Borrowing electricity from the power company.

Red1966 said:
Fuel cells are great if you have piped in gas. Less so if using bottled gas.
Click to expand...

Very true. It's not a panacea but it does solve more performs than it creates... about damn time, considering what a mess the energy industry is making of our planet.
 
ttystikk said:
Very true. It's not a panacea but it does solve more performs than it creates... about damn time, considering what a mess the energy industry is making of our planet.
Click to expand...
The users are just as culpable as the producers. They only produce because we pay them to.

I understand site operated fuel cells produce power slightly cheaper than utility companies sell it for, but if the fuel has to be trucked in the savings disappear. Don't know if eliminating government subsidies would turn that around, tho.
 
QUOTE="MrStickyScissors, post: 11825252, member: 233438"]deep...[/QUOTE]
LOL !

Whaddya expect with a provocative title for a post like this !
Your'e bound to get the 'philosophical perspective' from some, after all, there a lot of people on here that do drugs...!
Funny as f**k tho......:-D
:peace:
 
narkush said:
QUOTE="MrStickyScissors, post: 11825252, member: 233438"]deep...
LOL !

Whaddya expect with a provocative title for a post like this !
Your'e bound to get the 'philosophical perspective' from some, after all, there a lot of people on here that do drugs...!
Funny as f**k tho......:-D
:peace:
Click to expand...

I do my best engineering after smoking a good bowl!

If it's good enough for Carl Sagan...
 
ttystikk said:
LOL !

Whaddya expect with a provocative title for a post like this !
Your'e bound to get the 'philosophical perspective' from some, after all, there a lot of people on here that do drugs...!
Funny as f**k tho......:-D
:peace:
Click to expand...

I do my best engineering after smoking a good bowl!

If it's good enough for Carl Sagan...[/QUOTE]
I know a few people that rip shit apart but they don't put it back together. Also after a good bowl heheeheh
 
Red1966 said:
The users are just as culpable as the producers. They only produce because we pay them to.

I understand site operated fuel cells produce power slightly cheaper than utility companies sell it for, but if the fuel has to be trucked in the savings disappear. Don't know if eliminating government subsidies would turn that around, tho.
Click to expand...

Government subsidies only keep fuel as cheap as it already is. Ending them would send the price of all fossil fuels way up.

Yes, we users create the demand- and so to be responsible citizens, we should demand the most environmentally sound solutions we can.

Fuel cell cogeneration in people's homes would save a lot more power than you're giving them credit for; in addition to free heat for home and hot tub as a byproduct of electrical production, one needs to keep in mind that these watts traveled nowhere to get to their destination- and therefore half didn't dissipate. Further, they're displacing the need for watts that otherwise would have had to travel further and dissipate more. This makes the fuel cell at home worth basically double its installed output from the grid and utility's perspective.

As you can see, fuel cells, especially in the home will dramatically reduce the environmental footprint of energy production, distribution and usage.

Add solar power and (with appropriate legislation to require utilities to buy back power from consumers) you might be able to sell more energy back TO the utility than you're used to buying FROM them now!
 
Last edited:
ttystikk said:
Government subsidies only keep fuel as cheap as it already is. Ending them would send the price of all fossil fuels way up.



Add solar power and (with appropriate legislation to require utilities to buy back power from consumers) you might be able to sell more energy back TO the utility than you're used to buying FROM them now!
Click to expand...
Not taxing your expenses isn't a subsidy.
Federal law already mandates utilities buy power from consumers. Some even pay "net" metering rates, which means they are paying more for consumer generated power they they pay to produce it themselves.
 
MrStickyScissors said:
I know it is kinda taboo among growers, but fuck it, I'm going to bring it up anyway. Has anyone every taped into the grid and bypassed the meter? I have a friend that say's hes very good at it. Just curious if it's even possible. Not that I'm going to do it, because that would be wrong. But ya know, just curious.
Click to expand...
People have, not me.
It is possible, but illegal and more so than growing weed with a stiffer penalty.
 
