What's going on over at EcoRenovator

[Daox]

More updates.


I did some sealing work on the house this weekend. Old farm house, lots of leaks!

Basjoos has been teaching us about how he has naturalized his garden so he doesn't need to till and replant every year.

We've put together a couple recipes for organic weed killer.

Ben Nelson put together a DIY solar hot water heat exchanger

I found a great list about how long appliances normally last.

[Daox]

Some more goings on over on ER:


AC Hacker did a some cool eco hacks to his rice cooker.

Robert Smalls is working on winterizing his apartment.

Ben Nelson made a DIY solar food dehydrator.

Ben is also refurbishing some solar hot water panels.

I did some testing that shows the effect of defrosting on freezer efficiency which is part of an ongoing series on freezer efficiency.


Come check things out and get some ideas. We'd love to see what you are doing too.

[Daox]

There are some great updates this time around.


Xringer has put together a great thread on a DIY install of a Sanyo heat pump / AC unit.

I've gotten batteries for the riding mower and have begun making battery racks for it.

Charlie D has a house up in Canada with big utility bills that he is trying to winterize on the cheap.

AC Hacker has put together a great thread containing info on DIY hydronic floor heating.

GvilleRenovator has done some recent work in his attic sealing air ducts leaks.

[Daox]

Its been quite a while since my last update here. I figure there are new users interested in home efficiency. So, here are a few things that have been going on recently over at the EcoRenovator forum.

Xringer has been experimenting with his new solar PV panels and trackers.

I recently blew the motor on my electric riding lawn mower.

Gasstingy has been working on his new garage / shop for a while now.

Patrick coated his roof with white roof seal to lower attic temperatures and reduce AC usage.

Trikkonceptz recently picked up a bed fan to reduce AC usage during the night.

[Daox]

Heres some more links for those interested:

Aproldan has started doing work on yet another electric mower. This one is combining a tractor front end with a golf cart back end.

RobertSmalls has broken down his energy usage by appliance and is analyzing how to further conserve.

I've been experimenting with using attic heat to heat my house.

We've been discussing the benefits of enclosed showers.

We've also been talking about thorium reactors and the benefits they provide over nuclear power plants.

[Daox]

Heres another short list of some of the happenings over at ER. If you have any interest in home efficiency I suggest taking a look.

Patrick and nibs have been discussing how to make efficient wind turbine blades.

I've been working on making some interior storm windows for the windows in my sunroom which should triple the insulation value of the window, and easily pay for them self in the first year of use.

Xringer's solar tracker project is showing excellent results as his 500W array has hit over 500W of production.

Robertsmalls is working on a way to heat only certain areas of his house effectively.

We've also had some good discussion going on about low cost LEDs.

[Daox]

I was talking with Darin today and he brought up the idea of bringing this back, and we agreed it was a good idea. There really is a lot of interesting projects going on over on EcoRenovator for anyone with any interest in home efficiency, saving money on your bills, or reducing your carbon footprint. Like the sticky says, its just like EcoModder, but for your home.


1) Solar Hot water Panel Rack
Daox has been working on his solar hot water panel rack and trench to get it ready before winter rolls around.

Desigining & building a solar hot water panel rack - EcoRenovator


2) LED lights & feedback
There has been a lot of activity in our ongoing thread that gives feedback on LED lighting that people are using. With the days growing longer for most of us, its worth a peek to see what is working well for people.

Anyone using/used LEDs? - EcoRenovator


3) Extra water heat for long plumbing runs?
Bikin' Ed asks the question if its worth having a small point of use water heater on the end of a long plumbing run.

Extra H20 heater - EcoRenovator


4) Spray foam experience and tips
Ryland shares his experience of having some spray foam insulation done, and includes some tips on what to look out for.

Spray Foam Experinces and Tips. - EcoRenovator


5) Using motion sensors for more efficient lighting
Ownerbuilder2012 asks if its more efficient to use motion sensors and how to use them.

Motion sensors - EcoRenovator

[Daox]

Another long overdue update. I keep forgetting...

Anyways, there are some interesting things going on, check them out!



1) Replacing a water heater

Greif is looking to replace his water heater relatively soon and asks about some different possible replacements.

water heater - EcoRenovator

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2) 5.5 kW solar array install

Michael shares with us his DIY install of a 5.5 kW solar array with tracking.

DIM 5500 w PV Array - EcoRenovator

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3) Cooling with water

Charles asks about using cold / ground water to cool down his house.

cooling with water - EcoRenovator

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4) Heat pump water heaters

Drake asks about heat pump water heaters.

Heat pump H2O water heaters?? - EcoRenovator

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5) Ventless dryers

Daox asks the owners of ventless dryers about their experience with them.

Who is using a ventless (heat pump or condensing) dryer? - EcoRenovator

[Daox]

Only forgot one month this time, getting better!

1) Stone age simple geothermal Scottorious asks about a extremely simple geothermal setup that rolls into a good discussion on simple geothermal cooling systems:

stone age simple geothermal - EcoRenovator


2) Hasty freezer to fridge conversion AC Hacker has another project hes been working on. This time he has taken a freezer and converted it into a very efficient fridge.

AC_Hacker's Hasty Freezer Conversion - EcoRenovator


3) New electric lawn tractor Nibs has been working on his electric lawn tractor and shares some progress updates.

Just ran Sparky the electric tractor. - EcoRenovator


4) Cooling the house with the basement As things warm up, new ideas are always popping up to see what can be done to keep the house cool. This thread is a popular one and has many good ideas in it.

Cooling the house with the basement. - EcoRenovator


5) PV installation update Fordguy64 shares some updates with his PV system he has been working on.

Finally adding solar.. - EcoRenovator

[mikeyjd]

I tried to register but it keeps telling me that my answer to the random question is wrong...