Monday, December 5, 2011 (DF) MANY LEVELS OF SELF-SUFFICIENCY ------part 3

LEVEL V: Energy provides a particularly tenacious set of challenges for self-sufficiency. As a society, a nation and as individuals, we are addicted to energy. Level five is about providing our own energy for heat, appliances, lighting, technology, motor fuel, etc., without dependence on others.

Lets start with electricity. Electricity is easy to produce, as any high school science student will agree. Simply stick two metal spikes of appropriate material in a potato and hook up the wires. A very small electrical charge will be produced. This process was also done in ancient times in the form of what archaeologists refer to as Baghdad Batteries, which consist of large earthenware vessels filled with wine vinegar. Electrodes were then placed through the lid into the vinegar. These apparently produced enough power to electroplate gold. However, neither of these methods efficiently produce enough electricity for practical use with most modern appliances.

Solar and wind are reasonable alternatives, and they are both free and reasonably constant. Add to that the consideration that the main equipment can be assembled by the average do-it-yourself-er in the garage and this seems to be the answer. ONLY ONE PROBLEM! I can not (nor do I know anyone who can) make all the components from scratch. So much for true self-sufficient electricity. I am still looking for a way, though I can't make appliances to run on it either.

Motor fuels are another challenge. Gasoline engines, I am told, can be adjusted to burn pure ethanol, AKA any good 190 proof grain alcohol. Before you break out the old distillation unit, consider how much of your production will have to be used for producing the plant material for ethanol production, and if you don't use a solar still, you will use yet more of your product to cook off the next batch. Also, with most modern engines, ethanol can cause problems, so use an older engine if you choose this alternative.

Bio diesel is great. It is made from cooking oil, treated with chemicals (methanol among others) to make a fuel that can be used in diesel engines. Non-petroleum, environmentally friendly, cheap to produce and can be done at home. Where is the problem with this? Production of methanol and other chemicals at home, in a sustainable way is out of reach for most of us. Also, there is the same problem as with ethanol, you have to use too much fuel to produce the cooking oil in the first place, so still not self-sustainable.

Fuel for cooking and heating is simple enough. Options include nice, clean burning methane, and of course, wood. Though methane is naturally produced by the bacterial breakdown of organic matter, it is difficult to safely produce in sufficient quantities for reliable, continuous use by individuals in a self-sustained way. Not that it can't, or shouldn't be produced. It is a good alternative, but without equipment components manufactured to reasonable standards, safety is a serious issue. Please don't be discouraged if this is something you want to do, just do the research and get good equipment.

That brings us to plain, old fashioned firewood. Certainly one of the oldest (if not the oldest) fuels used by humans on this planet. What could be more simple or sustainable than wood? This is probably the most natural and reasonable of all possible choices of fuel for self-sustained living. There is a problem however, and that is the harvesting of this wonderful fuel. Unless you have a readily available supply of wood that is small enough to be manually broken into short enough lengths for your facilities, or you are prepared to cut it with stone tools you have made, (possible but difficult) you will have to rely on some type of saw. This will at best have been produced in a factory somewhere, and if it is a chainsaw we are back to the question of motor fuel.

Peat, in areas where it is readily available, is a good source of fuel for heat and cooking, as it can be harvested by hand with simple tools in sufficient quantity. Those of us who live too far from the nearest peat bog simply have to make do with less simple fuels.

I almost forgot to mention coal. It is an excellent fuel for heating, cooking, and my favorite, forging metal in the blacksmith shop. It is, unfortunately, not readily available in many areas, though where it can be found naturally without mining, it does lend itself to self-sufficiency.

Please don't get discouraged. I am not saying that any or all of these (and many other) options won't work or shouldn't be pursued. Each has its own merit and validity. I am simply pointing out that none of them are readily adaptable to a self-sustained lifestyle, especially for individuals or very small groups.
I look forward to your input, and hope you will bear with me a bit. Hopefully, level six will be a bit more encouraging.

(DF) THE NECESSITY OF ALTERNATIVE ENERGY IN A SELF-SUSTAINING LIFESTYLE

***advance soap box warning*** This is a subject I am likely to get adamant about, so if I get on my soap box and rant and rave a bit, please bear with me. The points I will try to bring forward may be of interest.

In a society such as ours, where electricity has been readily available for many years, far too few people can remember not having it readily available. All sorts of appliances and electronic gadgets fill most homes, some very convenient, others merely annoying. Unfortunately, many of these appliances and gadgets have come to be considered a necessity of life.

This brings us to the real point of this post; energy dependence and the power utility companies have over our lives. Anyone on the grid depends on the power company to provide power to run the aforementioned electrical equipment, (thus the energy dependence). The power the utility company has over us is simple, you pay the company or they cut of the power. In most cases the company you get your power from is the only game in town, so you can't shop around; you simply pay what they ask, or do without.

Friday, the mail carrier brought me a strong reminder of just such facts in the form of my electric bill. Finances being what they are, I had paid the last bill a couple of weeks late, but still before receiving the next bill. It seems I had been one day late a couple of other times in the past year, so my bill now includes a new deposit. This deposit amounts to about four average months of electric usage above the regular charges, so my bill this time is five times the normal bill.

When I consider that I have paid my electric bill every month for the past 25 years without once having my power cut off for non-payment, this seems a bit like an insult. It is nothing personal, of course, this is the way they treat anyone who is late, with no consideration of circumstances or how good the customer has been.

The question is; What can we do about it? The answer is simple; give up electricity or get it somewhere else. But wait, they are the only game in town. Or are they? Fact is, I like a hot shower as much as anyone, and a freezer is nice, (especially when there is plenty of meat). I also enjoy having the fridge, lights, well pump and without the computer I would not be getting this information to you. The welding machine and a wide variety of power tools also come into the mix making the lack of electricity more than a minor inconvenience.

Alright, enough of the soap box. The fact is that it doesn't matter if the way things are currently handled is right or wrong, convenient or inconvenient. This is the way it is RIGHT NOW and it is up to each individual to decide how to, (or whether to), change it for themselves.

For some time, I have been looking for information on alternative energy. There is a flood of information on the net and it can get a little confusing, but the search can be worth it. There are also people out there who have put together courses on about anything you could ask for, but be careful to check reviews. There are always those who are just out for a buck mixed in with those who are legitimate. My main focus on alternative energy has been in the areas of passive solar, solar electric and wind. I am hearing some talk of geothermal but haven't checked into it yet. I have also checked into methane production, but it is pretty dangerous if not done properly, so be careful if you take this path.

Of course, there is the alternative of learning the techniques for living without electricity. I have taken this path in the past and am not opposed to doing it again, if need be, but a little preparation would certainly be in order before making such a drastic shift. Heating and cooking with wood heat, pumping water by hand and washing clothes by hand require some work but are not that bad. Preserving all the food one normally puts in the freezer, and keeping things from spoiling that would normally be in the fridge takes some planning and research. Working with manual hand tools instead of power is a whole set of skills unto itself.

Bottom line: Whatever choices we make, our level of self-sufficiency and, to some extent, our freedom depends on the power company and how we choose to deal with them.