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Aug
Changes To U.S. Electricity Supply & Demand — Wind Farm & Solar – Part 2 of 2
This section of the 2-Part Article covers Wind Farms in Texas. Also discussed are residential solar collection systems and battery storage. Al’s Plumbing, Heating & A/C in Plano, Texas provides maintenance & repairs for all brands of Central A/C, Gas & Electric Furnace, and Heat Pumps. Additionally we sell and install new HVAC Systems from American Standard (same company as Trane), Ameristar (same company as American Standard) and Coleman HVAC (same company as York HVAC).
Al’s also provides full service plumbing maintenance, repairs and replacements for every plumbing component in your home. Al’s sells and installs Rheem Professional Series gas & electric water heaters, and tankless water heaters. Al’s is near your home in Plano, TX; Murphy, TX; and Wylie, TX. We service all homes in southern Collin County, TX and Denton County, TX with no additional travel-charges.
Call Al’s today to discuss any concerns or problems you have with your HVAC System or Plumbing. We will arrange an appointment at your convenience and offer 24/7 Emergency Service.
This Is Part 2 Of A 2-Part Article: Click Here To Go To Part 1: Part 1
This Is Electricity’s Path — A Power Grid (external) Power-Surge Can Originate At Any Point Along The Way
Or Skip To: “How Your Home Deals With Recurring (internal) Power-Surges.” (below)
Image Source: ShutterStock
FROM: Electricity Is Generated At A Power Plant
Or Green Energy — Such As A Wind Farm (Wind-Generated Electricity).
TO: “Step-Up” Electrical Transformers — That Raise The Voltage Very High — So Electricity Can Travel Long Distances
Image Source: Shutterstock
Shown: “Step-Up” Electrical Transformers
TO: Electricity Transmission Lines — That Carry (very high voltage) Electricity Long Distances
Image Source: ShutterStock
Shown: Electricity Transmission Lines
TO: “Step-Down” Transformers — That Lower Voltage Back Down To What Homes & Businesses Need (120 & 240 volts)
Image Source: Shutterstock
Shown: Step-Down Electrical Transformer
TO: Electricity Distribution Lines (the ones with the gray, round transformers on them) That Distribute Electricity To Homes and Businesses
Image Source: ShutterStock
Shown: Electricity Distributions Lines (they have transformers visible)
TO: Pole-Mount Electrical Transformers — That ReEnergize “used” (0 volts) Electricity (coming from homes & business)
THEN: Pole-Mount Transformers Send “new/renergized” (120 / 240 volts) Electricity Back To Homes & Businesses.
Wind Farms Are Experiencing Rapid Growth In Some Central U.S. States
Image Source: ShutterStock
Not All States Are Created Equal As To How Much The Wind Blows
The center of the U.S. is where On-Shore wind blows hard enough to support Wind Farms. Off-Shore Winds Are Also Noted In Purple On The Map (link below).
Copy The URL Below Into Your Browser For A U.S. Map That Shows Average Annual Wind Speed By State 80 Meters (265 Feet) Above Ground:
https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2018/5/2/17290880/trump-wind-power-renewable-energy-maps
Then Scroll Down To The U.S. Image With Purple In The Center.
Note: 265 Feet / 80 Meters Above Ground Is Where A Wind Turbine’s Blades Are.
3 Of The World’s 10 Largest Wind Farms Are Located In Texas *
Texas Generates 1/4 Of All Wind Generated Electricity In The U.S.
Image by F. Muhammad from Pixabay
Image From Pixabay.com
Roscoe Wind Farm — The 6th Largest Wind Farm In The World (including both on shore & off shore)
Roscoe Wind Farm Is The Largest On Shore Wind Farm In The World
Roscoe Is Owned & Operated By E.ON Climate & Renewables-North America, headquartered in Chicago IL.
E.ON North American is a subsidiary of E.ON Climate & Renewables which is headquartered in Germany. E.ON Climate & Renewables operates 6 wind farms in the U.S. — 5 are in Texas.
Roscoe Wind Farm is 52 miles west of Abilene, TX. It is located 12 miles southwest of the intersection of U.S. Interstate 20 & Texas Route 70. Sweetwater, TX is located just north of this same intersection. Roscoe is roughly half way between Texas Route 146 & Texas Route 147, and is 7 miles southwest of Lake Trammel.
Details For Roscoe Wind Farm:
- Website: https://www.power-technology.com/projects/roscoe-wind-farm/
- Click Here To See A Photo: Roscoe Wind Farm
- 781.5 MW Generating Capacity.
- Can power 265,000 homes. **
- Covers 100,000 acres in Mitchell, Nolan and Scurry Counties Texas. The land is also used for cotton farming.
