Burbank, CA

Costa Mesa, CA

We will be posting more news and information following our April 2 Grand Openings - Stay Tuned!

1. When you brush your teeth, make sure to turn off the faucet - you can save eight gallons every day with this one.
2. Shortening your showers by as little as two minutes can save another eight gallons every time you shower.
3. Leaky faucets can waste 20 gallons per day, so don’t hesitate to fix these fixtures - call a plumber!
4. Make sure you wash only full loads and you could be saving 50 gallons of water per week.
5. If you are replacing the old commode, install a High Efficiency Toilet (HET).
6. Stop using the toilet as a trashcan or wastebasket.
7. Your hot water pipes should be well insulated, preferably with eco-friendly insulation made from recycled materials.
8. Of course - Install low-flow faucet aerators.
9. What goes for the clothes washer goes for the dishwasher - FULL LOADS ONLY!
10. Washing and rinsing dishes by hand should be done in the basin or a sink bucket - not with the water running directly down the drain.
11. You can check for toilet leaks by adding food coloring to the tank. If coloring appears in the bowl you have a leaky toilet that could be wasting many gallons per day (Make sure to flush after your test so that you dont stain your toilet bowl).
12. Do not shave with the water running - conserve water by using a bowl or the basin.
13. If you like your drinking water cold - fill up the container and put it in the fridge - stop running the water until its cold.
14. You should not need to run your garbage disposal all that much (are you composting?…).
15. Your plants would love that old, murky fish tank water, so don’t just pour it down the drain.
16. Thaw food with ambient air, not running water.
17. One last point on toilets - instead of jiggling that handle to stop the runny toilet - how about fixing it? Your guests don’t know that trick and you yourself might be forgetting sometimes…

That’s all for now - tune back in later for more money, water, and energy saving tips…

The first thing to consider is that solar energy input varies, so let’s
take that out of the equation initially to consider the tank’s output.

The tank has two 4500 W elements, or electrical burners.
The tank holds 75 gallons, or 625 lbs of water.
A single 4500 W element is equal to 15,354 BTUs
the tank has two elements: one located toward the top, and one at the middle
of the tank (vertically speaking as indicated in the diagram I sent)

1 BTU= 1 lb of water/1 degree F/Hr

Your average inlet temperature is roughly 62 F, and we need to raise it to
120 F.
This is a delta T (temperature change) of 58 F.

58(DT) x 625 lbs = 36,250

36,250 / 15,354 = 2.3 hours

That is, without any solar input, one 4500 W element will heat 75 gallons of
water at 62F to a piping 120 degrees in 2.3 hours without considering a
standby loss of 0.9 degrees per hour (see system manual for standby loss).

However, this does not completely answer your question for 3 main reasons:
The first being that the tank we recommended installing has 2 of these elements. The second
being that the whole 75 gallon tank does not need to be 120 degrees F for
you to have hot water as the hot water comes out of the top of
the tank. Lastly, this does not consider that the solar-heated glycol
narrows the temperature differential every day, ultimately keeping the top
of the tank at above 140 F on sunny days on solar input alone (without any
electricity).

Furthermore, we have several clients that have their auxiliary heating elements off still (in the middle of November). Though these results will vary across all situations depending on latitude, shading, and orientation, this 100% solar output is QUITE impressive.

- It has cut emissions 11% since 2005, with a goal of reducing them 30% by 2012 and 80% BY 2050.

- California leads the nation in electricity generation from renewables like geothermal, wind, fuel wood, landfill gas and solar and is second only to Washington State in hydroelectric generation. Yet at the same time, California has to import more electricity from other states than any other state in the nation. Programs like PaloAltoGreen help us keep our money in our state – investing in our future.

- When people talk about natural gas, the leading source of electricity production in the state of California, they are essentially talking about methane. And before it can be provided to the end user, raw natural gas needs to be heavily refined in order to remove almost all materials other than methane. The by-products of this processing include ethane, propane, butane, and pentanes, among others. Why transport this fuel from 2,000 miles away when renewable energy is available to us in California - here, now – through programs like PaloAltoGreen?

- Massive amounts of fresh, clean water are required in order to extract and produce natural gas – an estimated 5 million gallons per fracture and another 1 million for drilling! This fresh water mixes with sand and other chemicals being extracted to form a toxic chemical cocktail that is either forced down under pressure or rises to the surface in the form of radioactive waste. You have the choice to use a different kind of energy, and it begins with Joining PaloAltoGreen today.

Here is a great video to send to friends and family! - We are the solution.

So what’s wrong with PVC?

1. PVC is the only major plastic that contains chlorine, so it is unique in the hazards it creates. During production, PVC plants can release dioxins which harm workers and community members who live nearby. According to pvcinformation.org, residents of Louisiana, which is home to half the PVC production facilities in the USA, have been shown to have much higher concentrations of dioxins in their blood than the average U.S. citizen.

click here to read all the other reasons to skip PVC

“Many people in the USA are familiar with the Energy Star ratings that appear on many devices that consume electricity. We like to feel good that we’re buying a product that has been tested and rated to exacting standards that help the environment. The Energy Star program guidelines state that only the top 25% of products in any one category can earn this special rating for energy efficiency. Energy Star is a great concept, but the reality is a bit different. Currently, companies test their own products, under their own conditions, to report on their energy use. For example, some refrigerator manufacturers tested their products’ energy use with the ice-makers turned off. Is that really the most common mode of operation? I don’t think so. Does self-certification serve the public interest? Not in these situations, and when big money is involved, verification of compliance with standards becomes critical. ”

How many times do we need to make the same mistakes?…Okay- Im going to get on my solar water heating horse for one sentence to point out that the Solar Rating and Certification Corporation independently tests and certifies all solar water systems eligible for incentives in the US, cutting out a LOT of the bunk…Anyway, we love Christine’s work and highly recommend adding the Smart Grid Dictionary to your library if you are in the energy industry, are an engineer, an activist, enthusiast, environmentalist, solar nerd, or all-of-the-above like us.

Essential Reference