Real Goods Solar Living Sourcebook · Your Complete Guide to Living beyond the Grid with Renewable Energy Technologies and Sustainable Living by Schaeffer, John -- Read -- Imperial Library of Trantor

Index

Title Page Copyright Contents ACKNOWLEDGMENTS A MESSAGE FROM THE RGS ENERGY CEO FOREWORD: by Bill McKibben INTRODUCTION: by John Schaeffer, Real Goods Founder Chapter 1 RELOCALIZATION: A Strategic Response to Peak Oil and Climate Change

Ecological Economics Overshoot Peak Oil and Implications for a Transportation-Dependent Economy Climate Change and the Need to Eliminate Fossil Fuels Relocalization: A Strategic Response to Overshoot Approaching Social Change Pioneering Solar Down on the Farm

Chapter 2 LAND AND SHELTER: Designing and Building Your Green Dream Home

The Impacts of Modern Building Passive Survivability Strategies for a Responsive Home Renovations and Development Building a New Home Passive Solar Design: A Primer Building Technologies The Healthy Home Your Home, Your Choice Words of Wisdom from Real Goods Staffers and Colleagues Spirit of the Sun

What Are Photovoltaic Cells? Sixty Years of Photovoltaics System Examples PV Racking Wind and Hydro Power Sources Hydroelectricity Wind Energy Wind Energy and Wind Turbines — What You Need To Consider to Make a Decision Hydrogen Fuel Cells

A Renewable Energy System Primer: Putting It All Together Off-grid and Battery Backup System Sizing Worksheets Grid-tied Systems Converting Sunshine into Electricity What’s the Payback? Safety and Fusing Charge Controllers Monitors Large Storage Batteries Real Goods’ Battery Troubleshooting Guide Common Battery Questions and Answers Real Goods’ Battery Care Class Rechargeable Batteries and Chargers Frequently Asked Questions About Rechargeable Batteries Inverters Potential Problems with Modified Sine Wave Inverter Use — and How to Correct Them Potential Problems with ALL Inverters — and How to Correct Them Inverter Conclusions Wire, Adapters, and Outlets Wire Sizing Chart/Formula RGS Energy Solar Project Case Study: Ironhouse Sanitary District RGS Energy Solar Project Case Study: Little Quittacas Solar Farm

Chapter 5 EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS AND SOLAR MOBILITY: Be Empowered When the Grid Goes Down

Want Some Protection, or at Least a Little Backup? How About Total Freedom? Steps to a Practical Emergency Power System What Do You Really Need in an Emergency? Conclusion

Living Well but Inexpensively It All Starts with Good Design Retrofitting: Making the Best of What You’ve Got Conserving Electricity House Heating and Cooling Home Cooling Systems Energy-efficient Appliances Superefficient Lighting Lighting Characteristics Light Technology

Chapter 7 WATER DEVELOPMENT: Reckoning with Our Most Precious and Endangered Resource

The Three Components of Every Water System Solar-Powered Pumping Real Goods’ Homestead Plumbing Recommendations Friction Loss Charts for Water Pumping

Chapter 8 WATER HEATING: The Most Cost-effective Solar Alternative

Common Water Heater Types Solar Water Heaters Types of Solar Water Heating Systems: Operation and Installation

Chapter 9 WATER AND AIR PURIFICATION: Clean Water and Air Are Human Rights!

The Need for Water Purification Methods of Water Filtration and Purification Air Purification Resources

Reclaiming Valuable Resources What Is a Composting Toilet? Greywater Systems

Permaculture: A Holistic Design System for Your Site Biodynamic® Agriculture: Food and the Cosmos Biodynamic Preparations Resources

Chapter 12 URBAN HOMESTEADING: Heirloom Skills for Sustainable Living

Urban Permaculture Practice Gardening in the Urban Habitat Animals on the Urban Homestead Remaking Our Relationship to Food The Heirloom Kitchen Skills Natural Building Powering Down Greywater and Rainwater Use Waste Personal Ecology Resources

Chapter 13 SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORTATION: Toward a Future of Carbon-free Mobility

The Problem with Fossil Fuels The Problem with Today’s Motor Vehicles Hybrids and Other Low-emission Vehicles Biodiesel, Ethanol, and Other Biofuels Electric Vehicles Futuristic Vehicles?

Chapter 14 NATURAL BURIAL: The Ultimate Back-to-the-land Movement

Dying to Do the Right Thing When It’s Time, Will You “Leave No Trace”? Cemetery Stewardship’s Triple Bottom Line Crafting the Fond Farewell: It Takes a Plan What You Need for a Natural Burial A Place to Go Last Acts That Make a Difference: How Your Support of Environmentally Friendly Products Can Turn an Industry Around

Chapter 15 THE REAL GOODS’ SUSTAINABLE LIVING LIBRARY: Reading for a Renewable Future

Garden, Farm, Food, and Community Land and Shelter Renewable Energy in Theory and Practice Building Types and Materials Peak Oil, Relocalization, and Politics Water Development References and Resources

APPENDIX

Part I: Who We Are and How We Got Here Part II: Living the Dream: The Real Goods Solar Living Center Part III: Spreading the Word: The Solar Living Institute Part IV: Getting Down to Business System Sizing Worksheets Power Consumption Table Solar Insolation Maps Solar Insolation by US City Magnetic Declination Charts in the United States Battery Wiring Diagrams Wire Sizing Chart/Formula Friction Loss Charts for Water Pumping Temperature Conversions Nominal Pipe Size Versus Actual Outside Diameter for Steel and Plastic Pipe The Real Goods’ Resource List State Energy Offices Access Information

Glossary ENDNOTES INDEX