There also are the issues of local codes and regulations barring good ideas or experimentation because someone put in something which requires everyone to cookie cutter a look, like encouraging HOA formations, or no tiny homes allowed (neither on foundations, nor on wheels), or required parking lots sizes and no mixed zoning. Yes, 24:00.
I have connected three solar panels to a 80 gallon hot water tank directly to the heating element. It then goes to a tankless hot water heater so when it doesn’t heat the hot water hot enough. There is no way to regulate how hot the water gets in the tank but there is a mixing valve to regulate the water temperature going to the fixtures. If it starts to get to hot I just unplug it. Or it bleeds out the pressure relief valve on the tank. It is a type of battery for hot water but only good for about three days. It probably reduces 60-70 % of my hot water useage load.
I think you need to get a 5KWH portable system not installed that you charge up and just happen to store in your garage and you plug it in as needed and since it is portable (like you car) it is not installed in the garage .. if they are really nit picky about it.. store it in your car
"Low hanging fruits" like windows and doors are integral parts of overall insulation. I was hoping the conversation would give a tip or two in that regard!
I hadn't heard the term "Sick Building Syndrome" for years, until a guy brought it up on another podcast, recently. He was billed as an expert in transitioning to the all-electric home. He might have been speaking to a less informed audience, but he didn't mention ERV, and he is afraid that contractors will likely make mistakes with regard to fitting houses right, considering the heat pumps that qualify for tax credits, improving air tightness, and *NOT* considering for the build-up of humidity. Meanwhile, I hear a lot of people saying things like "your house doesn't need to breathe! - don't worry about it!".
battery storage vs grid. Some areas pay if you over produce power, and some don't if your area dose not pay enough a battery storage helps there ... also great if you have a power outage.
Even if they pay for your overproduction, they may not pay you for what you export at the same price that they would charge you to import, so it can still be worthwhile to get a battery to keep your power on-site, just paying back over a longer period than if your utility allowed no trading at all.
@@AndrewHelgeCoxDepends how markets work for spot price of energy (during the middle of the day in some parts of the world the market rate is negative per kw - when household Solar output is high). Also you are overlooking poles and wires cost for the distribution network.
I'm lucky enough to have started on an existing house. I did insulation, my roof space is maxed out with solar, I have heat pumps for HVAC and water, I'm in the middle of a battery install. I have to get through a year or at least a winter to know how close I am to net zero annually. It seems like the next level is to go back to insulation and air sealing for more improvements. The question is, where should I stop?
The battery storage for me and my spouse had nothing to do with the ROI in the financial manner. It came with our solar install and we got a discount for allowing our Utility to tap into it, VPP (Virtual Power Plant), but the fact that it will allow us to use our solar panels during a grid outage, it will provide us power security for any power grid outage during a storm. The battery system during ~50% of the year will allow us to remain off grid right now 100% of the time with export to the grid. I am in CT. Dandelion is kinda doing it. They will only do Ground Source to Air. I had asked them about doing ground to Hot Water Heat and Potable Hot Water. They basically wanted nothing to do with me since I did not have Forced Hot Air System installed.
It's about the delta between indoor temp and outdoor temp. If you're keeping your house at 70 degrees when it's 95 outside, that 25 degree delta isn't huge and R65 is overkill. But if you're trying to maintain 70 when it's 5 degrees outside, the R65 will really help with that 65 degree delta. (Vapor control and controlling condensation is more critical for Florida than super thick insulation.)
You say the low hanging fruit are insulation and airtightness. You also say that airtight homes need a system that continuously turns over the air to reduce its humidity and thereby prevent mold. If you factor in the building work for the installation of such a system to an old drafty brick house at the same time as making it airtight, are airtightness and insulation still the low hanging fruit?
Normally you need a ventilation system where air changes per hour is less than 5. If you have a house with 35 air changes per hour you can do a lot of insulation and gap filling which will make big improvements before you have to worry about airflow and ventilation just exhaust your wet areas external to the building. For videos try efficiency matrix.
Hey Guys, I enjoy your chats but be careful about your acronyms. Maybe I'm a bit out of it here in Australia but HVAC's and ERV's are foreign to me. It might be that I am not all that up-to-date even here but it wouldn't hurt for you to explain a few of them. Thanks
Mandates are very very bad, because when you have mandates you to do it a certain way, but when the technology advances beyond the mandates specification you can't do it that way. More government mandates does more harm than good.