- Built during 2007–2009 with 4 phases. Operations began in October 2009. .
- 627 wind turbines spaced 900 feet apart.
- Phase 1 has 209 Mitsubishi 1MW turbines.
- Phase 2 has 55 Siemens 2.3MW turbines.
- Phase 3 has 166 GE 1.5MW turbines.
- Phase 4 has 197 Mitsubishi 1MW turbines.
** Source: https://www.power-technology.com/projects/roscoe-wind-farm/
Image From Pixabay.com
Horse Hollow Wind Energy Centre (S/W Of Abilene, TX) — 7th Largest
The Horse Hollow Wind Energy Center is located 31 miles southwest of Abilene, TX on U.S. Route 277. It is 15 miles west of Abilene State Park.
Horse Hollow is owned & operated by NextEra Energy Resources in Juno Beach, FL.
NextEra Energy, through its subsidiaries, currently operates 47 wind farms throughout the U.S.
All of NextEra’s 47 wind farms (combined) have a capacity of 4,002 megawatts – enough capacity to provide electricity for nearly one million U.S. homes.
Details For Horse Hollow Wind Farm:
- Website: http://hilliardenergy.com/projects/horse-hollow-wind-energy-phase-i-ii-iii
- Click Here To See A Photo: Horse Hollow Wind Farm
- Generating capacity of 735 MW.
- Can power 220,600 homes.
- Covers 67,000 acres in Taylor & Noland counties in Texas. Black Angus beef are also raised an the land.
- 3 Phases built during 2005 — 2006
- Operations began in 2006.
- 421 wind turbines.
- Phase 1 has 142 GE 1.5MW wind turbines
- Phase 2 has 139 2.3-megawatt Seimens wind turbines
- Phase 3 has 149 1.5 megawatt GE wind turbines
* Source: http://www.nexteraenergyresources.com/content/where/portfolio/pdf/horsehollow.pdf
Image From Pixabay.com
Capricorn Ridge Wind Farm: Sterling City, TX — 8th Largest
Capricorn Ridge Wind Farm is also owned & operated by NextEra Energy Resources.
The Capricorn Ridge Wind Farm is is 11 miles northeast of Sterling City, TX. It is on Texas Route 158, two miles east of where Texas Route 158 changes direction from east / west to north / south. Capricorn Ridge is 70 miles southwest of the Horse Hollow Wind Energy Centre. All of NextEra’s 47 wind farms combined have a capacity of 4,002 megawatts – enough capacity to provide electricity for nearly one million U.S. homes.
Details Of Capricorn Ridge Wind Farm:
- Website: http://hilliardenergy.com/projects/capricorn-ridge-wind-power-project-phase-1-2-3/
- Click Here To See A Photo: Capricorn Ridge Wind Farm
- 662.5 MW generating capacity.
- Can power 220,000 homes.
- Covers 52,650 acres in Sterling & Coke Counties, Texas. The land is also used for sheep grazing and growing hay.
- 407 turbines: 342 GE 1.5MW + 65 Siemens 2.3MW.
- 662 MW divided by 407 turbines = 1.62 MW per turbine.
- Built in two phases during 2007 — 2008.
- Phase I operations began in 2007. Phase II operations began in 2008
Image From Pixabay.com
NEW Maverick Creek Wind Farm: Eden, TX
Maverick Creek Wind Farm is 2 miles north of Eden Texas, and 215 miles southwest of Ft. Worth, TX. Maverick Creek will be owned by Renewable Energy Systems Americas Inc. Maverick Creek will be jointly developed by Renewable Energy Systems. the U.S. branch of the United Kingdom-based company, and Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. in Oakville Canada.
Minnesota based General Mills Inc. is financing Maverick Creek through a 15-year agreement, in exchange for 200 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy credits. In 2018, General Mills & General Motors Co. funded Cactus Flats in Concho County, Texas. Maverick Creek & Cactus Flat’s Renewable Energy Credits will be applied toward General Mills’ greenhouse gas emission reduction goals.
These two wind farms will produce renewable energy credits to equal 100% of the General Mills’ annual electricity usage at all of their company owned U.S. facilities. What Is A Renewable Energy Credit? A renewable-energy certificate that represents the property rights to renewable electricity generation. One Renewable Energy Credit represents one megawatt-hour (MWh) of electricity that was generated & delivered to the electricity grid from a renewable energy resource (such as wind or solar).
Maverick Creek is 10 miles from Cactus Flats Wind Farm. Maverick Creek is on land own by 60 local residents who will be paid for the use of their property
Details For Maverick Creek Wind Farm:
- Website: not available at the time this article was written
- 480 MW generating capacity
- Can Power 168,000 homes.
