African Huts Far From the Grid Glow With Renewable Power

NYT ^ | December 24, 2010 | ELISABETH ROSENTHAL

[PLMerite]

“Why the contempt?”

What I want to know is, if Africa is the Cradle of Mankind, why haven’t they got the damn place wired yet?

[ken21]

a wonderful place for our environment college grads to move to and stay put in!

[Tax-chick]

Especially since the "fortunate" factor only involved planning and common sense. It's not like I'm a rich guy. Just practical.

E-zackly. It doesn't take much money to be ready for a disaster, just planning and common sense, as you say.

Which reminds me, it's time to stick a couple of cases of diapers and powdered milk in the garage, in case we get a Winter Weather Event and can't get to the Walmart for a few days.

[Silentgypsy]

I have an inexpensive crank radio from Harbor Freight. It actually works.

[matt04]

I’m guessing not solar or wind alone.

[thackney]

Me, I had fun with it.
Tons of other folks were pretty messed up by it. Tons of other folks think they actually need all their stuff plugged in just to survive.

You actually know better.

[DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis]

I was able to freeze jugs of water in advance

Smart you!

Yep, I ate up all the meat....I had fun with the whole thing.

Glad you made the most of the situation HG! :)

[ApplegateRanch]

6nRetail Price: $24.99Sale price: $24.99

A flashlight and radio that never needs batteries!
Charges by built-in solar panel and hand-crank generator. Also can be used to power cell phone in case of emergency.

Lots of others out there, too...i.e.

Combination- Hand Crank AM-FM Radio/ Cell Phone Charger / Flashlight;

Ambient Weather WR-088 Emergency Solar Hand Crank AM/FM/NOAA Weather Radio, Flashlight, Cell Phone Charger (Blue), etc.

[editor-surveyor]

Those hand crank radios are junk.

Invest in some solar panels, charge controlers, inverters and batteries, and also a good CCRadioSWP portable (not the regular CC)

The radios in the crank models have poor antennas, and front end tuners, and the crank generators fail easily.

Also, if the ‘emergency’ is serious, your cell phone will be useless without access prefixes, which get changed frequently, and the systems tend to go down easily too.

[ApplegateRanch]

"What powers the cellular signal towers?"

Thanks for the picture, Catnipman; now I understand perfectly.

HYDROPOWER! The ox pumps water; that runs down to a set of turbines.... *<];-')

[wideminded]

What happened to an old hand crank generator for charging a phone? Not sexy eco friendly enough?

The hand crank generators on old rural phones did not "charge" the phone. All they did was to generate a brief burst of AC to ring the operator.

[ApplegateRanch]

All too true, which is why I don’t have one. But, neither do I lived in a ‘mud walled hut’ (per the article) in rural Africa.

Dependable generators (3, if I need them); a good inverter in the vehicles; a good supply of kerosene for the lamps; a gas fridge in the barn, if I need it....

The one time we did go down long enough for it to matter to the freezer, we still had time to cook & can, or to corn or smoke, all the meat & veggies.

Of course, corning those briskets was almost a crime, but my wife is Irish descent, so....

[catnipman]

Well, obviously it works pretty good because you can see all the power transmission lines in the background.

[familyop]

"You're in the small/home power systems business?"

No, but I've helped to install a few for contractors (boiler-fired radiant heat for floor surfaces, closed loop systems, etc...*Moan*) and have installed some of my own (*Cheer*).

"just another homeowner off-grid since 1989 (PVs and working on restoring a 1940's Jacobs windplant)...."

Now that's a good project! Those were and are great wind turbines. I'll send you some good links by FR mail.

It takes either big bucks or the mind of a bandito (fly by night) to begin contracting alternative energy jobs in any of the little peoples' republics on the Colorado Rockies. Got a "master electrician" in your pocket by any chance? The process of becoming one is very much like staying in a labor union for a long time, terminology and all.

In these counties, it's all about "open space" and the like. Just recently, a man was denied a variance to mount his turbine anywhere above the 35' building height limit, and an engineering stamp for a small tower would probably cost a bag of gold. Some counties even restrict wind turbines to those built by certain big corporations, and some, only SRCC certified solar collectors (those blazing hot ones approved by a laboratory in Florida, of all places).

But an individual can build his own better energy systems, if he has a thorough education in various regulatory codes. A good climate for building some of them, though, can be brutal for humans, indeed (see Mars).

Ah...those links.

[Lancey Howard]

Survivalizing is fun, if you’re prepared.

I used to tell my kids that back before light bulbs everybody had to watch TV by candle light.

[dayglored]

> Now that's a good project! Those were and are great wind turbines. I'll send you some good links by FR mail.

Thanks! Yes, one heck of a project. I've presently got the body of the generator mounted at the top of an 80-foot free-standing Rohn tripod tower, minus the governor and blades. The governor seized and stripped the internal pitch-control gearing, but I've got it dismantled in my shop, new bearings and some old replacement parts located, and with luck she'll go together this summer.

Then I get to figure out how to lift the (large, heavy, cast-iron) governor up there safely.... gin-pole or rented crane? I enjoy climbing the tower and working at the top, but a mistake with that heavy a weight at 80-feet can be deadly.

All information is eagerly appreciated!

[SuziQ]

Amen! She saw a solution to her problem, and used her own money to purchase it!

[familyop]

"All information is eagerly appreciated!"

Sent!

[dayglored]

Yep, thanks again. Very cool stuff (love the Classic Controller design!).

Signing off for the evening.... Merry Christmas!