Have not started building shop. need INEXPENSIVE heat/elect. solar, wind options but too expensive. Ideas?

Question

45 x 80 shop on my farm/ranch. I have found panels to run me +/- 30,000 and don't power much more than the shop- I can't sell back to grid and recoup investment. I have heard of solar paint?. wind seems cost prohibitive as well

Answer 1

Look here.

Answer 2

That's what I say, too.  Solar panels are not so expensive, but the costs of permitting them and connecting to the grid offset the savings unless electricity costs 2 or 3 times what it does now.  I have thought of taking part of my house completely off the grid and buying enough panels to charge maybe ten 12-volt batteries, then converting dc battery power to ac.  But I haven't done the cost analysis on it yet.

Answer 3

places like Target, Tractor Supply, and other stores have solar panels, solar lights, and even wind generators at inexpensive prices.

Answer 4

Look at what today's home architects are doing with energy-friendly houses, and you will see how with a hefty starting investment, it is possible to sell electricity back to the grid.

For a shop, I'd suggest that you focus on conserving energy more than trying to eliminate input. Air traps, extremely heavy insulation and the use of heat pumps are essential to keeping heat costs down.

Perhaps a multi-disciplinary approach? Use some wind, some solar, and spread the cost out?

One thing I see as a hindrance is that if you need to have a large door to your shop, you're going to lose heat like crazy. Expensive windows are going to get busted, quite possibly.

If you've got a wood source on your farm, a forced-hot water wood boiler makes a great heating system in the winter.

Sorry I can't be more optimistic, but I think that you can do a lot to reduce your costs. Eliminating them is going to take some doing. Good luck!

Answer 5

The main problem in selling your surplus energy to the grid is that the utility company is only going to pay you a wholesale price...which is about 1/2 as much as they will charge you for it.

You might look into skylights to harness energy during the day...but you will need to put shades on them to keep the heat from escaping at night.

You could build a compost bin(using saw dust leaves manure etc)and place a few coils of soft copper tubing inside about half way up.

Then you can connect it to insulated pipes and run it into a storage tank in side the shop.

Then you can use the stored heat to warm your shop(most of the winter)and have compost for your garden in the spring.

Be careful though.

once water drop down to about 100 degrees it gets a little stingy with its heat.

Solar oil is high dollar though

You might want to use ridged copper or galvanized steel pipe.

The chemicals in glycol anti freeze will corrode aluminum pipe badly.

You can reduce this by adding a getter column in your return line.

This consists if an expanded pipe(with removable ends.

place a tight roll of aluminum screen wire in the column and connect your pipes to the ends.

It wont stop the corrosion of your pipes entirely but should slow it down.

Answer 6

In a farm.. General Electric has a very good program for wind energy.. usually for farms..

For a shop.. there is nothing readily available that is inexpensive.. althought I just saw a video today of some very small cheap plastic wind turbines in HongKong that were very cheap that produced electricity..

If what I think you mean by solar paint.. it is not commercially available.. yet..

Answer 7

Crack open a history book and study how shops were run before electricity. There are many mechanical systems you can build that are still used today. Visit an Amish, Mennonite or Quaker community to see how they do it...

I know, it seems counter intuitive to take a step back to take two steps forward, but it has already been done with out todays technology.