How to remove wildfire smoke from your home in California

*Republished from 2020

We’ve had a lot of smoke in our air from California wildfires recently. Smoke, like ozone and other air pollutants, can cause severe health problems. To know just how unhealthy the air is there are measurements made as well as forecasts and reports available to tell you just how bad the air actually is.

You can see the current air quality and AQI by following these links:

• www.aqicn.org/city/california/nevada/grass-valley-litton-building/
  • using Air Quality Index – AQI
• www.iqair.com/us/usa/california/grass-valley
  • using Air Quality Index – AQI
• www.mobile.arb.ca.gov/breathewell/grassvalley
  • using (μg/m³) of inhalable particles and ppb of ozone

Sometimes a bad air day is described as having a high ozone level, that’s especially common during the summer months in the Sierra Foothills. But when it comes to wildfires you’ll see the pollution level listed as PM2.5 and AQI (Air Quality Index). PM stands for “Particulate Matter”, small particles that can cause severe health problems if they get into your lungs, especially for certain groups. The 2.5 stands for the size of the particles in microns. A micron-sized particle is very very small, about 30 times smaller than a human hair. A PM2.5 day means the air has a high concentration of particulates that are 2.5 microns or smaller. About 90% of the smoke from wildfires is in that range, with most between 0.4 and 0.7.

Simply put –

When AQI is over 100 and…

If you are retrofitting your HVAC buy a MERV 13 or above square/rectangle filter insert. Or above an FPR 10 or an MPR of 1500 (be careful though, read why below).

If you are purifying a room, or office buy a HEPA rated purifier unit, not just a filter/ionizer.

If you are going to DYI, read part 2.

We rely on air filters in our home’s heating and air conditioning systems to capture dust, but are they effective at removing wildfire smoke? The answer is generally no, unless you have a HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Arrestor) filter. But most systems have filters that only capture the larger dust particles, PM2.5 particles are much smaller. To filter smoke you’ll need a filter with a MERV (Minimum Efficiency Rating Value) of 13 to 16. Sometimes filters will have an FPR (Filter Performance Rating) or an MPR (Microparticle Performance Rating) instead. If that’s the case an FPR 10 or an MPR of 1500 is roughly comparable to a MERV 13.

A few words of caution. The higher the level of filtration the more difficult it is for your system’s fan to push air through the system. That can increase the energy use of your system, and less airflow means less cooling. As a result I’d suggest you use a less restrictive filter most of the time, keeping the smoke-filter ones on hand for smokey days. And even regular filters get gummed up over time, so it’s a good idea to check in on them regularly, comparing the used one to a new one to gauge about when to replace it.

*Some HVAC systems are not strong enough for a MERV 13 or higher filter and could cause expensive problems to your system. Consult a HVAC professional when changing your filter.

SEG Note: If you were thinking of getting a battery backup or generator installed by us, you will want to make sure you have power to the purifier wherever it will be plugged in. Aka, consider your air purifier as a critical backed up load.  Running your HVAC (air conditioner) on a battery or generator could deplete it’s power/gas quickly, therefore considering a stand alone, plugin HEPA filter that uses less energy would be a smart option in power outage situations and PSPS’s.

Read  – Part 2, HEPA Filters, DYI Air Purifiers, Effectiveness of House Plants and more on AQI and PM2.5 >>

 

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A low-cost summer, energy saving cooling option for your home here in the Sierra Foothills of California.

If you don’t have any cooling or if you’re paying too much for air-conditioning, I have a viable alternative for you to consider. But before getting into that however, an important first step for staying cool is to always do whatever you can to keep the sun out, a topic I covered in last month’s newsletter article on solar shades.

You’ve probably heard of “swamp coolers” but I prefer the term “evaporative cooler”. While the terms have been used interchangeably, I use evaporative cooler to describe coolers that use a more efficient pad than you find in the typical swamp cooler. The pad is the material the water runs down in and the air blows across. The old-style metal swamp coolers use relatively thin pads made of aspen wood shavings or a plastic mesh. I prefer the coolers with thick honeycomb shaped pads such as the CELdek™ pads made by Munters, as they produce cooler air.

