Author Archives: Judith Kimbers

Why Don’t Germans Tweet?

by Judith Kimbers Posted on December 23, 2013

Mother Jones

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Why are Germans so resistant to using Twitter? My first guess would be that they’re just smarter than the rest of us and have better things to do, but I suppose that’s not it. The Economist proposes a couple of other possibilities:

Some have suggested the German language makes tweeting tricky. Germans like to make a point clear, experts say, though this seems often to call for protracted, convoluted sentences with multiple subordinate clauses that are inimical to microblogging.

….A more likely reason is Germans’ preoccupation with privacy. Many recall the Stasi, communist East Germany’s prying secret police which had at one point recruited or coerced 173,000 people to be its informants. This explains Germans’—and the Merkel government’s—outcry over allegations of America’s widespread electronic snooping.

Hmmm. The former West Germany accounts for about 80 percent of Germany’s population, and there’s no reason that any of them would have any deep-seated fears of Stasi surveillance. So I think the Stasi is in the clear on this one. That leaves only a more general distaste for public yammering. Does that sound right? Are Germans really more tightlipped than other folks? I wouldn’t have guessed that, but maybe.

On the other hand, the structure of the language itself really does seem like it might be a problem. Learning to write in 140-character chunks is tricky enough in English. Still, I’d normally figure that the obvious response to this would be a more vibrant culture of abbreviation. But maybe Germans don’t like abbreviations either. It’s a mystery.

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Why Don’t Germans Tweet?

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Eric Schlosser: If We Don’t Slash Our Nukes, "a Major City is Going to be Destroyed."

by Judith Kimbers Posted on September 15, 2013

Mother Jones

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The term “wake-up call” is a tired cliché, but it is appropriate in the case of Command and Control, the frightening new exposé of America’s nuclear weapons mishaps by Fast Food Nation author Eric Schlosser. (Click here to read an excerpt and my detailed review.) In short, Schlosser delivers a book full of revelations that left me agape. While we still worry in the abstract about Iran and North Korea and Pakistan, it’s easy to forget that we still have thousands of our own ungodly devices on hair-trigger alert at this very moment. And even if we never drop or launch another nuke on purpose, these weapons are, in Schlosser’s words, “the most dangerous machines ever invented. And like every machine, sometimes they go wrong.”

That’s what the book is about. Through hard-fought documents and deep digging and extensive interviews, Schlosser reveals how close we’ve come, on numerous occasions, to a domestic nuclear detonation or an accidental war in which there are only losers. Command and Control will leave many readers with a deep unease about America’s ability to handle our nukes safely. Schlosser’s hope is that this unease will beget a long-neglected debate about “why we have them and when we use them and how many we need.” But his book is no screed. Schlosser delivers an engrossing page-turner. Would that it were fiction.

Mother Jones: The safety of America’s nuclear arsenal is far cry from fast food. What got you interested in this topic?

Eric Schlosser: I spent some time with the Air Force before Fast Food Nation came out. I was interested in the future of warfare in space: space weapons, particle-beam weapons, lasers, directed-energy devices. A lot of the people who were involved in it had started their careers as missile-crew officers. As I spent time with them, I became more interested in their stories from the Cold War about nuclear weapons than I did in the future of warfare in space.

MJ: How long did it take to research the book?

ES: A lot longer than I thought it would. I originally was going to write a relatively short book about this accident in Damascus, Arkansas, which was an extraordinary story. But the deeper I got, the more I realized that the subject of nuclear weapons accidents hadn’t really been written about, and that the threat was much greater than I thought it was. So what started out as a two-year project turned into six—and an extraordinary amount of digging around in strange places.

Eric Schlosser Photo: Kodiak Greenwood

MJ: My general takeaway is that, given our history of near misses, it’s essentially dumb luck that we haven’t had an accidental nuclear detonation on American soil, or an accidental launch.

ES: If we don’t greatly reduce the number of nuclear weapons in the world, or completely eliminate them, a major city is going to be destroyed by a nuclear weapon. It’s remarkable—it’s incredible!—that a major city hasn’t been destroyed since Nagasaki. We can confront this problem or we can accept that hundreds of thousands or more will be killed. And I don’t think that’s inevitable. The book was really written with a notion of trying to prevent that.

