waterproof, but some are not. The property of permeability (perm rating) to liquid water, water vapor, and gases varies greatly, depending on the type of coating. Acrylic coatings are breathable, which means they have a high moisture vapor transmission rate or permeability. Silicone coatings, as well as many urethanes, are also classified as breathable types. Butyl rubbers, Hypalons, and Neoprenes have a very low permeability (i.e., they are highly resistant to moisture transmission). The same applies to asphalt-extended, moisture-cure polyurethanes and SEBSmodified, cut-back, asphalt coatings. The perm rating should not be confused with weatherability or resistance to weathering. A coating with low permeability still may require a protective topcoat to ensure satisfactory weathering resistance

    More Information

    The White Coatings Council of the Roof Coating Manufacturers Association (RCMA) serves the producers and suppliers of acrylic or elastomeric (non-bituminous) coatings. The council has implemented an industry promotional program and is actively planning programs to respond to targeted governmental and regulatory issues, technical matters and activities, and membership services and programs. The White Coatings Council focuses on describing and promoting the benefits of white coatings in terms that directly and positively motivate targeted end users through a plan to increase awareness and product promotion. The council now has 18 members who are committed to promoting to commercial building owners and designers that white coatings are easy to understand, easy to
    apply, and cost-effective. For more information, call RCMA at 202-207-0919.

  • White Roofs, Cool Savings

    Did you know that painting a roof white can save money on cooling costs? We’ll explain how this process works and which paints are most effective. And as legislators and architects embrace
    the idea that building design has a huge impact on energy consumption and sustainability, white roof coatings will become more and more mainstream. However, building owners sometimes do not appreciate the immediate benefits of white roof coatings and convincing them of their value is part of what we will be covering. One of the best approaches is to combine two arguments: energy savings and the extension of roof life cycle. In the latter case, white coatings protect membranes with a chemical barrier and reflect sunlight, both of which contribute to a longer roof life cycle. The primary benefit, of course, is that the reflection of solar radiation significantly lowers air-conditioning costs, especially during hot summers in temperate climates and year-round in warmer climates.

    In roof design, a cool roof is a roofing system that can deliver high solar reflectance (the ability to reflect the visible, infrared and ultraviolet wavelengths of the sun, reducing heat transfer to the building) and high thermal emittance (the ability to radiate absorbed, or non-reflected solar energy). Most cool roofs are white or other light colors, which naturally reflect light. Silver-colored zinc-galvanized sheeting does not reflect heat as well as the color of white because metallic surfaces fail to emit infrared back to the sky. The opposite is also true. Dark colors like black naturally absorb the most heat, which is why black roofs and asphalt drives get so hot in the summer. Cool white roofs enhance roof durability and reduce both building cooling loads and the urban heat island effect.

    Cool white roofs are not only great for urban environments in America, but are an effective alternative to bulk attic insulation under roofs in humid tropical and subtropical climates. Bulk insulation, in these situations, can be entirely replaced by roofing systems that both reflect solar radiation and provide emission to the sky. This dual function is crucial, and relies on the performance of cool roof materials in both the visible spectrum (which needs to be reflected) and far infra-red which needs to be emitted.

    Cool roof can also be used as a geoengineering technique to tackle global warming based on the principle of solar radiation management, provided that the materials used not only reflect solar energy, but also emit infra-red radiation to cool the planet. This technique can give between 0.01-0.19 W/m2 of globally averaged negative forcing, depending on whether cities or all settlements are so treated. This is generally small when compared to the 3.7 W/m2 of positive forcing from a doubling of CO2. However, in many cases it can be achieved at little or no cost by simply selecting different materials. Further, it can reduce the need for air conditioning, which causes CO2 emissions which studies have shown worsen global warming. For this reason alone it is still demonstrably worth pursuing as a geoengineering technique.

  • Turning Problems into Solutions: C02 to Gasoline

    In August, 2007 President Bush created a DARPA for Energy (DARPA stands for Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency).  One of it’s goals was to turn carbon dioxide into fuel.  By December, 2007 Sandia National Laboratories, where DARPA is located, announced the Sandia’s “Sunshine to Petrol” project which uses a “Counter Rotating RingReceiver Reactor Recuperator (CR5, for short), to break a carbon-oxygen bond in the carbon dioxide to form carbon monoxide and oxygen in two distinct steps using concentrated solar power. DARPA eventually proved the technology and coupled with sequestered C02 from coal power plants or even your own car, this could be a real industry of C02 to gasoline. Watch this related video on Youtube.