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‘If 1.5m Germans have them there must be something in it’: how balcony solar is taking off
(www.theguardian.com)
this post was submitted on 18 Dec 2024
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Why is a utility interconnect for rooftop solar a big process, but balcony solar is just plug in? Simply a matter of scale / reduced risk of electrocuting line workers? No net meeting for balconies?
Adding solar so simply sounds great.
The balcony ones are usually lower power a set (500W to 800W).
The higher the power, the higher the current given the fixed voltage. You'll need thicker wires, different breakers, better heath insulation, etc.
Then there's the jackass enthousiasts that plug 5 of these things into a single extension cord to take into account.
If humans can build huge swaths of development and buildings and constructions in every major city all over the planet ... then I think we can make an effort to at least cover a good percentage of it with solar panels. The majority of us build shelters to avoid the sun anyway ... we like the sun but only for short periods during the day. So why not build shelters, homes, buildings, coverings, everything out of solar panels. Instead of deflecting all that energy, collect it and make it useful.
Given the higher cooling demands during summer in more and more places, awnings are a good idea. These are specifically designed to capture the sunlight, hence it would perhaps follow that making these solar panels would be a good idea - solar awnings.
I think of that kinda pic every time I'm on a plane.
That seems like a bad idea unless we figure out a good way to fix the albedo problem that is apparently worse than ever
They're saying to cover the stuff that's already there, not to build new solar cities
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-31558-z
The albedo does have an effect, but not much of one. If we were to supplement every household with the ~30% solar power this article suggests, it would be a massive improvement and far outweigh the costs of the albedo.
Especially when you consider looking at the average city from above .... the surface is almost 70 to 80% either asphalt or concrete. The average city is literally just a giant solar heat collector. If we didn't do anything about solar panels ... it would be just as efficient if we figured out how to just heat water and use the steam power instead.
I think it's a matter of scale. Electrocution of line workers, the home owner or renter should be prevented by an automatic disconnect switch (in/before the inverter of the balcony solar system). Without that switch you could have power on the pins of the plug, and that would be very dangerous.