- 119 turbines
- 408 MW divided by 407 turbines = 3.42 MW per turbine.
- Construction begins in late 2019 and will be completed in late 2020.
- Compared to Capricorn Ridge, at 1.62 MW per turbine, the turbines at Maverick Creek, at 3.42 MW per turbine, have over double the efficiency.
Residential Solar Electricity Generation Is Experiencing Explosive Growth
Solar Collectors On A Home’s Roof
Image Source: ShutterStock
Solar collectors serving one home or building are rapidly lowering demand on the power grid. Residential solar companies installed 603 megawatts (MW) of electricity generating capacity in the first quarter of 2019 alone. This is nearly as much electricity as Texas’ Capricorn Ridge (662.5 MW) — the world’s 8th largest wind farm.
Top States For Private Solar Installations (total generation capacity) In 2019
State Total MW Capacity:
- CA 25,015 MW
- NC 5,465
- AZ 3,790
- NV 3,450
- FL 3,150
- TX 2,950 — This number is higher than Texas’ 3 Wind Farms Combined (2,179).
- MA 2,535
- NY 1,718
- UT 1,661
- GA 1,575
Source: https://www.seia.org/solar-industry-research-data & Wood Mackenzie
The Components Inside Each Solar PhotoVoltaic (PV) Cell
Solar panels have many small PhotoVoltaic (PV) cells. The PV Cells convert sunlight into electricity. A solar panel has many PV Cells linked together inside the panel.
- The top layer of each cell is silicone treated with phosphorus. Phosphorus has 5 electrons — 1 more than silicone.
- The phosphorus creates an excess of electrons, which creates a negative electrical orientation).
- The middle of a Solar PV Cell is silicon. Silicone has 4 electrons.
- The bottom layer of each cell is treated with boron. Boron has 3 electrons — 1 less than silicone.
- The boron creates a deficiency of electrons that attracts electrons, creating a positive electrical orientation.
- The resulting state of excess electrons & deficient electrons creates a positive-negative (p-n) junction between the layers within the PV Cell. This junction creates an electrical-field.
- Metal is printed on both sides of the 3-part PV Cell. This allows the electricity generated by the PV Cell to be captured.
How The 3-Layer Solar PhotoVoltaic (PV) Cell Works
When sunlight strikes the PV cell, the sunlight energizes the silcone’s electrons inside the positive-negative (p-n) junction.
This knocks the silicone’s electrons free.
These electrons are attracted to the bottom / positive (boron) side of the silicon. This is because the bottom layer has the fewest electrons.
The electrical-field causes the silicone’s loose electrons to flow in one direction through the electrical field.
The movement of electrons generates an electrical current within the electrical-field.
A wire connected to the PV Cell causes the electrons to move through the wire instead of the electric-field.
The Installed Cost Of A Solar Collection System
Dropped By 55% During 2010 To 2019
In 2019, Solar Collection Components Prices Are At An Historical Low. The installed cost of an average-sized residential system dropped from $40,000 (in 2010) to $18,000 in 2019.
Single Home or Building Battery Energy Storage Is Also Available
As with Commercial, Utility-Scale Renewable Energy — To maximize the benefit of a single home or building’s solar collection system, an Energy Storage Battery Device, designed for one home or building can be installed. Tesla, the electric car company, is one of the companies that sell complete Solar Collection Systems + Energy Storage Batteries for single building or home installations.
- Tesla sells Solar Panels that are installed above the home’s roofing.
- Tesla solar panels are all black and have a low profile. These aspects help minimize their appearance.
Click Here To See Tesla’s Solar Panels: Tesla Solar Panels
A key issue when considering solar panels is the orientation of the home. If the front of the house faces south, the panels must be on the front or street side. For some buyers, the look of these panels on the front of the home is simply unacceptable.
Tesla’s Solar Roof looks very similar to typical home roof shingles. On their website, Tesla says their solar roof tiles are in excess of three times stronger than slate or clay roof tiles. In areas where hail is common, this can be a tremendous advantage.
- 1″ or larger hail can damage asphalt shingles
- 2″ or larger hail can damage clay roof tile.
It must be noted that Slate’s ability to withstand hail is based on which of in four classes the slate is:
- Class 1 (resistance up to 1 ¼”)
- Class 2 (resistance up to 1 ½”)
- Class 3 (resistance up to 1 ¾”)
- Class 4 (resistance up to 2”).
Tesla does not note which class of Slate tile they used in the comparison on their website.