I also prefer coolers made of a high quality plastic that doesn’t rust. My own cooler has been in use for 10 years and, with new pads every few years, should last much longer. It’s much more compact than the common swamp cooler too. Examples of these types of coolers are the Durango model made by Bonaire and the MasterCool slim-profile evaporative cooler, both of which are available from many home stores for around $600 to $700.

Another important factor for effective evaporative cooling is to open lots of windows at the other end of your home from the cooler. This allows the cool air to move across and through rooms, with the breeze helping to cool you and your home down as well.

To give you an idea of how they perform, I recently kept our home at a comfortable 73 degrees when the outside temperature was 102 degrees using just 175 watts of electricity. For comparison a 10,000 Btu/hr window air conditioner uses about 1,000 watts.

There are much more efficient air conditioners that cost less to operate but they’re considerably more costly. There are high-efficiency heat pumps that provide summer cooling as well as heat in winter, but they’re also more costly. Those may be a better choice in some cases, but I’ll cover those in a future newsletter.

Evaporative coolers aren’t for everyone. They work best when the outside air is hot and dry. There are a few weeks every year when the outside air is both hot and humid, but even heat-sensitive people I know have tolerated them as long as there’s enough of a breeze moving over your body. They can also be noisy and blustery, so finding a good location where noise and a strong breeze isn’t an issue is important.

In addition to window units there are whole-house evaporative coolers, some even employing ductwork to serve individual rooms. These units can have pads up to 12 inches thick and, with ducts serving individual rooms, the noise and strong breeze is greatly reduced.

This is part of an ongoing series of energy efficiency tips to make your home more comfortable, healthy and most of all smarter on energy use here in the Sierra Nevada Foothills.

The post Evaporative Cooling – Less Energy, Lower Cost appeared first on Sustainable Energy Group.

A stay at home case study on solar screens and other home cooling techniques

Are you unknowingly heating the inside of your home in the summer with solar energy?

Solar energy coming through your windows may be a welcome friend in winter but it’s an unwelcome guest in the summer. Whether you’d like to stay cooler, reduce your summer air conditioning bill, or both, there are some surprisingly effective and greatly underappreciated things you can do.

First of all, most people don’t know how much their drapes or shades do to help heat their home in the summertime. Here are some pictures showing just how effective an indoor drape really is in heating you up.

Most people think closing their curtains or miniblinds helps keep their home cooler, but do they really? From top to bottom we have –

• A vinyl-coated curtain, bright white on the side facing the window

• A room that’s 71 degrees (based on the temperature of an inside wall)

• A curtain that’s 87.5 degrees

• A curtain that’s just 73.5 degrees when a solar screen covers the window outside

The takeaways from this are –

1. The curtain, despite being bright white, is actually a pretty effective solar collector, coming in about 17 degrees hotter than the room
2. The solar screen reduces the curtain temperature 14 degrees, an 82% reduction
3. This is not the only window in the room. Add them all up and you have even more solar collectors
4. A solar screen on the outside is far more effective than even a bright white shade on the inside

Awnings are another alternative, actually anything that substantially shades a window on the outside will make the most difference.

The key is to shade your window from the outside.

Here’s a recent example of another approach I saw recently.  

I know someone who has a sliding glass door in their master bedroom that faces west. The room gets really hot in the afternoon, even with the air conditioning on. The problem went away after they put a patio umbrella up on the deck outside the slider.

Now they’re not only more comfortable, but they’re saving on their air conditioning bill too!

The post To Screen or Not to Screen? A case study on home solar screens appeared first on Sustainable Energy Group.

Sustainable living in the age of COVID-19 and power outages.

I don’t know about you, but my family has been pretty stressed out lately. We have two physicians in the family on the frontlines of this pandemic, each with older parents who are vulnerable to the virus and two small children as well.

This is a time where every little comfort makes a big difference and, in our case, sustainable living practices have been huge.

