Now you can build your own vertical wind turbine from parts found at the hardware store and online. Applied-Sciences.net has given all of us open source plans for a DIY vertical wind turbine!
Energy Efficiency
DIY Vertical Wind Turbine
Categories: Energy Efficiency, Technology
Tags: Alternative Energy, Energy, Wind Power
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Biomass Generator
Next time that a big storm hits your town and knocks out the electrical grid, don’t think about how nice it would be to have a gas guzzling, smelly generator to run you fish tank and lava lamps. Think instead of a biomass generator. This interesting technology has seen some advancements that have made biomass power generation a hands-off operation that users expect from their emergency equipment. Of course, the technology can be used for all sorts of power needs. All Power Labs is a company leading the way in developing this clever technology; they have an interesting past and a bright, progressive future.
The generator first converts woody biomass (like wood chips, acorns, corn husks, etc.) to a gas; this is certainly the most complected step which this guide explains much better than I can. An engine is then used to burn that gas to produce mechanical or electrical power.
Turning Straw Into Buildings
Strawbales are an excellent insulation material and because of their density, are also excellent thermal mass. They are also a rapidly renewable resource. Up to this point, however, they have been on the fringes of building technology because of the time it takes to build with the material. ModCell has come up with a viable way to turn stawbales into super-insulated building panels for commercial and residential use. They claim that these panels are zero carbon or better to create, which is infinitely better than rigid insulation can even think to claim. Brilliant!
August 13th Charlottesville Lunch: Deep Green
Join us next Tuesday (August 13th) for the JRGBC’s Charlottesville Green Building Luncheon to hear one engineer’s thoughts on how to think green all the time during design; he’s calling it deep green.
Habitat for Humanity of Charlottesville
Affordable housing, healthy environments, and energy efficiency don’t usually go together. In Central Virginia, affordability is often the least attainable goal and is becoming an increasingly big problem for the areas less-affluent residents.
Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville is doing an impressive amount in this area to build dwellings that provide all three. Their mission goes far beyond just getting hard-working people into homes; revitalizing entire existing neighborhoods with a focus on walkability, sustainability, community and ownership. They are paving the way with a new standard for peri-urban neighborhood revitalization.
Habitat for Humanity around the country has always been a leader in affordability and it is excellent to see the focus on sustainable, more resilient communities.
Categories: Communities, Energy Efficiency
Tags: Affordable housing, Charlottesville, community, Habitat for Humanity, Neighborhood
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A Safe Bet: Energy Efficiency
Here’s a great little article telling of the financial incentives of making your existing place more energy efficient. In a lot of cases, payback on energy improvement renovation investment is just a few years!
The Housing Lab 