Click Here To See Tesla’s Solar Roof: Tesla Solar Roof
Tesla says their Powerwall Energy Storage Battery Device, coupled with solar collectors, can eliminate most home’s need for electricity from the power grid. This is based on a solar collection system and battery storage that is large enough to meet the home’s projected electricity demand.
Powerwall can also detect a power-grid outage. If an outage occurs, the device will disconnect from the power-grid, and use the Battery to power to the home. Without Powerwall, their solar panels or roof shuts down in the event of a power-grid outage.
- Tesla’s PowerWall is an energy storage device with a battery to power the home when the sun is not shining.
Click Here To Learn More About Tesla Powerwall: Tesla PowerWall
NOTE: This is not an endorsement of Tesla products. Tesla was chosen based only upon name recognition and a detailed website. This information is presented only as a courtesy to our readers. Other brands and products of solar collection systems are available.
Beginning on Jan 1, 2020 California Requires All Newly Built Homes Must Be Zero Net Energy (ZNE)
Beginning Jan 1,2020 The California Energy Commission voted to mandate rooftop solar collectors on all new houses, condos and apartment buildings (up to 3 stories tall). These new Zero Net Energy (ZNE) standards are projected to lower the homes’ electricity usage (from the power grid) by 53%. At this time, these new homes can have have a natural gas furnace and water heater.
Zero Net Energy (ZNE) Is Defined As: Over the course of 1 year, the home’s solar installation must add as much electricity the power grid as it takes from the grid — during those times when the home’s electricity demand exceeds the solar installation’s capacity.
California’s new standards are also expected to take steps to reduce or eliminate natural gas heating & water heating in newly built homes. This will be accomplished with larger rooftop solar installations and many new homes will be all-electric once again. With today’s highly efficient heat pumps, electric heating & water heating now produce less than half the greenhouse gas emissions of the most efficient gas furnaces and water heaters.
What’s Old Will Becomes New Again — A 2 Minute Look Into History
A Brief History Lesson About The Construction Surge In America’s Suburbs
And All-Electric Homes
Shortly after World War II ended (September of 1945) a new homes building boom began in the United States. New homes were in high demand by returning veterans and their families. This building boom also ushered in a new location for these homes, the suburbs. 1946-1964 was when the Baby Boomers were born.
The first American suburb built in the U.S. was Levittown, NY. Between the years of 1947 to 1951, Levitt & Sons Homes built 17,447 homes on Long Island, New York. Every home had 2 bedrooms & 1 bath, and included an unfinished attic for future expansion (the homes even included stairs that stopped at the ceiling). These homes were offered only to Veterans, and purchased with a G.I. Bill Mortgage (known today as a V.A. Mortgage). Being in the eastern United States, Levittown NY homes included In-Floor, Hot Water Heat with a heating-oil fired boiler located in the kitchen. They also included; refrigerator, range, automatic washer, and a TV.
Click Here To See A Kitchen In A Levittown, NY home: Levittown NY Home Kitchen
Click Here To See A Heating-Oil Boiler (left of the washer) In A Levittown, NY Home: Levittown, NY Home Heating-Oil Boiler
Shown: Levittown, NY
Image Source: ShutterStock
Click Here To See The Long Line Of People Waiting To See The Levittown, NY Model Home: Line To See Model Home At Levittown, NY
Gold Medallion All Electric Homes Were Built Between The Mid 1950’s Until The Mid 1970’s
Gold Medallion, All-Electric Homes Were Promoted From Mid 1950’s To Mid 1970’s
Image Source: Flickr: Flikr5376672_558ca02eef_z-2.jpg
The Live Better Electrically (LBE) Campaign began in March of 1956, and ended during the mid 1970’s. To Earn A LBE Gold Medallion Emblem, A Home Was Required To Be All Electric. When compared to what most Americans knew about coal heat, electric heat was; clean, required no effort, and did not generate soot or smelly smoke. Thus, an all-electric home came to represent a symbol of modern living. With a nationwide goal of 1 million all-electric new homes, many estimates say that goal was achieved during the lifetime of the LBE campaign.
Before 1950, more than half of existing U.S. homes used coal as their primary heating fuel Coal was an extremely dirty way to heat, with the home’s chimney spewing black smoke & soot during winter. Firing the furnace meant shoveling coal into the furnace as often as every 2 hours. That labor was reduced for those who cold afford a new invention called a “stoker” — that automatically fed coal into the furnace. Regardless of how coal when into the furnace, burnt coal ashes had to be removed from the furnace most every day.
* Source: https://dahp.wa.gov/historic-preservation/historic-buildings/historic-building-survey-and-inventory/live-better-electrically-the-gold-medallion-electric-home-campaign
