[Ferretlover]

http://www.spiegel.de/international/bus ... 35,00.html

Green-energy provider Lichtblick and German automaker Volkswagen are joining forces and promising to stir up the energy market with an unusual plan. Instead of relying on massive energy facilities, the average consumer may soon have a miniature power station in their basement.

[vision-master]

I like the idea.

[pup55]

The edisonian model of power generation is to have the massive power stations, owned by him, produce and distribute the power, allowing the capital costs to be shared by the customers...

You flip on the little light switch and you do not need to worry about it. It's 99.99% reliable under this business model.

This model of power generation says: You pay the $20K or so for the capital costs, and get to generate your own power, as long as you can get the fuel, like your car, or as long as it does not break down, like your car, and as long as it doesn't conk out, like your car, your refrigerator, your washing machines, or any of a dozen things....you can run your household lights.

But, you don't have to transmit the power, saving the need for all of those expensive power lines, towers, substations and all of that....

The electrification of the rural areas in the 30's was one of the great equalizers in American society. It enormously "improved" as defined my most everybody, the lives of a lot of people especially in the US South, who could otherwise not afford to pay the capital costs up front for their own generator.

So, we will see where it goes. I kinda like the idea personally, but there are some potential problems....such as ultimately having a two-tier society, some of which are livng in the 21st century, and some in the 19th. Just saying.

[PrestonSturges]

It's an idea that has been around since the 1960's, when car engines were better at converting fuel to heat than the best home furnaces

[argyle]

Hi,

There are already micro-cogeneration setups/add-on's available.

Instead of installing a gaspowered furnace, you install a micro-generation that produces 1 kw of electricity for every 3-4kw of heat you need for your home. They can be bio-fuel powered (wood-chips, wood-pellets or bio-oil/bio-gas for example, but most are still natural gas powered.

They run at 85-95% efficiency, so for just heat generation a condensation gas-furnace is more efficient (they are 109%, as they draw heat out of the codensating gasses). However the biggest gain is made in the electrical part, as coal power plants opperate on much lower efficiencies and then you still have transmission losses.
Currently most setups are too large for a well-insulated house (to much heat), but could be and are used for appartment blocks. They are excellent at heating greenhouses. The heat/electircity ratio is perfect, and they actually use the CO2 for the greanhouses (plants need them).

[vision-master]

Pic's?

[argyle]

Pic's?

http://www.aecsmt.be/nederlands/micro_wkk_ecopower.php (this is still a larger/older unit though)
http://www.ineltrasys.com/ (under wkk) you can find more info

[Mesuge]

Interesting, this looks like first real attempt to mass decentralization in this field, although it depends on some semi-centralized supply streams..

Obviously, it will be also a real job provider not a mere paper deskjockeying of the recent past.. Glad, that Germans went ahead with it, I'd bet they will be the last country with manufacturing base standing in any event incl. some wild scenarios out there.

Nice attempt in the area of soft-gliding/landing the peak oil abyss, but what about the U.S./Israeli/Russian/Paki-Indian/Chinese/French/UK/.. nukes, they would feel oh-so lonely in the dangerous world of 8-16% p.a. depletion rates of fosil fuels..

[argyle]

Interesting, this looks like first real attempt to mass decentralization in this field, although it depends on some semi-centralized supply streams..

Obviously, it will be also a real job provider not a mere paper deskjockeying of the recent past.. Glad, that Germans went ahead with it, I'd bet they will be the last country with manufacturing base standing in any event incl. some wild scenarios out there.

Nice attempt in the area of soft-gliding/landing the peak oil abyss, but what about the U.S./Israeli/Russian/Paki-Indian/Chinese/French/UK/.. nukes, they would feel oh-so lonely in the dangerous world of 8-16% p.a. depletion rates of fosil fuels..

one more:

http://www.khlim.be/eCache/6259/Micro-WKK.html

http://www.ecopower.de/
http://www.senertec.de/index.php?id=3&L=1
http://www.otag.de/

[lowem]

What I would really want in my basement is one of these micro-nuclear reactors. One of these suckers in my apartment's basement and we're all set, solar/wind power - or not.

However since I am pretty sure I am in a tiny minority I shall generally shut up about it in polite company until and unless this idea gets a bit more acceptance