MJ: But is you suppose it’s inevitable if we maintain our current course?

ES: My background, academically, is history. I hate the word “inevitable” because I feel like things don’t have to be the way they are. But we really need to change our policies. I think Obama has done a terrific job of trying to raise awareness about nuclear weapons. But we really need to sit down with Russia, China, England, France, India, Pakistan, and think about how to greatly reduce, if not eliminate, these weapons. And that may sound totally absurd and unrealistic, but when I was in my 20s, if someone had said that the Soviet Union would vanish without a nuclear war and the Berlin Wall would come down and all this would happen without tens of thousands, or millions, of deaths, people would have thought that was absurd.

MJ: What do you think might befall our society were an accidental detonation to occur? I mean, suppose that H-bomb had exploded in North Carolina?

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Eric Schlosser: If We Don’t Slash Our Nukes, "a Major City is Going to be Destroyed."

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On Rooftops, a Rival for Utilities

by Judith Kimbers Posted on July 26, 2013

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How to Raise the Perfect Dog – Cesar Millan & Melissa Jo Peltier

From the bestselling author and star of National Geographic Channel’s Dog Whisperer , the only resource you’ll need for raising a happy, healthy dog. For the millions of people every year who consider bringing a puppy into their lives–as well as those who have already brought a dog home–Cesar Millan, the preeminent dog behavior expert, says, “Yes, […]

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Warhammer 40,000: The Rules – Games Workshop

There is no time for peace. No respite. No forgiveness. There is only WAR. In the nightmare future of the 41st Millennium, Mankind teeters upon the brink of destruction. The galaxy-spanning Imperium of Man is beset on all sides by ravening aliens and threatened from within by Warp-spawned entities and heretical plots. Only the strength of the immortal […]

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Farsight Enclaves – A Codex: Tau Empire Supplement – Games Workshop

Commander Farsight was once hailed by every Tau caste as a genius warrior-leader without compare. As his career blazed a bloody path across the Damocles Gulf and back again, O’Shovah split away from the Tau Empire, doggedly pursuing the Orks that had killed so many of his Fire caste comrades. It was the first overt sign of a rebellion that was to change the […]

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Farsight Enclaves – A Codex: Tau Empire Supplement (eBook Edition) – Games Workshop

Farsight Enclaves Commander Farsight was once hailed by every Tau caste as a genius warrior-leader without compare. As his career blazed a bloody path across the Damocles Gulf and back again, O’Shovah split away from the Tau Empire, doggedly pursuing the Orks that had killed so many of his Fire caste comrades. It was the first overt sign of a rebellion that […]

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Trident K9 Warriors – Michael Ritland & Gary Brozek

As Seen on “60 Minutes”! As a Navy SEAL during a combat deployment in Iraq, Mike Ritland saw a military working dog in action and instantly knew he’d found his true calling. Ritland started his own company training and supplying dogs for the SEAL teams, U.S. Government, and Department of Defense. He knew that fewer than 1 percent of […]

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Inside of a Dog – Alexandra Horowitz

The bestselling book that asks what dogs know and how they think, now in paperback. The answers will surprise and delight you as Alexandra Horowitz, a cognitive scientist, explains how dogs perceive their daily worlds, each other, and that other quirky animal, the human. Horowitz introduces the reader to dogs’ perceptual and cognitive abilities and then draw […]

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Dogtripping – David Rosenfelt

David Rosenfelt’s Dogtripping is moving and funny account of a cross-country move from California to Maine, and the beginnings of a dog rescue foundation When mystery writer David Rosenfelt and his family moved from Southern California to Maine, he thought he had prepared for everything. They had mapped the route, brought three […]

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Paracord Fusion Ties – Volume 1 – J.D. Lenzen

J.D. Lenzen is the creator of the highly acclaimed YouTube channel “Tying It All Together”, and the producer of over 200 instructional videos. He’s been formally recognized by the International Guild of Knot Tyers (IGKT) for his contributions to knotting, and is the originator of fusion knotting-innovative knots created through the merging of […]

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The Art of Raising a Puppy (Revised Edition) – Monks of New Skete