It all comes down to security. Why might surprise you, so I’ll share the backstory.

Energy security

The early March snowstorm dropped 30” of snow over four days on my little foothill community. Not much by high country standards, but challenging for us here at 3400 feet elevation. Homes went dark, refrigerators stopped working, well pumps stopped working, furnaces stopped working, everything stopped working! A few homes had generators going 24/7, but most people huddled under blankets in candlelight, anxiously checking their cell phones for word on when the power would come back on and waiting for snowplows to come to the rescue.

I woke up to a text alert from PG&E a little after midnight on the 15^th telling me our power was out due to fallen trees. It was comforting to say the least, having a solar system with batteries charged up and ready go when the text came through. Another text later that day assured me that crews were on the way and power would be restored shortly. I received that same text every day for 6 days.

When the sun was out, we relied on our solar to power us during the day and charge the batteries for electricity overnight. During cloudy periods we only had to run our generator for a few hours to charge the batteries, not constantly like our neighbors.

Comparatively, during last summer’s outages, the sun alone powered us. The sun charged us up during the day and we coasted through the night on batteries.

Heating and cooling security

Along with electricity, light and appliances, we had heat unlike other homes in our community with gas furnaces and no backup, which just went cold. Those same homes were uncomfortably hot during last summer’s outages.

Financial security

COVID-19 is having serious economic impacts. So it matters that our solar system covers nearly 100% of our annual electricity. We only pay a $10 fee to PG&E each month. Many folk’s immediate reaction is “sounds great for you, but I can’t afford solar.” Yet, in most cases, solar is cheaper than PG&E the very day it’s operational. How’s that possible? Because the fixed monthly solar payments are less than ever-increasing PG&E bills.

Water security

Solar plus battery backup provides people well water when power goes out, and there are generous incentives for people with wells to install battery storage due to being in a high fire risk area.

Food security

We do our best to provide for ourselves what we can. Right now, we can harvest salad greens and carrots from a small raised bed. “Sheltering in place” and “social distancing” is giving us a head start on our garden this year. Additionally, we make our own compost from food scraps and organic matter from our yard, creating a closed-loop between our garden and kitchen.

The bottom line

It has been said many times before that our basic needs are food, water and shelter. And let’s face it, all those rely on energy and money. COVID-19 is stressful enough, so take note.

This is my first-hand account and a takeaway for you: sustainable living goes along a long way towards making my family’s life more comfortable and secure!

The post Security and Comfort amidst COVID-19 appeared first on Sustainable Energy Group.

In 2018, commercial buildings accounted for almost 20% of all energy used in the U.S. and accounted for approximately 17% of all U.S. CO2 emissions. They consumed 18.61 quadrillion Btu’s of primary energy, a 76% increase from 1980. To help address these issues, the South Yuba Club has made major strides to save energy and reduce their environmental impact.

The solar photovoltaic system completed in February 2020 is only the most recent and most visible upgrade the Club has made to their facility. Unbeknownst to most, the Club also implemented an extensive list of measures to not only improve energy efficiency, but health and safety too.

In this case, South Yuba Club created a healthier environment for people to get healthy in!

Having worked in the energy field for the past forty years, I applaud South Yuba Club for the monumental changes they’ve made to their facility. It is my hope that other local business and home owners will follow their example and join in on contributing to a more sustainable and resilient future, while saving money.

South Yuba Club:

1. Replaced 100% of the old and outdated fluorescent lighting with the latest LED technology. LED lighting has a variety of benefits over fluorescent. For example, they can last 50,000 to 100,000 hours or more while fluorescent lamps last only 10,000 hours. LED’s are more energy efficient because they release less infrared radiation and they emit light directionally (180 degrees vs. 360 degrees for fluorescent). LED’s also produce higher quality light, closer to natural daylight, which benefits health and well-being. Lastly, because LED’s don’t contain mercury, they have less environmental impact than fluorescent lighting.
2. Replaced all 17 outdated, old and less than 80% efficient heating units with 96% efficient units, reducing gas use by more than 17%.
3. Installed all new air conditioning units and more efficient ducting. The more efficient air conditioning units reduced electricity use, and the ducting improvements reduced both heating and cooling energy use. Newer ducts have about three times as much insulation and, installing new ducts presents the opportunity to seal air leaks at duct connections, adding to energy savings.
4. Installed large ceiling fans to improve air circulation. By mixing the air from floor to ceiling there’s less stratification of air which in turn reduces energy use.
5. Replaced the entire roof to improve building integrity and eliminate water intrusion. Water intrusion can not only damage the roof structure, it can also lead to mold growth which can contribute to unhealthy indoor air.
6. Installed dropped ceilings where possible to reduce the volume of space needing heating and cooling.
7. Installed extra insulation to reduce heat loss in overall building. Adding insulation in attic spaces is one of the most cost-effective ways to reduce energy waste, because it provides both heating and cooling savings all-year-round at a relatively low price.
8. Installed an automatic door, reducing the amount of outside air entering the building as members enter and exit the building, in turn increasing energy savings from heating and cooling.
9. Installed non-toxic floorings to improve indoor air quality. Toxic chemicals in flooring can be a significant source of indoor air pollution.
10. Installed a ‘salt water’ pool water treatment system, reducing the amount of chlorine and chemicals needed to treat water.
11. Installed a new ‘equipment room’ to house and protect all pool equipment, allowing for more frequent servicing. This helps assure the equipment is working as efficiently as possible.
12. Installed new ‘backflow’ prevention devices in facility plumbing. These devices help to safeguard against the risk of contaminated water entering the fresh water supply to the building, ensuring the water supply into the building is safe and healthy.
13. Installed a ‘low flow’ irrigation system to reduce water use. Water efficiency is important because our community is subject to drought. Reducing water usage helps make our community more resilient and able to meet everyone’s needs.

One remaining opportunity for energy savings is a pool cover, which Club Management is considering.

The post South Yuba Club’s Sustainability Strategy appeared first on Sustainable Energy Group.

Of course you are. We all are. That’s not really what this is about though. It’s about the opportunity to pay less.

Whether you have solar, are planning to go solar, or never plan to go solar, it may be possible to reduce your electricity cost simply by changing your PG&E rate plan. Invest a few minutes of your time to ensure you’re not losing out on possible savings.

Even if you’re not currently on a Time-of-Use plan, know that PG&E will be transitioning all customers to a TOU plan soon.

• All Customers with TOU-A (Time of Use – A) will be transferred to TOU-C in the Summer of 2020. The only way to avoid that is to sign up for TOU-B before May 1st, 2020.
• All customers on the E-1 rate schedule, will be switched to TOU (Time of Use). So, if you’re thinking of getting solar, consider locking in TOU-B rates by May 1st, 2020.

If you are working with us, getting solar or backup power, we can help you understand what is best for you with a site visit or phone call.

This seems complicated, but it will become clearer when you check and review your current PG&E rate plan. Below are instructions on how to navigate your account as well as compare and change rate plans. If you don’t have an online account yet, set one up; the information you’re missing out on could cost you more than you might think! (here is the link to login and on the bottom left, register for a free online PG&E account)

Begin by looking at your “rate schedule” on page 3 of your bill (see red arrow).

Next, explore your options by clicking “compare rate plans” (see red arrow). Once you’re on the comparison page, scroll down to find your rate plan options.

Before you change your plan, there are a few additional considerations. Many plans begin with “E-TOU,” which is an abbreviation for “Electricity-Time Of Use”. With time of use, the price of electricity is based on the time you’re using or generating power (with solar). Each rate plan specifies high-priced “peak” times and lower-priced “off-peak” times.

