Comments by "David H" (@DavidHalko) on "Lights Out at Munro!" video.

This needs to happen sooner than later This could help fix the crisis that renewable energy is fostering by not supplying reliable base power
5
Just need a couple more lightenings
2
Any ICE engine with van inverter will run a house for days, if the inverter is big enough… gasoline supplies an order of magnitude more power than a battery with the same volume
2
@Stefan_Dahn - This is basically a factory. The solution is generator, not solar & batteries, except for a short period until the generator kicks in. The amount of power required in batteries is enormous, the cost of solar is enormous, and being as far north in the northern hemisphere reduces the benefit. For small homes, it can be done, I am getting ready to roll out my own panels , as a DIY. Let’s see how Germany will do with severely curtailed natural gas, the natural gas turbines are needed to make up the differences in power when solar is not available.
1
Dave - “basically a factory” @Stefan_Dahn - “NOT a factory, just offices” Power tools, air compressors, warehouse level high raised ceilings, moving vehicles around, tearing vehicles apart in the facility, etc. So, maybe not a factory, definitely not offices. Something in between? I think so. “ALL IN for renewables” If so, a second natural gas pipeline would not have been getting built from Russia. “gas storage full faster than planned” If renewables was 100% functional, Germany would not need gas storage. Renewables are needed, we should increase usage, but we must introduce renewables where each source is capable of delivering base power when their windmill is not spinning or the sunlight is not shining. There are many solutions, they need to be implemented, with every installation.
1
Nope… big power outages
1
For a large facility, it is not that easy
1
@lesliecarter4295 - “battery backup” The amount of energy stored in a battery is orders of magnitude less energy per volume than liquid fuel. It is not “old school”, just more efficient for backup purposes of large facilities when power goes out. (ie nuclear plants, large buildings, factories, etc.) Battery backup is the transition between grid & generators. Sure, fuel cells are coming, hopefully hydrogen is coming soon.
1
It is not an extreme dealer markup issue… I bet they are still not making money on it
1
@chrisheath2637 - “run that indoors?” Look up Garage Exhaust System I just run my car outside the garage door, run 6’ battery cables under the garage door, to my inverter in the garage.
1
@Dirt-Diggler - a camper is nice, where there is a nice A/C plug! In my case, where I have a little sub-compact ICE car, which runs as a generator for my house, the inverter does not fit in my sub-compact, the inverter large enough for my house is too large to fit under the hood of the car, so I keep the inverter in the garage.
1
@Dirt-Diggler - “a normal generator would be cheaper to run?” Depends on the vehicle. For your van, maybe not. For a subcompact? Hybrid which turns itself on/off? Plug-in hybrid? (Plug-in hybrid is the perfect use case for such a system.) Also, many benefits, may not apply universally: - generator is very loud, ICE car is quiet - generator & ICE car both need maintenance (better to maintain & test just one ICE, ICE car is likely to get more use/maintenance than a generator) - in an emergency, an ICE car may have better maintenance previously executed than a generator (filters, oil, gasoline, etc.) - Large generator less efficient than sub-compact ICE car engine (sure, smaller & more expensive generators may improve efficiency, larger ICE may be less efficient & more expensive.) - large generators have more emissions than sub-compact ICE car (a lot of effort goes into emissions on ICE cars.) - ICE components of generator are redundant to car - generator requires constant refueling (x hours), while car ICE tank is huge (x days) - larger generator requires separate storage or hauling around, vs ICE car which already has storage area & likely with you when you need it - separate generators with fuel are likely heavier than inverters for a ICE car, making handling easier for older people - generator fuel requires changing or stabilizer once too old, ICE car fuel is more likely regularly used and does not run into this problem - 3000w generator ~$600-$900 US$ without external Bluetooth performance metrics to phone vs cost of a 3000w / 6000w peak inverter for a car is less than $300 US$, with Bluetooth performance metrics to phone… full sine wave inverter is a little more The benefits of having an inverter with your ICE car means all kinds of things can be safely run, without having a pickup truck for the generator or a trailer hauling around a generator, not to mention canisters of gasoline… like using sound equipment at a site, run a bounce house, outdoor lighting while at a camp site, projectors for camp songs with youth (try singing over a generator), refrigerators for medications while camping for younger & older people in remote areas, running popcorn makers for groups during outdoor camping events is a bonus!!! … the benefit of running your house, or an elderly friend’s home who is having an outage when they have serious needs like oxygen generators, in a pinch, is always a nice benefit! “Alternator” Yes, my car has a big alternator, I can run half my house, but it can not run my whole house Air Conditioning compressor load. If it is something I would need to do often, I would add a separate parallel 12v battery, sit that battery next to my inverter, with a trickle charger on it… so I could just add my ICE car to it whenever needed (ie US East Coast during hurricane season.) “Van… efficient” For a larger vehicle, the efficiency may not be a great deal… but for once a year events, I think it may be worth it for some people, even with larger vehicles. “Small car if you can’t fit the inverter inside” Can’t fit under front hood. Can fit in rear trunk. Depends on how much power you need to pull… to run my whole house heat & whole house fan, with 2 full refrigerators/freezers, I need a lot of power… and I like to go to sleep at night during a power outage. There is not enough room under the hood of my car, which would be close to the battery & alternator. I would need to have significant 2 AWG cable from my battery to my trunk & the inverter makes some heat when under load… if I need to leave the car idling for days, the trunk should be closed, to avoid impacts from condensation or rain. I prefer to have airflow around the inverter for long uses, so long term use in the rear trunk is not a great idea. “Better to run A/C on a longer lead than D/C” It is cheaper & parts more accessible for me, to use 6’ 2 AWG cables from battery to the garage vs 12’ cables from the battery to the trunk… the A/C lead, as you said, is better & extends nicely!
1