For more than thirty years the Monks of New Skete have been among America’s most trusted authorities on dog training, canine behavior, and the animal/human bond. In their two now-classic bestsellers, How to be Your Dog’s Best Friend and The Art of Raising a Puppy, the Monks draw on their experience as long-time breeders of German shepherds and as t […]

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Codex: Eldar – Games Workshop

Codex: Eldar is your comprehensive guide to wielding the deadly warhosts of the Craftworld Eldar upon the battlefields of the 41 st Millennium. This volume details the craftworlds of the Eldar, and the different types of army they field. The Eldar embody excellence in the arts of war, from their psychic might to their deadly aircraft, and their ranks co […]

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On Rooftops, a Rival for Utilities

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The Beginning of the End of LGBT Workplace Discrimination?

by Judith Kimbers Posted on July 10, 2013

Mother Jones

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In the shadow of the marriage equality debate, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), which would protect LGBT workers from workplace discrimination, has been languishing in legislative obscurity for almost 20 years. But on Tuesday morning, the ENDA passed the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee by a 15-7 vote, marking its furthest advancement in the Senate in 17 years and potentially correcting a glaring oversight in LGBT rights.

“The pure fact is that I can show up in a dress in more than half of the states in America, and just for that one reason I can be fired on the spot,” said Kristin Beck, the former Navy Seal who has recently become a leading transgender spokesperson, in a press call with the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) on Tuesday. “I fought for life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness and all that—land of the free. And I am not free. There’s massive prejudice, still, against these groups of people in America.”

Currently, LGBT workers lack comprehensive workplace protection in 32 states. According to the most recent data, 90 percent of transgender people reported some form of harassment or discrimination, 47 percent had been skipped for promotions, fired, or not hired at all, and trans people are unemployed at a rate roughly twice the national average. Fourteen percent of trans people reported earning less than $10,000 per year, compared to just four percent of the general population.

So why have anti-discrimination laws taken a backseat to marriage equality in the fight for LGBT rights? “We just have to acknowledge that there is a class bias in every social movement, and the LGBT movement is funded by people for whom marriage equality is a much higher personal priority for them.” said Mara Keisling, NCTE’s executive director. “It has seemed easier to say, ‘Oh look at these two people in love,’ than it is to say, ‘Don’t fire them.'”

All of the Senate committee’s 12 democrats voted for the bill, and were joined by Republicans Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), who is a co-sponsor, Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska). Advocates for ENDA claim to have secured 53 votes in the Senate for when the bill does make it to the floor, and are working to secure the seven more it would need to pass a filibuster. According to Keisling, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a co-sponsor of the bill, has agreed to schedule the bill for a floor debate after the August recess.

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The Beginning of the End of LGBT Workplace Discrimination?

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How suburban sprawl makes wildfires more deadly

by Judith Kimbers Posted on July 2, 2013

How suburban sprawl makes wildfires more deadly

By Claire Thompson

Jeff Ruane

Mailboxes destroyed in the 2010 Fourmile Canyon fire outside Boulder, Colo.

Last year’s wildfire season was one of the worst on record, and whether or not this year’s tops it (a likely outcome), it’s already off to a horrifically tragic start: 19 elite firefighters perished in a blaze outside Prescott, Ariz., on Sunday — the most to die fighting a single wildfire in 80 years. Even before the deadly Yarnell Hill blaze began, the usual suspects were asking: What does climate change have to do with wildfires? James West of Climate Desk addressed this maddening question a couple of weeks ago and The New York Times addresses it today (and David Roberts addressed it last year).

But there’s another human-caused problem making wildfires worse: the exurbs. Or, to use the technical term, the “wildland-urban interface” or WUI, where development meets and mingles with fire-prone wildlands. The New York Times describes such areas, which include Yarnell, Ariz.:

Those expanding communities, with rural views but more urban economies, have been the focus of concern among federal and state officials for a decade or more. While such regions are more plentiful in the East, it is in the areas west of the 100th longitude, reaching from West Texas and the Dakotas to the Pacific Ocean, where the natural aridity, increasingly exacerbated by climate change, makes fires a common threat.