If you’re an existing solar customer on “E-TOU-A” PG&E is planning to transition you to E-TOU-C on July 1st; or September 30^th, depending on what PG&E documents you’re looking at (they’re not always crystal clear about things). When you’re comparing rate plans, E-TOU-C doesn’t currently show up as that, instead it will say “Time-of-Use (Peak Pricing 4-9 pm Every Day)”. In contrast the E-TOU-B is similar but is called out as such and says “Peak Pricing 4-9 Weekdays”. Note the difference between “Every Day” and “Weekdays”. There’s also a difference in the price you pay during winter and summer as well as peak and off-peak periods. It sounds confusing, I know, but fortunately the comparison page will show you the cost difference between “B” and “C”.

If you’re not a solar customer, but are considering going solar, you should consider E-TOU-B before it closes to new customers on May 1^st, 2020. Once you’re on it, you’ll be able to keep it for at least five years. In PG&E-speak, you’ll be “grandfathered in”.

This is important because E-TOU-B may be more favorable than E-TOU-C once you’ve gone solar. The only way to really know is to have a solar professional use a cost-benefit analysis tool to see how much power you’ve used during different times of day and month in the past, then evaluate solar for you.

Believe it or not, PG&E knows how much electricity you’ve used every fifteen minutes going back years and years! This information, called “interval data”, can be downloaded from your PG&E account. Beware though, it’s a huge amount of data! Fortunately, we can download that huge data file into our advanced analysis tool and it crunches the numbers for us very simply.

Lastly, even if your home isn’t solar and never will be, we encourage you to compare your options, it’s pretty easy and doesn’t take much time.

The post Are you paying PG&E more than you should? appeared first on Sustainable Energy Group.

The Big News from 2019 -what it means for you in 2020 and beyond.

The power shutoffs and our focus on community sustainability and resiliency were a major part of our efforts in 2019 and will continue into 2020.

The Public Safety Power Shut Off (PSPS) events that began in October overwhelmed our community as well as our business. We began a series of articles on backup power in our June newsletter, which we also posted on our website blog, with the intent of helping people prepare in advance.

While interest in backup power began when PG&E first announced the PSPS’s would be coming down the pike, most people weren’t prepared when they arrived. As soon as they hit we were absolutely inundated with people reaching out for immediate solutions. We and others in the business of backup power couldn’t possibly serve the demand immediately, however we’ve since hired additional installers and earlier this year an additional electrician to help with the increase in demand.

We’re still working hard to catch up on the flood of requests for battery backup options and generators and don’t see demand slowing down in 2020. We’ve continued to invest a lot of time looking into a multitude of battery options as well as options for adding batteries to existing solar systems in order to assure we’ve got the latest and greatest solutions.

Our focus on community sustainability and resiliency has taken many different forms in 2019. Each month our newsletter and blog posts feature stories we and other local experts have contributed on a variety of topics. The value-added, no-cost Energy Efficiency Assessment service we offer to all of our solar customers has contributed to the implementation of a wide range of cost-saving efficiency and conservation measures. We’ve also been active with the Grass Valley Energy Action Plan, including a workshop on energy efficiency last May.

In addition to the impacts of the PSPS we anticipate a surge to go solar this year given changes to the solar tax credit (ITC). The ITC is lowering from 30% to 26% in 2020, and then dropping to 22% for 2021 before going away all together. The exception will be the ITC for commercial systems, for which the credit will remain at 10% from 2022 onward. The decline of the tax credit will be a big driver for the industry but, unbeknownst to most, are considerable changes in the rules that will apply to new solar customers but, thankfully, not to those with solar installed in 2020 or prior years. Grandfathering protections will allow pre-2021 solar customers to maintain full retail credit for excess energy sent back to the grid for 20 years.

The post Ray’s Thoughts on 2019 appeared first on Sustainable Energy Group.

Energy Expert & Founder of Sustainable Energy Group in Grass Valley, CA, Ray Darby gives helpful information about the PG&E Power Shutoffs with Martin Webb on his radio show the Energy Report on 89.5 KVMR, Nevada City.

+ Learn about backup power solutions in the reality of continuing PG&E Power Outages (PSPS) in California and other high fire risk areas across the globe.

Sustainable Energy Group (SEG) is a contractor based in Grass Valley, California for over 15 years where they install residential and commercial solar, generators and battery backups and more.

