HN Gopher Feed (2017-10-07) - page 1 of 10 ___________________________________________________________________
Show HN: A platform for sharing DIY solar projects
75 points by nikodunk
http://sunboxlabs.com___________________________________________________________________
foxhop - 1 hours ago
I submitted my silly setup which is just a 20watt sunjack and
battery.Sort of related: I just signed paperwork to install a $35k
solar system on my roof on Friday (20k after insentives). I'm so
excited, I've wanted solar since I was a 9 year old boy!
nikodunk - 1 hours ago
awesome. it's going up now!!
nikodunk - 53 minutes ago
boom. you're up! added some specs to your submission, too. nice
kit!
Tade0 - 59 minutes ago
How much peak power you got for that amount?
JusticeJuice - 11 minutes ago
A cool feature would be a way to 'request' a project. E.g. I'm
interested in lower power, low space, indoor growing systems. Would
love to see any projects hooking them up to solar.
mbloom1915 - 2 hours ago
=D awesome! if anyone is looking to test further with a utility
please reach out (mbloom1915@gmail.com)
shafyy - 2 hours ago
Kind of like HN for DIY solar. Nice!
stadeschuldt - 1 hours ago
I submitted my SolarPi project: http://solarpi.tafkas.net
Faaak - 21 minutes ago
Questions:- Couldn't find your installed power- Couldn't find the
installation cost/"real time" ROI- Price of your kWh- temperature
doesnt work
nikodunk - 18 minutes ago
Followed up with the poster. Hopefully he'll update soon!
nikodunk - 53 minutes ago
awesome project!! Going up now!!
stadeschuldt - 46 minutes ago
If you need more background or a write up, let me know (I
submitted my email address too).
nikodunk - 28 minutes ago
Cool! You're up!I guess the platform's for software projects
too now :)I've emailed you for a more in-depth write up ? if
you have any more images of it in action hit me up!
nikodunk - 3 hours ago
Hi gang! The "discussion: comments" numbers on the site are the
combined total from the original article discussion on Hackernews
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14821478 plus Reddit
https://www.reddit.com/r/geek/comments/6ov9oc/200_solar_self... ?
at that point I unfortunately didn't have comments on the site yet
(...or the site itself, for that matter). Yes, they're currently
just hardcoded :PThe comments on the burningman thread are from
this HN thread https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15216650
otp124 - 2 hours ago
Oh, I remember your original post! I?m glad you made this, as
I?ve been slowly bookmarking DIY solar posts, but good ones with
detailed information (and pics!) are hard to come by.
nikodunk - 2 hours ago
Nice! Care to share some good ones here, or even submit them to
the site?I've also noticed a lot of people are building
incredible stuff, and think it's time we organize :)
egocentric - 43 minutes ago
This is really cool. sunboxlabs.com is a participant in the Amazon
Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program
designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by
advertising and linking to amazon.com and Note: Ad-blockers hide
the Amazon links you should be seeing here Also thank you for
being so upfront!
nikodunk - 18 minutes ago
Of course!! The idea should monetize itself only if the guides
actually make sense. However, if this turns more into a solar
software platform, the affiliation strategy may not work so well
haha.
Scoundreller - 2 hours ago
Just wanted to say: very cool.Since I see that you were powering a
space heater:Conductive heating/cooling is the future. Why heat an
entire space when you can buy an electric mattress pad and just
heat your bed?Soon enough we'll have cheap and convenient wearable
heat-pumps with individually controlled dials rather than
senselessly heating/cooling entire spaces.
tyingq - 1 hours ago
Apparently, it was the past too. I don't know many young people
that use electric blankets. Plenty of stories about parents or
grandparents with freezing homes using them though.
wcunning - 55 minutes ago
I for one prefer to not have my pipes freeze solid and burst, so
I heat my house to a minimum of 60 all the time, and the
"unheated" basement (which has no vents from the furnace, merely
the furnace itself and radiant heat from the ductwork) keeps at
about 50, safely far from freezing.
FooHentai - 1 hours ago
>Why heat an entire space when you can buy an electric mattress
pad and just heat your bed?One reason is that breathing cold air
overnight is bad for your health. IIRC a recommendation is to
keep it above 16C.
abraae - 2 hours ago
It's an interesting idea, but if your house has decent insulation
to minimise heat loss (e.g passivhaus
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_house) then it's perhaps
more practical just to hear the entire space.Oh, it helps too if
your house is not a mcmansion with vast internal spaces.
Scoundreller - 2 hours ago
Next I want to see kits for turning my car into a micro-hybrid: A
lithium battery pack I plug into the cigarette lighter which will
negate the alternator for most trips.We could make every ICE car
several % more efficient overnight.
pstuart - 2 hours ago
Interesting idea, but would it really work if the alternator is
still physically engaged?
tyingq - 2 hours ago
A electrically actuated clutch pulley would solve that. But,
many newer cars already have, and need, a mechanical clutch
pulley that disengages the alternator on deceleration.
Scoundreller - 1 hours ago
I assumed it would stop generating electricity (and therefore
resistance) when the batteries are topped-up. I didn't even
realize they're mechanically disconnected as needed.
tyingq - 1 hours ago
Some are, but only on deceleration, to reduce wear on the
alternator. It's a mechanical clutch only.AC compressors,
on the other hand, do have electrically actuated clutch
pulleys.So, if you have a car where the alternator has no
clutch, you may be able to retrofit an electrically
actuated one. You would have to design the part that
decides when it's needed as well.