In the West in the 1990s, more than 2.2 million housing units were added in these fire-prone areas, according to testimony by Roger B. Hammer [PDF], a demographer at Oregon State University and a leading authority on the issue. Speaking to a House subcommittee in 2008, he called this a “wicked problem,” and predicted an additional 12.3 million homes would be built in such areas in Western states — more than double the current numbers.

According to a U.S. Forest Service Study [PDF], one-third of all U.S. housing units now sit in the WUI, and the total area classified as WUI increased by 18 percent between 1990 and 2000. These neighborhoods, bucolic in theory with their combination of suburban amenities and easy access to wilderness, have become ubiquitous in the West, the study reports:

In the Rocky Mountains and the Southwest, virtually every urban area has a large ring of WUI, as a result of persistent population growth in the region that has generated medium and low-density housing in low-elevation forested areas.

Jeff Ruane

Ruins of a house burned in the Fourmile Canyon fire.

Think of the subdivisions wiped out by Colorado’s Waldo Canyon fire last year, or of the canyon outside Santa Barbara, Calif., where Grist writer Susie Cagle’s family home once burned to the ground. Wildfires in and of themselves are a natural and essential part of forest ecology, but more people living close to flammable wilderness means more people carelessly tossing smoldering cigarette butts or doing a shoddy job of putting out their campfires. From 2001 to 2011, an estimated 85 percent of wildfires in the U.S. were caused by people. And wooden houses, not to mention the aesthetically pleasing but non-native landscaping that often surrounds them, provide extra fuel for fires once they do start.

Fires that threaten to destroy homes end up costing much more to fight than those far from populated areas; according to the Forest Service study, there’s a “positive correlation between firefighting expenditures and the presence of housing and private lands.” Plus, as Outside Online points out, there’s extra pressure to stop a fire that puts property and human lives at risk, as so many more wildfires do these days:

In wildland firefighting, as with all firefighting, there’s nothing more important than protecting homes from destruction, but in the past decade, more than 20 million people have moved into the lands that will eventually be threatened by wildfire. Was … the field general in charge of making calls on the ground [while battling the Yarnell fire] more willing to expose his crew to risk because houses were at stake?

slworking2

A house destroyed by San Diego’s 2007 Witch Creek fire.

Ironically, the poor land-use planning that puts spread-out neighborhoods of sprawling homes right up next to fire-prone forests, exacerbating the potential for fire damage, is the same poor land-use planning that traps Americans in the kind of energy-intensive lifestyle that exacerbates climate change. For the most part, these WUI communities tend to represent the opposite of the kind of sustainable design we must strive for to reduce carbon emissions. They’re not dense or walkable or served well by public transit; they’re overwhelmingly residential, meaning you have to get in your car and drive just to get a roll of toilet paper or a quart of milk. And think of the energy cost of air-conditioning a five-bedroom house. Simply put, exurban development patterns worsen climate change, and they also make residents more vulnerable to one of climate change’s myriad indirect effects.

All this is not to demonize those who live in such places, because settling in the WUI has obvious appeal. If I lived in North Bend, Wash., for instance, I’d be steps from some of the region’s best hikes, and I might even be able to afford my own one-bedroom apartment. The Forest Service report outlines steps these communities can take to adapt and prepare for an increased threat of wildfires — educating residents about fire risk, removing flammable vegetation, changing building materials, planning new development to include better evacuation routes, etc.

But the question remains: Should we be building in such areas at all anymore (especially if living there necessitates a carbon-intensive lifestyle)? The same could be asked about building in flood zones or on steep seaside cliffs. Maybe, instead of pushing development ever further into the wilderness, we’d be better off inviting it back into the city.

Claire Thompson is an editorial assistant at Grist.

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How The National Guard Is Using “Man of Steel” To Recruit You

by Judith Kimbers Posted on June 14, 2013

Mother Jones

Man of Steel (Warner Bros., 143 minutes) is a commendable, if patently flawed, summer blockbuster. The highly anticipated Superman reboot, starring Henry Cavill and Amy Adams, merges the strengths and styles of its director Zack Snyder and its producer Christopher Nolan with mixed results. But the parts of the film that are exhilarating roundly compensate for the many parts of the film that are boring as all hell (dulled passion, bland dialogue, blander interactions).

