Energy Home Improvements Part III - CFLs Replace Leaky Faucets

This is part 3 on ways to take steps to make you home more energy efficient.  You can go to the previous entry Part 2 or go to the next entry Part 4 here.


Leaky faucets can be hard to detect and hard to fix. We oftentimes see them and ignore them as its only dripping slowly so it’s no big deal. In reality it can be a big, I had a slow leak in a bathroom toilet and my water bill one quarter went from $90 to $690. You should check each faucet, both indoor and outdoor, as well as toilets and bathtubs. The more leaks you have and the faster they are dripping the more water you are wasting. You will cost you money possibly two different times, once on your water bill and possibly again on heating bill for your water heater. Here is a nice calculator from the USGS to show much water is being wasted by dripping faucets.

Fast Charge Electric Car Batteries

Toshiba has developed a fast charge that Mitsubishi has selected for two upcoming electric vehicles. The battery has very fast charge times and can withstand wide temperature ranges making it ideal for automotive applications. The battery will allow for regenerative charging during braking that will allow for it to perform 1.7 times longer during driving. Smaller battery modules can then be used helping to reduce the overall weight of the car.

Improved Fuel Economy

Come 2025 vehicle fuel economy will be greatly enhanced based on what we have today. Today the Obama administration reached an agreement according to the Washington Post that will set the new USA standard for average MPG vehicles must obtain. Under this agreement vehicles would be averaging 54.4 MPG, which would about double the current fuel economy. This does not meet the goals of some environmental groups but it is still an major improvement from today’s standards. This follows along with Obama’s administrations 2009 deal that cover 2012-2016.

What is the Smart Grid

I am sure there are a lot of people who don’t know just what the Smart Grid is or does. The term is thrown out there a lot, but I don’t see it ever get explained often enough. I don’t think enough of the general population has a clear understanding of how and why this is important. The main goal of the Smart Grid is to provide real time feedback to energy producers and distributors. During peak usage power plants will turn on auxiliary power stations. These auxiliary power stations are typically less efficient, more costly for the power generated. The intent of the smart grid is to help smooth out electricity consumption so that some of these plants don’t need to be turned on and off so often. During the course of a normal day the power consumed will follow a sine wave to some degree. By providing near real time feedback of the loads seen on the power grid it helps enable intelligent decision making to play a role in which power stations need to be on. It can also include such things as in home meters letting the customer know how much electricity they are currently consuming. This may also be accompanied by real time pricing during peak hours when more expensive electricity is generated. In my area my electricity provider has the ability to cycle my thermostat during heavy load times. Not everyone is required to participate in this but it gives them more flexibility in managing the power load. From the consumer end it might include web based applications to be able to remotely change their thermostat. This would allow consumers to lower or raise the thermostat when out of the house to not waste as much electricity. All of this and more will enable power companies to be able to better react during power surges like those during immense heat waves in the summer.

Wind Power Research Center

Groundbreaking began in Ohio for Research and Development center for Wind Turbines. The hope for the facility is to design the equipment for the turbines. The facility will be 18,000 square feet and eventually employ 65 people. Timken is providing nearly half of the funding for the project with the rest coming from local and state jurisdictions in Ohio. With this new facility Timken will be able to adequately evaluate new designs while subjecting them to conditions seen in the field and make real time determinations as to how the parts are performing. This facility will be focused on gearbox systems for installation in wind turbines.

Permeable Walkways and Driveways

Water runoff after a rain or snow storm is area where a lot of improvements can be made. If some of that water is absorbed into the ground instead of running down the road it has many benefits. For instance the water going through the ground will be purified through the dirt as opposed to the water that runs down a driveway through oil and other chemicals. It also helps to better balance the water table and promote a healthy eco system. There are a couple of alternatives out there that have become more popular in recent years.

Solar California

There is a great new website for California residents to make it easier to make decisions on solar installation.  California has long been ahead of the rest of the country on solar installations and with current rebates available that will only continue.  This new site should hopefully streamline the process of getting information into consumers’ hands.  This site will also provide contacts to local installers that have been verified to protect consumers from less than honest businesses.  The one thing that would really make this site shine would be an online estimate to potential costs and savings.  I realize they are dealing with lots of companies but getting a rough estimate on the site could help convince more people to look further into it before having to deal with an installation company. 

Micro Solar Cells

This is good story worth watching.  A North Carolina company Semprius is making a great deal on miniature solar cell with lots of potential.  They are currently planning to build a manufacturing facility that would eventually employ 250 workers.  It’s good to see companies like this growing and getting funding especially in the USA where we seem to have let the rest of the world take the lead in this technology.  Semprius has received grants of nearly $8 million to build this production facility.  According to this site  the developments made at Semprius are due to federal funding of renewable energies.