For the record, the simple solution to increased demand for power when demand for air conditioning is high is... solar panels. The world has plenty of solar panels, and they are damn good at running aircon to cool places down in the daytime. This is my house electricity so far today. - ThreadSky

solarchase.bsky.social • 191 days ago

For the record, the simple solution to increased demand for power when demand for air conditioning is high is... solar panels. The world has plenty of solar panels, and they are damn good at running aircon to cool places down in the daytime. This is my house electricity so far today.

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markzecwrites.bsky.social•191 days ago

Ours are temporarily down (Enphase motherboard failure), but installing solar panels was one of the best decisions we ever made. Most months we produce twice as much as we use. We would have also gone the battery route if we could have found an installer that didn't use Tesla Powerwalls.

zinco.gay•191 days ago

The bigger issue is generating too much power. Especially in rural areas if funding is put in place for homes to get solar power since we need batteries first and foremost. The technology is there it's just the foundational issues that are systemic throughout America society are the problem.

annieleymarie.bsky.social•191 days ago

It's still best to reduce the need for air con as much as possible, so as to export as much electricity as possible (or store it in batteries)

havantenviro.bsky.social•185 days ago

Yes, by making sure homes are designed to minimise energy use in summer and winter, and old homes are retrofitted.

I would actually support the demolition and rebuild of homes if needed! If the long term outcome is that we had homes fit for a new climate.

annieleymarie.bsky.social•185 days ago

Embodied carbon in homes (concrete and much else) is huge! Demolition to rebuild should be avoided, used only as last solution.

havantenviro.bsky.social•185 days ago

I agree, but it's a one off shot of carbon that should last 100+ years as opposed to a leaky old house that is already over 100 years old and will waste energy and produce carbon emissions due to its inefficiency.

annieleymarie.bsky.social•185 days ago

havantenviro.bsky.social•184 days ago

I don't dispute that as a general rule.
But the statement assumes the rebuild would be like for like.

Instead you can rebuild with higher density housing, providing more homes (which the UK needs) and local shops, businesses etc.

There are more factors than just the environmental ones.

gspeng.bsky.social•191 days ago

Why?

havantenviro.bsky.social•185 days ago

Efficiency reduces energy consumption, that allows for a reduction in demand for renewables in general.

Low carbon energy will struggle to meet demand without doing all that is possible to reduce demand for energy.

annieleymarie.bsky.social•191 days ago

To get off fossil fuels a.s.a.p., to reduce the need for renewables (with their big materials footprint), to extend the life of air cons (which can leak highly potent greenhouse gases when disposed of), to learn adaptation with the simplest methods, as power cuts, etc, become more likely, etc?

solarchase.bsky.social•191 days ago

Nah, just buy more solar panels. By 2030 we're going to be curtailing power when the sun's out anyway, and the capacity will be useful in shoulder periods to reduce the need for batteries elsewhere.

annieleymarie.bsky.social•191 days ago

We need more solar panels but energy production/consumption always comes with an environmental cost. Learning 'degrowth' and 'sufficiency' behaviours is essential for the survival of humanity and the rest of life, especially with extreme weather & other crises to be expected. The planet is finite.

solarchase.bsky.social•191 days ago

This is a VERY stupid area to apply degrowth behaviour.

gspeng.bsky.social•185 days ago

I did a literature survey about cool roofs vs PV solar roofs. It's not a vs it's an AND. Do both. Install a cool roof + insulation/sun protection to reduce need for AC. Install PV to use for AC. AC heats outside, but cool roof abates that. https://badmomgoodmom.blogspot.com/2024/09/cool-roof-2-cool-roof-cool-city.html

hyperlexic.bsky.social•185 days ago

Are these two paragraphs saying that in Arizona rooftop solar helps cool the structure but in London it warms it?

That seems… odd?

edward-moon.bsky.social•185 days ago

Look up "heat island effect" as to why London may be heating up.

Solar panels generate some heat while they work so that may contribute as well.

hyperlexic.bsky.social•185 days ago

In my home rooftop solar definitely directly cooled our home. But we have a flat roof with elevated sloped solar - so heat absorbed by the panels isn’t directly radiated into the rooftop.

adjectivalnoun.bsky.social•185 days ago

The fact that it says "as would running ac" makes me think the second is about the outside air, not the structure.

gspeng.bsky.social•185 days ago

Yes, I can’t recall if it is heating for the building in particular or for the surroundings overall. Solar panels can get hot. The glass interferes with emissivity to the sky at night (which cools down a home). But it reduces heat gain in sunlight. It is very location & climate dependent

aspenjunge.bsky.social•185 days ago

Also, install solar carports over every good sized parking lot to keep our cars cooler.

gaw.net•191 days ago

More green energy supply won't cut dirty energy use unless we specifically force out coal and gas. The same reason that more freeways don't reduce traffic in the long run: More supply cuts prices --> higher consumption. Green energy, in fact, is a big driver in energy-hungry AI and cryptocurrency.

gaw.net•191 days ago

Before I'm misunderstood, I'm not saying we don't need more green energy ... we need a LOT more of it ... but we can't just be pro-green energy, we need to combine it with anti-dirty energy policies.

helchose.bsky.social•191 days ago

Wow what a terrible article.

Yes solar + battery storage, for those of us who can afford it, is a great solution. I intend to expand our solar array and install a home battery system in a few years after some of our renovation debt is paid off.

solarchase.bsky.social•191 days ago

The point of using solar to run aircon is that you don't need a battery. At least if you have decent insulation. Just chill your house until the sun goes down, then coast.

conjugateprior.org•191 days ago

or another battery, in addition to your house 😁

pingu1.bsky.social•191 days ago

A battery is useful if you don't have a lot of thermal mass in your walls, or your climate is very humid, and you still need cooling overnight.

helchose.bsky.social•191 days ago

In Sacramento during a heat dome event when the ambient temp is still 100F at 9PM, is when a nice battery would be very useful to cut back on the utility draw.

I know most places aren't Sacramento... yet.

helchose.bsky.social•191 days ago

And to be clear, on days like that, I pre-cool the house with dual paned windows in the morning hours to icebox-level, to the complaints of my wife and MIL. But it pays forward for those types of evenings.

solarchase.bsky.social•191 days ago

Batteries are expensive! Solar panels are cheap! (Especially if you are lucky enough to not live in the US).

gspeng.bsky.social•191 days ago

My house is a thermal battery and our heat pump is chugging away until 5pm when we shut it off and coast until 8 (bc peak rates)

havantenviro.bsky.social•185 days ago

Why is it a thermal battery in the summer?

gspeng.bsky.social•185 days ago

I used the wrong term. I meant my house has thermal inertia. Tile floors, furniture, metal appliances, ceramic fixtures, etc. https://badmomgoodmom.blogspot.com/2012/12/furnace-wars-2012.html

vaguepariah.bsky.social•191 days ago

And with superinsulation, it requires very little AC to keep it cool.

weedramatic.bsky.social•191 days ago

prechilling houses isn't always going to be enough, but even then we don't need electric batteries. Two cubic meters of water in a thermal battery, given the energy of the phase change of freezing/melting, can provide 20kW of cooling power!
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352152X2302337X

helchose.bsky.social•191 days ago

I do that on extreme heat days.

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