Putting all that aside, one of the most fascinating things about this movie is how blatantly littered with product placement it is—roughly $160 million in product placement and promotions went into its makers’ coffers. Man of Steel has over 100 global marketing partners, surpassing Universal’s 2012 animated flick The Lorax, which reportedly had 70 partners. So if you have forgotten recently to eat at IHOP or shop at Sears, this film will remind you to do so in big letters.

But the film also doubles as advertisement for an employer arguably more noble than IHOP: The National Guard of the United States.

Here’s behind-the-scenes footage released in May by the National Guard regarding their work with Snyder and Warner Bros.

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How The National Guard Is Using “Man of Steel” To Recruit You

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Climate activists to protest at Obama group’s climate events

by Judith Kimbers Posted on May 22, 2013

Climate activists to protest at Obama group’s climate events

By John Upton

The White House

Barack Obama’s advocacy group, Organizing for Action, has been calling out Republican climate skeptics in Congress, but climate activists are not impressed. They’re planning to crash OFA events and push the group to fight the Keystone XL pipeline.

350.org and CREDO Action, the political arm of the company CREDO Mobile, are leading the charge. OFA is bracing for it. From BuzzFeed:

OFA circulated a set of talking points to its members for use in dealing with unruly activists. The document, obtained by BuzzFeed, includes information on the science behind climate change and the president’s environmental positions, and ends with a section titled “Keystone Talking Points.” …

The talking points come with a warning: “Volunteers from Credo Action or other organizations may attend your planning session and want to demand that we work on the Keystone XL pipeline.” …

“We understand that there are groups and individuals who would like to work to influence the President and the State Department on a variety of environmental decisions, but OFA’s plan is to do great organizing on building clean energy locally, turning up the heat on Congress and helping individuals and communities switch to clean energy,” the document reads. “They are more than welcome to work with those groups, but we encourage all volunteers to be part of our work and the mission of changing the conversation on climate!”

OFA asks its members to point to the State Department review process when asked about the pipeline.

Organizing for America defended itself to The Washington Post:

In an e-mail, OFA spokeswoman Katie Hogan noted the group already mobilized its members to both engage lawmakers on global warming and press for confirmation of Environmental Protection Agency administrator-designate Gina McCarthy.

“It has been made clear since our first day as an organization that we support the President’s plans from comprehensive immigration reform, to reducing gun violence to climate change, including the completion of the State Department [Keystone XL] review,” Hogan wrote. “Just last week OFA held almost 100 action planning sessions on climate change in communities across the country to talk about the action that can be taken right now to call out members of Congress for denying that climate change is a man-made problem.”

Um, Hogan, pointing out that you’re pointing out that Republicans aren’t taking climate change seriously is kinda missing the point.

John Upton is a science fan and green news boffin who

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A Plan to Bring Sun-Powered Irrigation to Poor Farmers

by Judith Kimbers Posted on May 20, 2013

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World of Warcraft: Dawn of the Aspects: Part III – Richard A. Knaak

A Simon & Schuster eBook. Simon & Schuster has a great book for every reader. […]

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World of Warcraft: Dawn of the Aspects: Part IV – Richard A. Knaak

A Simon & Schuster eBook. Simon & Schuster has a great book for every reader. […]

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Battle Missions: Death Worlds – Games Workshop

The Emperor’s realm encompasses a million worlds, each with its own potential dangers. Yet certain of these planets are so deadly that they are classified as death worlds. From man-eating flora and fauna to deadly poisonous atmospheres and many stranger things besides, on a death world it’s not just the enemy that your warriors have to worry about! Thi […]

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World of Warcraft: Dawn of the Aspects: Part I – Richard A. Knaak

THE AGE OF DRAGONS IS OVER. Uncertainty plagues Azeroth’s ancient guardians as they struggle to find a new purpose. This dilemma has hit Kalecgos, youngest of the former Dragon Aspects, especially hard. Having lost his great powers, how can he—or any of his kind—still make a difference in the world? The answer lies in the distant past, when savage beasts cal […]

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All New Square Foot Gardening, Second Edition – Mel Bartholomew

Rapidly increasing in popularity, square foot gardening is the most practical, foolproof way to grow a home garden. That explains why author and gardening innovator Mel Bartholomew has sold more than two million books describing how to become a successful DIY square foot gardener. Now, with the publication of All New Square Foot Gardening, Second Edition , t […]