Red1966 said:
Not taxing your expenses isn't a subsidy.
Federal law already mandates utilities buy power from consumers. Some even pay "net" metering rates, which means they are paying more for consumer generated power they they pay to produce it themselves.
Click to expand...

From my understanding, the purchase requirement is pretty small. Too small in many places for a sizeable fuel cell installation. I do hope I'm wrong on this!

Anyway, you're strengthening my argument for fuel cell heat and electrical energy cogeneration at home as a legitimate and desirable upgrade to the nation's installed power infrastructure.
 
Im sorry i brought up the tesla thing guys. Didn't mean for it to spin in a political discussion. I was thinking about something else. Just trying to help the op.
 
ttystikk said:
From my understanding, the purchase requirement is pretty small. Too small in many places for a sizeable fuel cell installation. I do hope I'm wrong on this!

Anyway, you're strengthening my argument for fuel cell heat and electrical energy cogeneration at home as a legitimate and desirable upgrade to the nation's installed power infrastructure.
Click to expand...
That would probably be because I agree that fuel cell generation is a viable alternative in many cases.
 
MrStickyScissors said:
I know it is kinda taboo among growers, but fuck it, I'm going to bring it up anyway. Has anyone every taped into the grid and bypassed the meter? I have a friend that say's hes very good at it. Just curious if it's even possible. Not that I'm going to do it, because that would be wrong. But ya know, just curious.
Click to expand...
Dont do it. It is not worth the bullshit if you get caught doing it . I know a guy who has gotten away with it for years, I know a guy who got 45 days free before they busted him. Just pay for it and be a happy grower
 
MrStickyScissors said:
I know it is kinda taboo among growers, but fuck it, I'm going to bring it up anyway. Has anyone every taped into the grid and bypassed the meter? I have a friend that say's hes very good at it. Just curious if it's even possible. Not that I'm going to do it, because that would be wrong. But ya know, just curious.
Click to expand...

It is possible and easy in theory, but very difficult in reality. You CAN do it with an overhead service but they will see it if they open the meter and you'd have to either un additional conduit out of the meter (dead giveaway) or ram it in the existing conduit if its big enough, which is not good. Underground service it can be done where the meter would look normal if opened. They'd literally have to dig up their lines to know for sure it was being tapped off and not a damaged conductor inducing voltage to ground which would explain the lost power at your location.

You simply add an additional wire going into your house and connect them to the incoming lines, before they go through the meter, leaving the existing lines so the meter does read some usage. the current flowing though the new wires will not be read by the meter, but utilities can see it in their lines. there are some major hurdles - for one it has to be done live. You'll need balls and steady hands, or some arc flash gear, and/or insulated cable cutters. The lugs cannot fit a second set of wire in them, so you must cut the wire and add in a 3 set screw lug or something equivalent to split EACH wire 3 ways. Next issue - a tamper proof seal/tag utilities keep on the meters everywhere I've ever been. if you remove it, which you have to to open the meter hub, you are subject to a hefty fine which varies depending on location. And they will then be suspicious of you. They still come to physically read smart meters at least once annually and if they see the tag is gone or damaged they will most likely report it.

The problem with stealing power is you need to be stealing a lot for it to be worth the risk of fines and conviction. If it's enough to be worth it for you to steal, it's enough for utilities to a) notice the missing amount and b) investigate the cause. It it's a lot they will dig up their lines, say your stealing 2k a month that's $24,000 a year, costs them less to pay their workers (very well) to dig it up and replace the $300 worth of cable and then, oh wait jimtom, what do we have here? taps that bypass your meter going into your home, hrmmmm! I knew I smelled dank...
 
So easy to get caught these days ...maybe OK say back in 05?
but now with digital tracking and smart meters its just a matter of tics tocks,
that turn into the sounds of a jail door being slammed shut

as every electrical system bleeds a little of, even the power meter is running on power ...you have paid for,
not the power company, so they know exactly how much waste exisits in you zone(neighborhood) any time in the last 99 years and in all weathers
including new subscription(customers) and their pay records
 
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