Community is the first fully solar powered city in the nation.

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Community is the first fully solar powered city in the nation.20-02-2020 18:42
HarveyH55★★★★★ (5197)	https://www.babcockranch.com/ Solar Field The Babcock Ranch FPL Solar Energy Center is located slightly north on the Babcock Ranch property. It provides 74.5 megawatts of solar capacity and is located on a total of 440 acres. With 343,000 solar panels, the FPL Babcock Ranch Solar Energy Center provides power to the entire town of Babcock and surrounding areas. Introduction of Battery Storage Babcock Ranch's clean energy efforts were taken to the next level when FPL created the largest solar-plus-storage system operating in the U.S. today. Each of the ten large gray steel battery storage units at the FPL Babcock Ranch Solar Energy Center can store 1 megawatt of power and discharge for 4 hours. The new battery storage system ensures a steady output of power even on partly cloudy days. Solar Trees Solar trees are an innovative combination of technology, functionality, and art. Solar trees at Founder's Square and other neighborhood parks are a focal point for solar energy education, while also serving as charging stations for residents to power up their handheld devices. I saw this on the news this morning, and thought I'd take a look. It's like any basic housing development, though this one throws in a few other things, lean toward calling a 'town', but I didn't see anything that really qualifies it. More like a mega-HOA sort of thing. Houses start at $200,000, for what would pass as a vacation home, for some, small, and basic. Mostly, they have just enough completed, to make it functional, and to get people interested in investing/building there. Basically, it will never look any better, as it develops further, and the start packing people in there. Doubt their solar will grow, to keep up, and the cheap power, will get expensive quick.
20-02-2020 21:31
Into the Night★★★★★ (21701)	HarveyH55 wrote: https://www.babcockranch.com/ Solar Field The Babcock Ranch FPL Solar Energy Center is located slightly north on the Babcock Ranch property. It provides 74.5 megawatts of solar capacity and is located on a total of 440 acres. With 343,000 solar panels, the FPL Babcock Ranch Solar Energy Center provides power to the entire town of Babcock and surrounding areas. Introduction of Battery Storage Babcock Ranch's clean energy efforts were taken to the next level when FPL created the largest solar-plus-storage system operating in the U.S. today. Each of the ten large gray steel battery storage units at the FPL Babcock Ranch Solar Energy Center can store 1 megawatt of power and discharge for 4 hours. The new battery storage system ensures a steady output of power even on partly cloudy days. Solar Trees Solar trees are an innovative combination of technology, functionality, and art. Solar trees at Founder's Square and other neighborhood parks are a focal point for solar energy education, while also serving as charging stations for residents to power up their handheld devices. I saw this on the news this morning, and thought I'd take a look. It's like any basic housing development, though this one throws in a few other things, lean toward calling a 'town', but I didn't see anything that really qualifies it. More like a mega-HOA sort of thing. Houses start at $200,000, for what would pass as a vacation home, for some, small, and basic. Mostly, they have just enough completed, to make it functional, and to get people interested in investing/building there. Basically, it will never look any better, as it develops further, and the start packing people in there. Doubt their solar will grow, to keep up, and the cheap power, will get expensive quick. Rooftop solar power runs into a few problems: * The panels themselves, being part of the roof, make for a VERY expensive roof. Got leaks, hang on to your wallet to fix it! * The panels degrade over time and must eventually be replaced. * The panels are susceptible to dust damage (scratches 'em), moss damage (the roots burrow in to the covering, fogging it), UV damage (mostly the wiring and insulation to make the whole thing work, but it also fogs the covering. * The covering is not replaceable. It is permanently bonded to the panels themselves. * You can't walk on the panels to clean them, maintain them, or otherwise work on other stuff on your roof. Doing so will destroy the panels. * Ants, birds, bees, mice, and even rats have been known to damage the panels (by building nests on or in the spaces between them), or by destroying the wiring (by eating it or peeing on it, corroding it). * The panels are useless when