All Energies

All Energies tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2009-08-13:/allenergies/blog//1 2012-02-04T17:11:28Z Movable Type 4.3-en We have [almost] been to the mountain top! tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.178 2012-02-04T16:45:18Z 2012-02-04T17:11:28Z

Sara http://www.allenergies.net

]]> Happy Place? tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.177 2012-01-31T14:38:48Z 2012-01-31T17:03:31Z

Sara http://www.allenergies.net

For an hour or so this morning, we weren't able to find Sprocket. Then we finally noticed him sitting in the backseat of the 4Runner. He's always been a car-loving dog, but now he's decided they make great doghouses too. What a snob. Guess we should remember to close the windows, but heck, it's the desert.

]]> Books Galore tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.176 2012-01-26T19:27:39Z 2012-01-29T19:31:15Z

Sara http://www.allenergies.net

]]> Snow Day tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.175 2012-01-25T19:12:37Z 2012-01-29T19:24:25Z

Sara http://www.allenergies.net

]]> Sun Day tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.174 2012-01-22T17:07:48Z 2012-01-22T17:20:38Z

Casey http://www.allenergies.net blog and Web site and enjoyed checking out his different electronics projects. Thank you John for sharing the link.

Going to do a do a timing belt and water pump on a Dodge Neon today, in the new shop.

]]> Inverter install tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.172 2012-01-20T01:39:38Z 2012-01-20T15:10:56Z

Casey http://www.allenergies.net

On our way back to HQ, Arick and I stopped by John Wells' Field Lab to see his completed roof and other new additions to his setup.

We had a great conversation about what we have been doing and what our plans are for future projects. It is always lots of fun to talk about ideas with other idea-people. Innovation never rests!

Later in the day we had supper with another Very Important Person, Beechie who has run a mechanic / tow / recovery service out of the Terlingua Ranch for the past 12 years. We showed Beechie our shop spaces and the various other projects we have going on, then Sara fed us all spaghetti and garlic bread.

It was also my Mom's birthday yesterday, so I want to say Happy Birthday to her one more time. We love you, and all of West Texas misses you!

]]> Ferro-concrete Wall & Case Loader Reclamation tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.173 2012-01-17T15:24:25Z 2012-01-22T17:37:51Z

Our first real ferro-concrete wall, for the chicken fortress: Tim Dean's 1970s era Case loader is a beast of a machine! Supercharger worked amazingly well, but there were no brakes going down Yellow Hill....

Sara http://www.allenergies.net Our first real ferro-concrete wall, for the chicken fortress:

Tim Dean's 1970s era Case loader is a beast of a machine! Supercharger worked amazingly well, but there were no brakes going down Yellow Hill.

]]> The search for over 100 MPG tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.170 2012-01-12T00:23:02Z 2012-01-12T15:33:41Z

Casey http://www.allenergies.net

We do a lot of talking and thinking about super-fuel-efficient automobiles, and have often contemplated building one. Well the time is now! I think we are ready to design and then build a vehicle.

This vehicle would capable of entering a competition like the Progressive X-Prize. This is nerd-dom at its best. One of the past winners of the Progressive X-Prize is the Edison2 an ultra-light, aerodynamic, and highly-efficiency vehicle.

Here is a little bit of insight into the vehicle ideas we have been tossing around:

Layout: Three or four wheeled with narrow, low rolling-resistance tires.

Seating: 2-4 adults

Safety: It will be road legal and conform to required safety standards.

Efficiency: It will be tested for real-world efficiency and MPG.

Body: would be fiberglass or carbon fiber, with an aerodynamic tear-drop shape.

Chassis: Chrome moly steel skeleton built to incorporate the propulsion, steering and suspension systems, and attach to the body.

Propulsion System:

A small economical diesel engine which can directly and indirectly power the vehicle.
A feature to cut out the engine when vehicle is braking or stopped.
An electric drivetrain compatible with both plug-in EVs, or a fully hybrid-only system.
A Li-Po or NiMH battery pack, which will be modular so you can easily increase or decrease the capacity as needed.