Read all of the articles on backup power here: www.sustainableenergygroup.com/category/power-backups-batteries/

See all of Ray Darby’s articles here: www.sustainableenergygroup.com/author/raydarby/

The post Expert Corner: Talk on Power Shutdowns by PG&E (PSPS) with SEG Founder Ray Darby on KVMR – 89.5. appeared first on Sustainable Energy Group.

Crucial Generator Selection Information

Did you rush out and buy a generator?

Are you planning on buying a generator?

In either case you’ll want to read this article and the four that preceded it. The goal of these articles is to help people better understand their best options and stay safe. If you haven’t already, or for a refresher, I recommend reading the previous articles Parts 1 through 4 of this series, all available from this link – http://sustainableenergygroup.com/community/power-outages/

So far we have –

Part 1 – What are your options?

Part 2 – Practical Considerations for Power Outages

Part 3 – Solar with battery backup vs generator, advantages and disadvantages

Part 4 – Adding battery storage to an existing solar system

I’m not going to duplicate the information covered in Parts 1 and 2, but both have criteria relevant to generator selection. If you’re considering or already have solar, Parts 3 and 4 are relevant.

A “do it yourself” guide to picking the right generator is beyond the scope of this article. Those of us with extensive training and experience in power generation know the many important considerations and unusual circumstances that can arise. Certain considerations, especially those with motors, have power requirements that can be really tough to identify accurately, and accuracy is important for reasons I’ll cover below. There are online resources but none are a substitute for an experienced, licensed electrician that has assessed a building’s electrical system when it comes to proper sizing and installation.

Portable generators may be the only affordable option for many people. In general, running extension cords into your home isn’t something we recommend for many reasons, one of which is safety, as too many things can go wrong. Refer to our companion article “Portable Generator Tips”.

If you have a small budget and all you can afford is a portable generator we recommend having a small “critical load” panel and transfer switch installed (see Part 2 of our outage series). For safety and other reasons, hire a licensed electrician with a strong generator background. Have it sized properly (Part 2 delves into this). Be sure your electrician includes a permit.

Why is it important to get a permit? There are many, I’ll touch on a few with some recent examples. We had to turn away a potential solar customer because a licensed “generator company” didn’t get a permit and violated several code requirements. We had to tell them we couldn’t install a solar system until the issues with the generator were resolved and permitted. The generator was installed in an illegal location and, because solar permit sign-offs are required for interconnecting to the grid, the County would red-tag the generator during our solar inspection. They would then be required to create and submit permit documents, move the generator, and assure it was all code-compliant. This installation not only encroached into the setback to their property line, it was right under an operable window, right next to an HVAC condensing unit (within exhaust clearance requirements). We’ve seen other generator companies not properly size the propane or natural gas piping to the generator, which can starve other gas appliances causing safety issues (gas pipe sizing is required for a permit). If there’s a fire and your insurance company discovers there were electrical and/or gas modifications done without a permit, you may have issues with your claim. If you decide to sell your home you need to disclose things like unpermitted work which could make it less salable. Yes, a permit adds cost, but consider it insurance against issues like these.

For those considering one of those little battery-powered, solar optional “generators”, please be aware of the limitations before you invest. For more on this –

https://www.solarreviews.com/blog/what-are-the-pros-and-cons-of-a-solar-generator-are-they-a-bit-of-a-gimmick

For those looking to get solar here’s some food for thought. Is the cost of a system with battery backup worth it? The correct answer is “it depends” but it might make more sense than other options in some cases. One of the aforementioned “generators” that come with solar panels can cost as much as adding battery backup after accounting for the solar tax credit.

