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101 Uses for Dirty Diapers
As the father of a toddler, I am an expert on dirty diapers. I know exactly what to do with them: throw them out! But along comes a New York waste company and a town in California who want me to do something else with my dirty diapers. Like cover...
Earthquakes and Tsunamis
Tsunamis Tsunami - a seismic sea wave - means in Japanese "harbor-wave". It is also misleadingly called "tidal wave". It is an ocean wave caused by an earthquake of magnitude 6.5 on the Richter scale (or greater) that occurs less than 50 kilometers...
Global Dumbing?
I am beginning to wonder if scientists have been getting it all round. All this time, people have been worried about the Ozone, a giant asteroid, or some breakout of a bio-hazardous agent by a terrorist organization being the doom of mankind. We...
Household Energy Saving Tips
Each room or area of your household, including the outdoors, can contribute to making the process of saving energy an efficient one, with undeniable results.
Thus, the attic, for example, is an area which plays a huge role in the energy...
Sea Change in Australia - Leading to increased soil acidity
SEA CHANGE Australia's love of coastal living is leading to some serious environmental problems, as more and more Australians are choosing to build along coastal areas. This is leading to the leaching of acid soils, which is degrading our coastline,...
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Solar Cooling - Air-Conditioning From the Sun
At first glance, solar cooling looks like an oxymoron. However,
the same energy that can provide heat in the wintertime can also
provide cooling during the summer.
Several passive cooling systems have been developed and tested.
At their simplest, they rely on a coolant that absorbs and
dissipates heat from the house. This could be a pool of water on
the rooftop which absorbs seat from the inside of the house as
it evaporates on exposure to the sun.
More sophisticated passive solar cooling systems have a solar
collector which is shaded during the daytime. A storage medium
collects heat during the day and dissipates it at night by
exposing the solar collector to the cool night air.
Since the solar collector must be shaded, a retractable awning
or overhang extension can be installed. Since the system can be
reversed in the winter months, it is important that the solar
collector can be exposed to sunshine if needed.
Solar panels can also be used to operate traditional air
conditioners. As it
happens, the periods of intense heat
correspond to the periods of peak electricity production from
photovoltaic cells. As long as you have solar panels which
generate sufficient to electricity, you can operate air
conditioners at no cost.
Solar cooling that does not take advantage of high technology is
another possibility. The Romans used a system of running water
to cool down exterior walls of their houses. The heat of the sun
causes the water to evaporate and dissipate the heat within the
house. This kind of system can be used on walls or on rooftops.
Heating and cooling are two of the biggest expenses for most
households. Using solar energy to reduce this expense makes
sense financially as well as ecologically. The less dependent we
are on fossil fuels for heating and cooling the cleaner the
environment will be.
About the author:
Hans is author at
http://www.alternative-energy-guide.com/ the energy site for
"non techies"/p>
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