From: NoSpam@AnonymousP.com
On Thu, 02 Dec 2021 19:23:26 -0500, in alt.energy.homepower you wrote:
>On Thu, 2 Dec 2021 09:08:43 -0500, "Jim Wilkins"
> wrote:
>
>>"ads" wrote in message news:peagqgtsmnuq9b46oev0uikgjv4h3k0clv@4ax.com...
>>
>>On Wed, 01 Dec 2021 09:42:30 -0500, SolutionsDIY
>>...
>>
>>>Easiest "warm" is usually adding layers. An overshirt - something you
>>>like in a size larger than you usually wear - is often the easiet to
>>>find and you'll find lots of things - for women and men - at Goodwill
>>>or the like. In a few months, LLBean and others will be having their
>>>end-of-season sales on winter clothes and that can be a good time to
>>>buy things you wouldn't otherwise consider - my down vest was half
>>>price, as was the lined flannel shirt. I'm an old guy - approaching
>>>80 - and although I still sometimes try to do what I did at 50 my body
>>>refuses and it doesn't produce as much heat as it did when I was that
>>>active :-(
>>
>>Mid-70's here and all I have left from distance running and mountain
>>climbing is sore knees and feet.
>>
>>In "Coppelia" on PBS, the baker was once principal dancer in the Bolshoi,
>>and the girl with glasses is his daughter. It's plain that his legs have
>>given out.
>>
>>I found some nice insulated vests at Goodwill when the stores were out of
>>them. I was looking for cheap work vests, instead I found Eddie Bauer,
>>Vineyard Vines, Columbia etc at <10% of their original price. Washing in
>>cold water with Woolite and air drying on the clothesline didn't hurt the
>>goosedown Bauer. Goodwill has since caught on and raised their prices.
>>
>>>If you have space (windows, patio walkway) for 200+ watts of solar
>>>panels and a 500WH or larger "solar generator", an electric blanket
>>>with a lightweight thermal blanket over it could have you sleeping
>>>warm at night. Part of it is psychological - have the blanket just
>>>high enough for the bed to "not be cold" when you get in it and then
>>>turn the electric blanket down to the minimum needed to keep you warm.
>>
>>A heated pad on the mattress also works well. The one I have (Xmas gift)
>>preheats and then idles at lower power, making it more compatible with the
>>thick down duvet over it if I stay up late.
>>
>>I wish I could recommend solar panels because I've been experimenting with
>>using alternate energy sources to power standard appliances, but so far I
>>can only justify them for power outage backup. They will probably never pay
>>back their cost, mainly because of the expense and fairly short lifetime of
>>storage batteries which are essential for almost all uses, the exception
>>being heating water. Unless you buy an overpriced Jackery or similar power
>>pack, or can modify a jump starter, storage batteries aren't well suited to
>>indoor use.
>>
>>The Alpicool T60 I mentioned is a 12V DC-powered fridge/freezer that's well
>>suited to solar power although it's likely too small to be most peoples'
>>only cold food storage and costs twice as much as a larger compact fridge of
>>similar power consumption. The difference is that the T60 doesn't need a
>>pure sine wave inverter to generate motor quality 120V AC from battery DC.
>>The idling power consumption of my inverter is about as much as the
>>refrigerator it powers, halving battery-only run time or doubling battery
>>cost to reach a run time goal.
>>
>>I've set up a smaller Alpicool C20 to run all day on only solar power. My
>>control circuit for it automatically reverts to grid power if there isn't
>>enough sun, or battery power during a night grid outage. The C20 is small
>>enough to use in the car and can hold up to a week's frozen or refrigerated
>>food.
>>
>>>In your "layers", look for a housecoat that's thick enough to be
>>>considered "a blanket with sleeves" - and get some wool socks.
>>
>>There are actual blankets with sleeves for reading or TV. The Dollar Tree
>>chain sells thick socks of reasonable quality for $1 a pair.
>>
>>jsw
>
>If you're knowledgeable enough to build your own from available parts,
>LiFePO4 cells can make batteries which are good for 5,000
>charge/discharge cycles (about 13 years at one charge/discharge cycle
>per day) at prices comparable to AGM sealed lead-acid batteries
>(what's typically in the older jumpstart packs).
>
>I've done that on a very small scale when the manufacturer wanted $50
>for a replacement AGM battery for a small UPS - more than twice what
>the UPS cost me. The LiFePO4 cells plus a BMS plus tax and shipping
>were under $20 and I spent less than an hour building the battery
>pack. The new battery lasts longer than the original at the same load
>and, at my age, it might be a "lifetime" battery ;-)
>
>If you have some hours of sun available, then solar might be your
>fallback power source. No one who has built even a small solar system
>would say it's cheap - even the solar-charged LED lighting in the shed
>out back was about $200 for parts - but MUCH cheaper than having an
>electrician out to run power under a concrete driveway to get lights
>out there for maybe 20-30 minutes a day.
>
>That "cheaper than" is the key - what would the other alternatives
>cost or are they even available? I can use a kerosene heater for heat
>with zero power needed and I have a place outside to store the
>kerosene (that shed with solar-powered lighting) but that won't work
>for most apartment dwellers.
>
>There are some nice solar-powered air heaters IF your windows are on
>the South side and you're on the ground floor - one design that
>outputs 140F air and doesn't need a fan to move that air through the
>heat box. Those might work for some during the day, but they're not
>any cheaper than solar power unless you can build your own - not
>likely for most in an apartment.
>
>The "low-budget" in the title may limit the OP to plastic film over
>the windows, tape around the door and extra layers. You need more
>details to work out what will work for someone else.
Boy, wish I could afford even a small panel but they're too pricey
here. So will make do with low-tech cheap alternatives. Better than
nothing.
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