Creative Energies Blog

As my internship winds down, I am able to reflect on my experiences with Creative Energies and realize how much work I did this summer.  It has been an amazing experience for me here in Lander.  I have worked on 14 jobs as well as several office projects that I completed while not in the field.  One job that stood out for me was working on the PV install at the Pioneer Senior Center in Marbleton, Wyoming. This was the largest project I was involved in which involved installing 112 modules between 2 arrays. It was a great learning opportunity for me because I was able to see how these systems were installed at a larger scale and the different techniques that are used when dealing with larger systems like these.

I wanted to work for a renewable energy company this summer for several reasons. The most important reason being that I wanted to gain experience in the field that I plan on getting into after I graduate this May. Networking is another reason why I wanted to work for a renewable energy company. It is an important to get your name out there when finding any job because the more people that know who you are the more likely you are to have a job opportunity arise. I also realized the need to gain experience in this field because although studying this is college is important getting real work experience is even more important. Overall this has been an amazing opportunity, which I have taken full advantage of, and not only have I gained experience but I have made friends that I will stay in contact with in the future. 

We have solar panels on our barn. When the sun is out the panels make electricity - kilowatt-hours (kWh). Our home either uses the kWhs or puts them into the electricity grid, banking them for later. Over the course of a year the sun meets about 70% of our electricity needs. The 25-year warranty on the panels plus a continuing effort at energy conservation (more efficient appliances, lighting, and computers/electronics, etc.) means our energy usage could still decrease over the next 30+ years!

When my wife and I moved into our current home we averaged about 1,100 kWhs/month for the first year, right in line with the Idaho residential average of 1,078 kWhs/month. (Check here for a wealth of energy statistics:  http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/state/index.cfm. We then focused on conservation measures. We changed light bulbs, replaced an ageing refrigerator, spray-foam insulated the crawl space, plugged holes, and went down the list of normal energy efficiency improvements. We were also more conscious about turning off lights, using our wood stove and keeping our baseboard electric heat turned off. All of the little measures led to a 40% energy use reduction! We used 660 kWhs/month that year. (Which is below the Wyoming average of 871 kWhs/month, and less than half of the Jackson average of 1,500 kWhs/month!)

Our next step was to install a 2kW solar electric system. It makes just less than 300 kWhs/month, which leaves our current energy purchase at around 400 kWhs/month. (Note: we actually have two houses on the property, both on the same meter - I figure the smaller rental home uses around 250 of those kWhs a month at least.)

So in the end, we took 60% off our energy use from the time we moved into the home. First we did normal improvements, and then we installed a solar electric system. If we keep working at it, we should be able to reduce even more. The rental home needs some energy efficient improvements – which is our next target.

We have fixed most of our electricity costs for the long term, become less dependent on others, and reduced our impact on the world (0.8 lbs of CO2 per local kWh = 100 tons of CO2 saved!).   We have also saved money. Using 8,400 kWhs less per year for the next 30 years is $18,000 at current electricity prices! That’s $600 a year! If the cost of electricity goes up in the future, we save even more.

Green = Green. 

On March 21, in celebration of the Spring Equinox, Creative Energies staff members AJ Linnel and Scott Kane raced as a two-person team in the 12 hour Equinox Ski Challenge in West Yellowstone, MT. The object of the race is forteams to ski as far as they can in the allotted time. AJ and Scott tookturns through the day and long into the night and finished with a tally of 184 kilometers.  - Scott Kane 

by Jake MacArthur

Given the current economy and local interest in renewable energy, we are frequently asked, “Are you busy?”  Well, this question can be difficult to answer at this time of year.  After an extremely hectic Fall that bled into January, we have completed most of our installation work.  In general, installation in Wyoming and Idaho is difficult during the heart of winter – temps are below freezing and feet of snow rest upon the roofs.  Additionally, the winter offers us the perfect respite to catch up on other aspects of the business.  We refine our systems, reorganize our shops and prep materials for the summer.

Scott and Andy have been busy refining business documents and working on marketing projects.  Toby and Curtis are finishing up a few heat pump projects and also designing systems for the Summer.  Phil and Jake have been improving spreadsheets, consulting and designing a number of residential and commercial-size projects, and staying busy with drawings.  Joel, AJ, and Tracy continue to do occasional install and service work.  And, of course, Cheryl is working hard to manage the residual office chaos (ahh, tax time).

Nonetheless, the phone is steadily ringing, projects continue to roll in, and we are anticipating a great summer.  Even with the down turn in the economy, there continues to be excitement towards renewable energy!

by Molly Loomis

350-  so what? 350 Creative Energies customers? Nope. Keep trying. 350 wind
turbines waiting installation in Wyoming or 350 reasons to buy a hybrid?
Wrong. That’s 350 parts per million (ppm) of carbon dioxide in our
atmosphere—the upper limit of what scientists consider safe for avoiding
catastrophic climate change.

It’s also the name of leading environmental journalist and organizer of
2008’s Step It Up campaign, Bill McKibben’s urgent call to arms for the
reduction of our atmosphere’s current carbon dioxide levels from 387ppm down
to 350. Step It Up was America’s largest protest against global warming to
date but McKibben hopes that 350 “actions” will dwarf that.

Visit the website, www.350.org , to find out how you can help and organize
an action in your area which will help spread the word about this crucial
number and how it effects us all. It could be as simple as sending the
information to everyone on your email list or more involved like organizing
an event in your community- 350 people gathered to reduce carbon emissions,
350 miles bike ride relay- whatever!

At the end of 2008 world leaders will be gathering in Poland for the UN
Climate Change meeting. It is essential that we pressure US leaders to get
on board and move forward rather than maintain our level of involvement per
the Kyoto Protocol.

Visit 350.org today!

Last week, Scott Kane and I delivered a wind turbine that is going to be installed at the Rocky Mountain Oilfield Testing Center (RMOTC).  This is a federal facility that falls under the Department of Energy.  All types of prototype techniques and facilities are tested here, and Scott and I had the opportunity to check out one of the latest installations.  It is a low-temperature geothermal electricity generation facility.

When oil is removed from the ground, large quantities of water frequently come with it.  In addition, that water can be quite warm.  Nearby this facility is a well that produces 30,000 barrels per day (if my memory is good) of water that is 180-190 degrees F.

This water is not hot enough to be steam on it’s own and turn a turbine for electricity generation.  However, the water is hot enough to boil a fluid with a lower boiling point, in this case this fluid is isopentane.  The boiled isopentane is at a high enough temperature and pressure to turn the 250 kW turbine in this installation.  The isopentane is then condensed back into a liquid through the cooling towers, and the loop continues.

The facility is operating above expectations already, and the hot water flow must be controlled so as not to overwhelm the generator.  Particularly, at night, the isopentane is cooled to a lower temperature than during the day, so even more energy is available with the phase change to a gas.  Not a bad problem to have, as long as you have the generator to keep up with it.  These are the types of operational realities that can be learned through testing like this.

There are many sources of “low-temperature” geothermal waters like this around the world.  This type of geothermal electricity generation could be a significant piece of the energy pie in the future.