Solar panels are seeming to pop up everywhere. As the photo shows, there is a solar panel installation right on our block down the street on the corner. For those who have noticed, you also probably remember they used to have a few different types of solar panels on their roof - no more than 5 - now, they have covered the entire roof (and it seems 2 of their panels are already broken, or at least appear that way).
Not too long ago, I read an article about how Fedex was able to have incredible savings with an Oakland California sorting facility solar installation. ‘The 904 kW solar array will provide approximately 80 percent of the peak load demand for the company’s Oakland facility, which employs 1,700 people. The electricity generated by the array will be the equivalent used by more than 900 homes during the daytime.’
People seem to be turning to solar more and more - solar water heaters for pools and even home water are becoming quite popular. I’m very happy to see one of our neighbors taking a step forward in these times when we need to not only conserve energy, but develop and utilize alternative means of power generation.
The cool week may be providing you with a chilly reminder of the northern locale where many of us are from. After talking around the coffee pot at work today, I realized that we all use our ‘heat’ function of our home cooling systems that many are unfamiliar as to how they work. And that can lead to freaking out.
The heat function on our home cooling systems aren’t really a ‘furnace’ like used by those in cooler climates. We basically have a burner like that on electric stovetops on in a toaster - wires which heat up and the air passes over them and it is blown by the same fan that is used to blow cooled air in your home.
If you haven’t used the heat option in some time, you may find that there is an unpleasant odor for several hours after turning it on. I can only recommend that you crack open your doors to assist in clearing the fairly unpleasant aroma from the apartment until it has basically ‘burned away.’ The smell is caused by dirt and other particulates that are deposited on these heating coils throughout the rest of the year. Don’t worry - unless you start having smoke pour out of the vents - you will be fine. Keep warm!
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