We have also put some thought into other energy storage techniques, such as flywheel technology. One of the main drawbacks that I can see is that in order for flywheels to provide usable power, it needs to be extremely heavy and and spin at low RPMs (revolutions per minute). Alternatively, it could be lighter if it spun at very high RPMs in a vacuum, but that would increase the cost and complexity of the system one hundred fold.

]]> Feelin' saucy tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.169 2012-01-09T05:14:19Z 2012-01-09T06:19:29Z

Sara http://www.allenergies.net

]]> Telephone Sanitization tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.168 2012-01-07T16:49:38Z 2012-01-07T17:45:16Z

January: named for Janus, a god who looks both ways in time, so to speak. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season, and I know more than a few people are very glad the days will now be getting...

Sara http://www.allenergies.net
I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season, and I know more than a few people are very glad the days will now be getting longer again.

We are back from our vacation in Florida and feeling refreshed (and well fed --- mmm, sushi! crabs! fried bass!). Casey will be welding again tomorrow and today I am catching up on house chores. It will be nice to start off the new year extra fresh (though cleaning has it's own hazards, especially when the desert puts a hurting on all your clothing), and we have lots of fun, productive projects coming up in the months ahead.

The first day after we got back home, the dogs were still a little mad at us for leaving them behind, but they are over it now (we did bring back a couple new toys, after all).

Arick took good care of them both (read: spoiled them the whole time) and we really appreciate his help as well as Kathie & Bob's hospitality. Without them, we couldn't have taken any kind of vacation!

Thanks are also owed to Courtney & John for making sure we had every opportunity to widen our pallets and watch the "speakies" in surround sound.

Thanks also to Arthur, for helping us with our video on wind turbine blades and for donating so many blades/parts for our wind power experiments!

And to everyone else, too many wonderful people to name here, who helped make 2011 such a wonderful year.

Thanks for reading, and now I must get back to laundry!

]]> Respite tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2012:/allenergies/blog//1.167 2012-01-05T13:19:21Z 2012-01-05T13:40:42Z

Sara http://www.allenergies.net

]]> Another Great Year tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2011:/allenergies/blog//1.166 2012-01-01T01:20:51Z 2012-01-02T15:56:41Z

Casey http://www.allenergies.net

We have expanded our homestead with a new shop/garage building, a storage shed, our bathroom, and the second version of our chicken coop/run.

We look forward to even more interesting projects in 2012, including a live video monitor of our animals, and starting a miniature dairy with Nigerian dwarf goats.

Happy New Year, everyone.

- Casey

]]> Solitario Solar tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2011:/allenergies/blog//1.165 2011-12-19T01:20:00Z 2012-01-09T06:23:16Z

Casey http://www.allenergies.net We recently completed a couple of solar racks using the Version 1.3 of our design, which works great. The new design uses grease-able pillow block bearings at the pivot points.

So this past Friday and Saturday, Arick and I set up two more PV arrays in the Solitario. They look even better with panels on them! Shouldn't be very long now until all six are up and pumping current.

]]> Four wheel drives tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2011:/allenergies/blog//1.164 2011-12-15T03:31:48Z 2011-12-18T21:38:09Z

We were finally able to spend some time on the Geo Tracker. We cut off the damaged parts and stripped the interior. Then we installed the roll bar, which we bought in a junkyard in El Paso. After several hours...

Casey http://www.allenergies.net

The project turned out great, plus it stiffened up the whole vehicle. Next, on to fabricating a front windshield glass frame for the auto safety glass we bought in El Paso.

I recently acquired a 1985 Toyota 4Runner (a 4WD early SUV) that needs its engine rebuilt -- but that's the kind of thing I enjoy.

It's a unique one, as it seems to have every possible option, including an altimeter and second fuel tank. Sometime in January I will pull the engine (the famous Toyota 2.2RE), and post updates on the progress.

]]> The DJ Fell Asleep ... tag:www.offgridintexas.com,2011:/allenergies/blog//1.163 2011-12-14T20:47:43Z 2011-12-18T21:53:38Z

Sara http://www.allenergies.net
But the good news is that the immediate crisis has been resolved. I really appreciate everyone's input on the websites, and I plan on doing some bigger upgrades very soon!

In summary: My bad, sorry.
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