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The Honest Life – Jessica Alba

As a new mom, Jessica Alba wanted to create the safest, healthiest environment for her family. But she was frustrated by the lack of trustworthy information on how to live healthier and cleaner—delivered in a way that a busy mom could act on without going to extremes. In 2012, with serial entrepreneur Brian Lee and environmental advocate Christopher Gavigan, […]

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Codex: Grey Knights – Games Workshop

The Grey Knights are the most mysterious of all the Imperium’s many organisations. Few outside the upper echelons of the Inquisition hold any knowledge of the Chapter’s founding, and even these most trusted of men are denied the full truth. For ten thousand years the Grey Knights have stood between the Imperium and the Daemons of the Warp. An incor […]

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How to Raise the Perfect Dog – Cesar Millan & Melissa Jo Peltier

From the bestselling author and star of National Geographic Channel’s Dog Whisperer , the only resource you’ll need for raising a happy, healthy dog. For the millions of people every year who consider bringing a puppy into their lives–as well as those who have already brought a dog home–Cesar Millan, the preeminent dog behavior expert, says, “Yes, […]

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Trident K9 Warriors – Michael Ritland & Gary Brozek

As Seen on “60 Minutes”! As a Navy SEAL during a combat deployment in Iraq, Mike Ritland saw a military working dog in action and instantly knew he’d found his true calling. Ritland started his own company training and supplying dogs for the SEAL teams, U.S. Government, and Department of Defense. He knew that fewer than 1 percent of […]

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World of Warcraft: Dawn of the Aspects: Part II – Richard A. Knaak

A Simon & Schuster eBook. Simon & Schuster has a great book for every reader. […]

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A Plan to Bring Sun-Powered Irrigation to Poor Farmers

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Pros of solar panels

by Judith Kimbers Posted on April 2, 2013

You will certainly need to put in a little time checking which solar cell model will be appropriate to your requirements. There’s two main types of solar panel – those which generate electrical energy (photo-voltaic panels) and those which warm water. The sun transfers a lot more power towards the earth’s surface area within an hour than the planet makes use of in a year. You could utilize solar panel technology to work with this 100 % free energy source to create electrical power and hot water for your home.

A governement scheme referred to as feed-in tariffs (or FIT) implies that, although solar panel technology remains pricy, you can now be given cash for the electrical energy you generate making use of photovoltaic or pv solar power systems.

In the event your home was created or redesigned to help make the most of the sunlight then this would be called Passive Solar energy. By way of example, you could include an further south-facing windowpane or maybe more insulation in your roof structure so its possible to better trap the sun’s heat, as well as for longer. Unsurprisingly these kind of factors are only able to be added when the property is 1st built or redesigned.

The installing of a solar collector, ordinarily a panel, to gather solar energy is called active solar energy. Solar water heating and photovoltaic (PV) solar panels are the two principal kinds of active solar power systems.

Solar water heating and solar PV are quite unalike, though they might appear very much the same, and both comprise of panels on your roof structure. Power from the sun is utilized by solar electricity or solar PV in order to make electrical power that you can then use in your house or export to the power grid. Generous financial help is presently available under the feed-in tariff plan because Photovoltaic is an pricey technology (12,000 for an average system).

Solar heating or solar thermal works by using energy via the sunshine in order to heat up water. It is broadly used to heat up your home-based hot water system. Solar water heating costs less when compared with solar PV and costs somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000. Under the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI), government funding and financial help could be obtainable by Summer 2013.

There are 4 fundamental kinds of Photo voltaic solar panel: monocrystalline, polycrystalline (or multicrystalline), hybrid and amorphous silicon. All are made from silicon, however fluctuate in how the silicon is cut and processed.

‘p v’ panels will fluctuate in effectiveness (how much of the sun’s power is actually utilized by the system per unit area) and in cost. Monocrystalline cells are usually more efficient compared with polycrystalline cells (13-17% efficiency compared with 11-15% efficiency), however polycrystalline cells might be cheaper.

Thin film is really a hybrid which combines crystalline cells. This makes them a lot more efficient (17%+), but they cost more. Therefore when you compare quotes, be sure you know what model of solar pv cells you are being quoted for.