If sized to accommodate your nightly usage and the sun’s coming out every day during an outage lasting multiple days as it did recently, adding batteries to a new solar system you’re considering or an existing system it may be cheaper than installing a generator, especially so if you’re just backing up small critical loads and not an entire home. A generator doesn’t qualify for the tax credit and, after accounting for the cost of your generator, maintenance costs, and fuel costs, adding battery backup to a new solar system or an existing system may be less costly. Opting for a battery backup inverter and batteries may be less costly as the expenditures would qualify for the tax credit. This is covered in an IRS ruling available here – https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-wd/201809003.pdf

Here are some important points I have to make. First, my empathy meter as well as SEG’s capability to respond to everyone’s PSPS-related needs has been “pegged” (and then some) ever since they began earlier this month. The fear, frustration, anger and desperation is completely overwhelming for everyone involved. We’re so busy just answering phone calls, emails, texts, etc., it’s increasingly challenging to meet previous commitments and get anything else done.

PG&E announced months ago this would be coming, which is why I began writing these monthly articles and publishing them on our blog back in June. What concerns me today is the number of people that knew this was coming but waited until the 36-48 notice or, worse, until the outage was upon them, to prepare. In the last-minute rush, many bad decisions have been made. Money has been mis-spent and an overwhelming amount of well-intentioned but really bad advice has appeared on social media.

I understand people are overwhelmed and desperate for quick solutions but anticipate there will be a lot of little portable “battery backup units” and generators, found insufficient to meet people’s needs, for sale at discount prices after this. I encourage people to share these articles or at least the information you’ve gleaned from them. Between now and the next PSPS event – hopefully not until next fall – give Sustainable Energy Group or another local, reputable solar or generator company the time to assure things are done right!

Some extra thoughts…
1. Help neighbors charge their devices in case they need to reach out in an emergency.
2. If you have water, do your neighbors need any?

Links to critical information:

• Sign up for Code Red alerts: https://www.mynevadacounty.com/1293/CodeRED-Emergency-Alerts
• For more info on how to prepare for PSPS: www.pge.com/psps
• For the latest PSPS updates: www.pge.com/pspsupdates
• Update your contact info for alerts at: www.pge.com/mywildfirealerts
• PG&E weather webpage: www.pge.com/weather
• PG&E Press Releases: https://www.pgecurrents.com/
• Current Press Release: https://www.pgecurrents.com/…/pg-may-need-to-proactively-t…/

COMMUNITY RESOURCE CENTER
If PG&E determines they will turn power off, they will activate a Community Resource Center to provide restrooms, bottled water, electronic device charging and air-conditioned seating which will be open from 8:00AM – 8:00PM beginning on Thursday, October 24, 2019.

The centers in Nevada County are located at:

• Nevada City Elks Lodge: 518 CA-49, Nevada City, CA
• Sierra College: 250 Sierra College Dr, Grass Valley, CA
• Former Penn Valley Community Church: 11739 Spenceville Road, Penn Valley, CA
• Gold Country Fairgrounds: 209 Fairgate Rd, Auburn, CA

The post Power Outages Part 5 Crucial Generator Selection Information appeared first on Sustainable Energy Group.

Adding Battery Storage To An Existing Solar System

As covered in Parts 1 through 3 of this series, there are all kinds of options to serve your backup power needs in the event of a power outage. To the uninitiated, adding battery storage to an existing solar system might seem straightforward – just buy some batteries and plug them in. However, to those of us with experience in this area it’s not at all straightforward in most cases. The answer depends on a whole host of questions over and above those covered in Parts 1-3 of this series, read them here ->

First off your existing solar panels don’t need to be replaced. In most cases your solar grid-tie inverter (GTI), the equipment that converts the DC power from your panels into AC power doesn’t know how to deal with batteries.

There are two basic options – replace your inverter with one that knows how to play nice with batteries or add an extra battery-based inverter (BBI) that does.

By “play nice” we need to keep in mind your solar system will sometimes be capable of making more power than you or your batteries need. If that happens when you’ve lost utility power the solar panels need to turn off. Overcharging batteries can be an explosive experience so, to avoid that, the inverter needs to know to turn them off. If you haven’t lost utility power and your panels are making more power than you’re using, the excess is sent back to the utility for a credit.

The following will be as non-technical as possible while still giving some insight into the two main options, referred to as “DC Coupling” and “AC Coupling”. There are a whole host of compatibility and system design issues beyond the scope of this article that are best left to your solar company.