covered with snow. * Debris from autumn leaves, spring blossoms, etc. can easily cover the panels. That means you have to get up there to clean it off. Hoses work best, since leaf blowers have a more limited range. Remember, you can't walk on the panels. Pressure washers are a bad idea. They will scratch or crack the panels. You want lots of water under lower pressure to flood the debris off. * The batteries have their own issues depending on the battery type: Lead acid cells: * Last about 5-10 years at most, then they must be replaced due to lead sulfate buildup and plate damage (think holes in lead plates). * Produce hydrogen gas during the charging cycle...a dangerous byproduct in enclosed areas. * That hydrogen gas comes from the water in the dilute sulfuric acid electrolyte, necessitating adding water from time to time to the battery. Sealed units use a gel, don't last as long, and cannot vent, reducing the charging current allowed. (They actually have a vent, which permanently opens if the battery is charged too fast, but opening that vent destroys the battery. Sure beats have it explode though! * High charge rates and discharge rates are possible, but not continuously. Abusing the battery by heavy continuous charging or discharging can actually bend the plates, shorting them and destroying the battery. Lithium metal cells: * Use a solid electrolyte that is easily overcome by charging too quickly or discharging too quickly. This causes an intense class D fire. It can only be put out by covering it with sand. It's usually just easier to let it burn until the metal is consumed. Installing these babies in your house is a BAD IDEA. Fortunately, most (but not all) home solar power systems have moved away from these batteries. Aircraft are NOT ALLOWED to have these batteries on board at any time. Lithium oxide cells: * Same limitations on charge/discharge current limits, but the fire is an intense class A fire (like a firework). You can put it out with plain old water. For aircraft, these batteries are enclosed in steel boxes that can take the heat of such a fire. Some aircraft have installed fire extinguishing system for these batteries as well. If you install these in a house power ballasting system, they could very well burn down the house if the current limiters fail (this has happened with a few Teslas, which use these batteries). So, you have an expensive system that requires regular maintenance and replacement sooner or later (depending on well you take care of your roof), and you still need a connection to commercial power lines to help ballast the current available. The Parrot Killer Debunked in my sig. - tmiddles Google keeps track of paranoid talk and i'm not on their list. I've been evaluated and certified. - keepit nuclear powered ships do not require nuclear fuel. - Swan While it is true that fossils do not burn it is also true that fossil fuels burn very well - Swan Edited on 20-02-2020 21:36
20-02-2020 22:14
HarveyH55★★★★★ (5197)	I think it's meant as a 'concept' community. Their website didn't go into a lot of the finer details, like most cults. They just make it sound interesting, and a great value. They are partnered with FPL, and I believe their solar is grid-tied, so the current surplus isn't wasted. They will of course, need to add onto the solar farm, which I suspect will be paid for by the residents, who bought homes or businesses. Guessing you don't get the dirty details, without getting close to buying in. It's near Fort Meyers, and like to see some damaging weather. Selling a dream, which will likely fail, before anybody pays of the mortgage.
20-02-2020 23:03
Into the Night★★★★★ (21701)	HarveyH55 wrote: I think it's meant as a 'concept' community. Their website didn't go into a lot of the finer details, like most cults. They just make it sound interesting, and a great value. They are partnered with FPL, and I believe their solar is grid-tied, so the current surplus isn't wasted. They will of course, need to add onto the solar farm, which I suspect will be paid for by the residents, who bought homes or businesses. Guessing you don't get the dirty details, without getting close to buying in. It's near Fort Meyers, and like to see some damaging weather. Selling a dream, which will likely fail, before anybody pays of the mortgage. Yeah...that pretty well sums it up. The Parrot Killer Debunked in my sig. - tmiddles Google keeps track of paranoid talk and i'm not on their list. I've been evaluated and certified. - keepit nuclear powered ships do not require nuclear fuel. - Swan While it is true that fossils do not burn it is also true that fossil fuels burn very well - Swan

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