To produce significant amounts of energy one does require a fairly large roof. Additionally, if your panels need to be placed on the top of current roof tiles your roofing needs to be strong enough to take the surplus weight. Solar power panels have a high initial outlay – normally somewhere between 8,000 and 14,000, consequently are more expensive to buy and set up compared to solar water systems. Solar light hours and climate will probably impact productivity. Initial costs are higher compared to conventional electric and gas-heater systems.

You don’t require sunshine in order to create power only daylight. Any surplus electricity may be sold back to an electricity business once your panels are attached to the national grid. It might decrease your average household electrical power charge by around 40%. The Feed-in Tariff offers additional favorable revenue (unlike solar thermal).

A trustworthy business should be able to advise you more on which kind of solar option would be best for yourself.

For added roofing information including information about solar products and garden roofing, please contact www.icbprojects.uk.com

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Specifics of Solar powered Roofing products

by Judith Kimbers Posted on April 1, 2013

Research which solar power product would be better for you and your property simply by spending a little time investigating. 2 varieties of solar power panels can be purchased – those that warm up water and those that produce electric power (photovoltaic panels). In only one hour the sun can transfer much more energy to the planet’s surface than the planet makes use of in one year. You could take advantage of this totally free energy source to generate electricity and hot water for your property by using solar technology.

Solar technology is still pricey, yet a government scheme (known as the feed-in tariffs or FIT) means you can obtain money for the electric power you generate using pv solar power systems.

In the event your residence was made or redesigned to help make the most of the sun then this is termed Passive Solar energy. You could include an supplementary south-facing window or maybe more insulation in your roof to help you better catch the sun’s heat, as well as for longer. When a house is very first built or renovated these kinds of passive elements may be introduced.

When solar collectors or panels are set up to gather power we call this active solar energy. The 2 principal styles of active solar panel systems are photovoltaic (PV) solar panels and solar water heating.

While they may seem very much the same, and both consist of solar panels on your roof top, solar water heating and photovoltaic are quite different. Power via the sunshine is used by solar electricity or solar PV in order to make electricity that you can then use in your property or export onto the power grid. The government will support you with generous financial help under the feed-in tariff framework as Photovoltaic is an dear technology (12,000 for an typical system).

Solar heating or solar thermal uses power from the sun in order to heat up water. It is predominately utilized to heat up your domestic hot water system. Solar water heating will cost you somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000, thus is cheaper than photovoltaic. It won’t, nevertheless, presently qualify for any government grants or financial inducement until Summer time 2013, under the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI).

You will discover 4 fundamental varieties of PV solar panel: monocrystalline, polycrystalline (or multicrystalline), hybrid and amorphous silicon. All Photo voltaic panels are manufactured from silicon however the silicon is cut and treated in various ways.

Photovoltaic panels will vary in cost and efficiency (how much of the sun’s energy is used by the system per unit area). Monocrystalline cells tend to be more efficient than polycrystalline cells (13-17% efficiency compared with 11-15% efficiency), though polycrystalline cells are usually less expensive.

Hybrid cells blend crystalline cells with an additional cell sort, thin film. This makes them even more productive (17%+), however they are more expensive. For this reason when comparing quotations, be sure you know what model of solar pv cells you are being quoted for.

One does need a fairly large roof area for you to produce significant amounts of power. Additionally, Solar power panels may be heavy, so your roofing has got to be strong enough to take their weight, in particular if the solar panel is to be placed on top of existing tiles. Solar panels tend to be more costly to buy and install compared to solar water solutions with a higher preliminary outlay – generally between 8,000 and 14,000. Solar light hours and local weather will have an impact on performance. Preliminary costs are higher compared to standard electric and gas-heater systems.

Just natural light is necessary to create power – not sunshine. Any surplus electrical energy may be sold back to an electrical energy company when your panels are attached to the national grid. It might decrease your average home electrical power charge by around 40%. The Feed-in Tariff gives supplementary generous income (unlike solar thermal).

A credible organization can advise you further about which kind of solar option would be best in your case.

For more facts about solar, roofing or commercial roofing please contact www.briggsamasco.co.uk

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