Going 'Green' Series - Introduction
As the economy continues to take a nose dive, I've been gathering more information on renewable energy sources and ways to increase our own self-sufficiency. This dovetails nicely with the whole homesteading concept and there are so many great ideas and innovations already available with more to be introduced in the next couple of years or so.
Starting with the home, there are several ways to start minimizing energy usages and, if building from the ground up, the benefits get significantly greater. There is some really interesting stuff out there--so much, in fact, it's hard to know where to start!
So, I'm going to begin a series based on the topics I'm researching or thinking about for our home (yet to be built). We all know how to cut back--that's been covered pretty thoroughly over the past decades. What I'm looking for are radical new ways of confronting oil shortages, alternative fuels, home construction, storing and freezing food, sheltering livestock, etc. This is where, in my mind, it gets really exciting!
As an introduction, let's just define some terms. I've discovered an entirely new vocabulary...words like passive solar, active solar, thermal mass, photovoltaics, combustible heat, gasifiers, glazing, daylighting...just to name a few. Many of you out there are very familiar with these concepts and terms. To others (like me) relatively new to the scene, it might as well be a foreign language.
So with this as the starting point, I'm going to provide some links to information and examples addressing these various topics. I'm going to throw questions, suggestions, and concerns out there for you to think about for your own particular situation and, of course, feel free to post comments as much as you like. Please fill in the gaps or educate me and others in ways I've totally missed the point. This is a broad new frontier and requires innovative and creative ways of looking at certain principles and discovering new applications and ways of harnessing the energy produced in practical, do-able forms--that make sense and aren't cost prohibitive. Any backyard inventors out there? I'm seeing all sorts of potential for our engineering-minded, inquisitive son!
An important aspect in all of this, which sometimes eludes the avidly zealous "go green" types, is that choosing alternative energy sources has to make practical sense--and that does translate into dollars and cents. Many people out there have difficulty caring too much about the caribou in Alaska when they're struggling just to meet the never-ending monthly bills piling up and keeping the bankers paid on time. Fortunately, renewable energy sources are becoming more cost-effective (especially with utility and gas prices increasing). Also, many families are searching out a lifestyle that is more self-sufficient and less dependent on utility companies, corporations, foreign distributors, and big government. A large capital expenditure on such things as acreage, livestock, renewable energy sources, timber lots, etc. are viewed as investments that can pay for themselves in the long run as well as in peace of mind and quality lifestyle.
We're finding that in many cases, it's not so much what we're spending but how we're spending. If we can continue to find ways for our family to funnel the money into supporting ourselves which in turn benefits the environment and the local economy as opposed to supporting large corporations and foreign distributors, it becomes more of a win-win situation (unless you're a large corporation or foreign distributor, of course).
Here is a conventional-looking home here in Maine (near Kennebunk, I think) that has incorporated a number of "green" ideas with photos and also a short video clip on how it all works in addition to how the systems compliment each other.
http://www.solarhouse.com/index2.html
This article details many of the considerations involved in how we can go 'green' or at least how to investigate more of the possibilities.
http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Your-Own-Electricity
Stay tuned for more info!
