oneten110 wrote:

I am surprised that the gummerment hasn't made it mandatory for all new houses to have solar panels fitted to the roof, plus any development of say more than 100 dwellings has to have a wind turbine.
With regard to Ev, in particular the Nissan leaf, new batteries seem a bit on the expensive side
https://electrek.co/2018/03/26/nissan-leaf...t-program/

I work in new building design (I'm not an architect) and it amazes me that they haven't made PV panels mandatory on new builds (where it is practical). I seemed to recall there are a few countries where this has been made a regulation.

Where I think we missed the boat is on large industrial buildings - big metal sheds. You see them everywhere. Supermarkets, DIY Stores, industrial estates by the dozen. Big large expanses of roof which would be ideal for electrical generation. Structurally, not sure if this would be practical but I believe they are a missed opportunity. Normal houses don't have a lot of roof area, in comparison, to make them as useful.

Small wind turbines don't seem to be workable. The units use more energy to make and install than what they save in their expected operational life. Wind turbines are now built as large as possible so they are most efficient. Limited only by the ability to transport the blades.

This was an interesting read:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51325101

I suppose they are cheaper to get rid of than a nuclear power station

Sadly, I hate to see them, but offshore wind farms are much more reliable and efficient than anything mounted on land. Just a bit of an issue if you need to do maintenance.

Quote:

Where I think we missed the boat is on large industrial buildings - big metal sheds.

I'm overseeing a project to build a new industrial estate (I am also not an Architect ) and we're covering the roofs with solar panels. Mind you, what they will generate is a drop in the ocean compared to the load of the EV charging points that we're required to install

I'm also looking at a scheme to build a steel frame over the open top deck of a multi-storey car park, on which to mount more solar panels. The frame started off as an anti-suicide scheme but then I thought if we're going to build it anyway, perhaps it can be put to good use. I'm waiting for the structural calcs to come back to see if it's viable. If we do go ahead, the panels will probably be enough to offset the cost of running the LED car park lighting but again won't make a dent in the EV charging point loads that are also being considered. Darren

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Rashers wrote:

This was an interesting read:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51325101

I suppose they are cheaper to get rid of than a nuclear power station

Good read.

When they start getting rid of ones this big, the I can see those people who like to live in a container building an extension or annexe on the cheap :

Rashers wrote:

The panels are injecting the electricity back into the network at a time when most people are out at work and there is no load requirements. This creates major over voltage issues for the network operators.

That ^ is good to hear from an Electrical Engineer.

I've been banging on about this for nearly ten years, since my panels were installed.

They chuck out loads of lecky when I am hardly using any, but hardly any in the Winter Quarter, when I need it the most.

Even in the long days of summer, the sun spends a lot of time in the east and west at both ends of the day (which is when I do actually use some electricity) and my panels face South.

Personally, I don't think we are anywhere near a "solution" for our power demands.


I guess we could actually try reducing our power demands and aspirational lifestyles.

Supacat wrote:

March 2018 article... things move on quite quickly...