With DC Coupling, your existing Grid Tie Inverter (GTI) is replaced by a Battery Based Inverter (BBI.) These inverters are used in off-grid as well as grid-tied systems when battery backup is desired. The battery can be charged by your solar energy system, your utility or a generator depending on which is available.

The DC power from your solar panels passes through a “charge controller” on its way to your battery. As the name implies, its role is to control the charging of your batteries. Proper battery charging is important for extending the life of the battery and it’ll stop charging the battery when it’s full as well, preventing them from being overcharged. From the charge controller, the DC power goes to the BBI where it’s converted into AC power for your use in your home or business whether the utility is available or not.

DC Coupling loses less of the energy produced by your panels because the conversion from DC to AC power only happens once.

It also makes sense for people with older “string inverters” that are close to the end of their useful life of 10 to 15 years. A battery-based inverter also allows for a wider range of battery sizes.

If you have a newer system that uses micro-inverters (like Enphase) or a power optimizer-based inverter (like SolarEdge), AC Coupling may make more sense. This is especially true if you have any significant shade moving over your panels, which was probably one of the reasons you went with one of these inverters in the first place.

With AC Coupling you can use your existing inverter and simply add a BBI, as they know how to handle a battery.

The DC power produced by your panels goes to your existing GTI and is converted to AC power as usual. From there, the inverter sends it to your BBI.

During a power outage the BBI stays safely disconnected from the utility to protect repairmen, just as a regular GTI is required to do. The battery inverter converts battery power to AC power for your use.

AC Coupling has some advantages and disadvantages. It can work with a variety of existing inverters and may be the easiest way to retrofit your existing system. In terms of disadvantages, it can be slightly less efficient because power from the GTI is AC, but batteries store DC power. For the battery to charge and discharge, the AC power from your GTI  must be converted to DC for the battery, then back to AC for your use.  This extra step causes more energy to be lost compared to DC Coupling.

There can be some limitations as to how much of your existing system you can use this way too if it’s bigger than the battery inverter and the battery. They typically cost more up front in equipment and labor too.

Retrofitting your existing system can be challenging, but an increasing array of options are coming out from several companies aiming to make the process simpler and more “plug and play”.

In addition to having battery backup for power outages, these systems can also help reduce the price you pay for power. With solar, the price you pay for the power you use, or the credit you earn for the excess power you make, depends on the time of day. When electricity demand is higher in the afternoon and early evening you pay a higher rate than what you do at other times.  If you have a battery on your solar system you can use that power when the rates are high and save money. While that alone doesn’t typically justify adding batteries, it can be an added bonus

While batteries are quickly coming down in price, there are cheaper backup options for short term outages, but it depends on how much you need to back up and for how long. For long term outages generators may be undesirable due to fuel consumption and noise. In such cases a solar system with battery storage, possibly a generator option as well for occasional recharging if solar isn’t enough, can provide a complete solution.

This four-part series has been designed to help you understand your backup options in our Area of Nevada, Placer, El Dorado Counties as well as the surrounding area of Northern California.

I recommend you read the previous three articles on battery storage, generators, power outages with PG & E   prior to making any decisions on how to proceed. In the meantime, please check out these links for important information about how to be prepared in the event of a utility outage in California and Nationwide:

Public Safety Power Shutoff tips – https://prepareforpowerdown.com/

The Safety Action Center contains helpful information about wildfire risks and what you can do before, during and after an emergency to keep your family safe.

https://www.safetyactioncenter.pge.com

SEG has a team of electricians who can install generators and automatic and manual transfer switches and have been doing so for over 15 years. Call us for a consultation on how to build this into your home or business.  We hope this series of articles on backup power during PG&E power outages help you decide what works best for you in your situation. Give us a call today and find out how we can help with energy backups during power outages for Nevada County, Grass Valley, Nevada City, Penn Valley, North San Juan, Auburn and surrounding Placer and El Dorado Counties.

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