Renewable Energy with the Experts - Photovoltaics (Video)

[Patrick Salsbury <salsbury at sculptors dot com>]

Speaking of Real Goods...
	When I was down there last week, I did pick up a new video, on 
Residential Solar Electricity, hosted by Johnny Weiss. He's been doing solar 
installations for about 15 years or so, and I found the video to be QUITE 
educational. He goes through the basics of what the components do, how they go 
together, and practical tips (such as suggesting that people start out right 
away with 24V systems, rather than 12V, as 12V doesn't seem to have the "umph" 
necessary for common tasks around the house. (And it's easy to step-down to 
12V as needed for lighting, etc., but fans & other appliances don't work as 
well on the lower voltage, apparently.)

	One thing that caught my attention and wins the "cool gizmo of the 
video" award (cooler even than the solar-powered sun trackers and such) was 
the solar-site previewing tool. It's this little thing that sits up on a 
tripod, with a shiny glass top, and various lines engraved on it to chart out 
the time of day and time of year. It's hard to describe, but it's a tool that 
professional installers use when checking a site for solar potential. 
Basically, you put it down, then look at the reflection of the area around you 
in that shiny glass top. Any shadows such as trees, buildings, etc., will show 
up in there, overlaying the lines, and letting you see, at a glance, which 
times of day and year will be in shadow at that point. 

	The video (and others on wind and hydro power) are here:
http://www.realgoods.com/renew/shop/product.cfm?dp=1000&sd=1001&ts=1080360

	And yes, to my friends & co-workers who live nearby and are on this 
list, I'll let you borrow it. ;^)


-- 
Pat