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" I just took a minute to go through a few recent posts for questions and comments; here they are, with my replies.  Q: Hi Ben an family , a few questions if i may . The wisper 100 is a 900 watt 24 v dc generator at about 26 mph right ? I am also assuming you have energy efficent appliences ( I would like to know the rated amp hour usage ) . and can u be specific on the battries you are using , there are so many different types ( gel filled ,sprial plates , amp hour rating 6 volt 12 volt ) . How do you know when they are at 50% , 80% charged , are you using a volt meter ? Thanks Brian A: Hi Brian. Yup, you&amp;#039;re right on the specs of the Whisper 100. We do use energy-efficient appliances. Our 15-cubic foot Hotpoint fridge is energy star rated and uses about 370-kilowatt hours/year, or approximately one per day. Not entirely sure on the amp-hour usage, but of course that number has a different value depending on the voltage of your system, where as a kilowatt hour is a kilowatt hour. We also use a Maytag Neptune washer, which uses about 315 kilowatt-hours/year. Not great, especially when compared to the new Bosch washers that use about half that.  Our batteries are made by Surrette. They&amp;#039;re deep cycle lead acid batteries, each with a single 2V cell (we have 12 of them wired in series to equal 24v). They each weigh in the neigborhood of 200-pounds! In total, they can store about 1100-amp hours, but only half of that is usable, or we risk damaging them. We do use a volt meter, and I&amp;#039;m a bit obsessive about checking it;)  Q: Re: Solar Home Project: Can&amp;#039;t Stop Conserving I wonder what the manufacturer&amp;#039;s rated/initial output of this photovoltiac array is compared to the 8-10kw/hr it is actually producing? My system rated at 2000 w/hr ( 40-50w panels) produces in the same range. A: I&amp;#039;m not sure on the actual rated output. But it&amp;#039;s important to remember that there are so many factors affecting output \u2013 locations, mounting system, weather, etc. It&amp;#039;s sort of like saying &amp;quot;well, my Corvette CAN go 190mph.&amp;quot; How often, exactly, are the conditions (never mind the cops) going to allow for that? It sounds like you&amp;#039;re doing fine with your system. We get a big boost from our Wattson tracking rack. After my experience with this rack, I would very much recommend it to anyone looking at installing PV. Yes, it adds a few grand to the project. But when you&amp;#039;re talking about 15 or 20k in panels, it&amp;#039;s a relatively inexpensive upgrade and well worth the extra juice.  Q: Re: Solar Home Project: Leno&amp;#039;s got the solar bug good to see someone is taking the lead in the advancing of future technology to free us from being totally dependant on fossil fuels. people who can afford to do these projects make it possible for future generations to benefit , a nice legacy to leave behind A: I agree. If only we could do something about his car habit;) Q: Re: Solar Home Project: Who&amp;#039;s next? Say, Have you thought of adding a geothermal component to your solar quest? You know for heating/cooling your home? Mike A: Mike, we would LOVE to do this, but the associated pumps would be too much of a drain on our system. For anyone connected to grid power, I would highly recommend a close look at geothermal.  Q: Re: Solar Home Project: Who&amp;#039;s next? Yes, Ben, in the past week alone you certainly have connected with dramatic extremes of potential users of alternative energy. &amp;quot;So who&amp;#039;s next?&amp;quot; How about nomadic tribal Maasai in Tanzania who are perpetually off the grid but have abundant sunshine? How about any large corporations located where the sun shines regularly? (i.e. Between latitudes 30-degrees North or South of the equator) How about ANY corporation involved in energy production? (I&amp;#039;ll love to see how you creatively manage to power up your off-road bike and give it wings to cross the &amp;quot;pond&amp;quot; to Tanzania for that contact!) A: Great points. I think what we need to see is one of two things: 1) alternative energy becomes less expensive and 2) &amp;quot;traditional&amp;quot; forms of fossil fuel-based power become much more expensive. We&amp;#039;re certainly beginning to see the latter, which by default makes the former effectively true. The tide is shifting, there&amp;#039;s no doubt about that.  Q: Re: Solar Home Project: Who&amp;#039;s next? BH, Do you have enough excess watts to supplement an EV or plug in Hybrid vehicle? I have heard great things about electric trucks. Come on, you can&amp;#039;t say that you aren&amp;#039;t tempted... Q: Your right: I CAN&amp;#039;T say I&amp;#039;m not tempted. On long sunny days, we&amp;#039;re making enough power to charge an EV. If only the few options weren&amp;#039;t so darn expensive. At this point, I&amp;#039;m more intrigued by an electric bicycle. Or maybe a little enduro motorcycle that gets 80mpg and satisfies my wheelie gene at the same time;) "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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