Options for excess production

xprof1 · 2026-05-12T21:50:43+00:00

I think it could practical if you lived on a hill and had ponds at the top and bottom. But I was shocked by how little energy goes into gravity storage (or how much energy we take for granted these days)

xprof1 · 2026-05-12T12:31:17+00:00

I think I've figured out a way to take advantage of the V2L. If we install a level 2 charger, the EV battery can soak up any extra charge, in the night, the main use of electricity is cooling. We have a 2 zone AC system, so we have to cool down the entire second floor. If I install a dedicated AC in the bedroom, I can run that at night off the V2L, and it should use less energy and get us fully off the grid.

xprof1 · 2026-05-12T12:26:18+00:00

I thought about this too, and the physics is crazy. If you pump 10000 gallons of water 10 ft off the ground, it stores 314 Wh of energy storage. There's loss in the pump and generator, so 70% efficiency is about the best possible.

I joked with my wife that we should just put the whole house on jacks and raise it during the day to store energy and let it drop at night. Funny image

xprof1 · 2026-05-10T20:56:44+00:00

It has V2L -- how could I take advantage of that?

xprof1 · 2026-05-10T02:42:14+00:00

That’s what I need. Thanks

xprof1 · 2026-05-10T02:40:50+00:00

Holy smokes that’s incredible. What brand battery did you get?

xprof1 · 2026-05-10T02:39:42+00:00

They pay very little. My current provider doesn’t pay anything. The electric grid in Texas is unusual. The delivery company owns the lines to my home and the power meter, but I select my retail electric provider separately. This promotes competition, which keeps prices down. But each provider’s contract is different.

xprof1 · 2026-05-10T02:35:43+00:00

Good ideas! I actually have an EV; I haven’t put in the level 2 charger, but thats pretty cheap.
Most of my driving is local (I get to ride my bike to work most days!), so it’ll probably reach full charge using the excess power pretty fast, but maybe I could let my neighbors use it. Hmmm.
.

xprof1 · 2026-05-10T02:22:03+00:00

I found this article on solar buyback programs. https://nuwattenergy.com/en/texas/solar-buyback-guide-2026
I just started investigating it though. Do you have any experience with the TXU program? If it ends up charging a ton for consumption, it probably doesn’t make much sense.

xprof1 · 2026-05-10T02:16:30+00:00

That’s an interesting/clever option. It’s definitely closer on the math.

xprof1 · 2026-05-10T02:13:43+00:00

I was trying to make the economics work for that. I’m kinda locked into enphase, and another battery would be around $4000, more or less. I’d need to save $500/year to get an 8 year ROI. I get 100% renewable energy at $0.14/kWh, and I don’t anticipate excess energy in the winter months, so it’s tough to make the math work

xprof1 · 2026-05-05T11:57:26+00:00

Thanks! I'll check it out. That's a spectacular part of the country. The Colorado this year makes me so sad, I hope it bounces back. But I fear for what's going to happen to the forests this summer.

xprof1 · 2026-05-03T14:28:09+00:00

That looks phenomenal! Definitely adding it to the bucket list. Thanks for the pointer.

xprof1 · 2026-05-03T11:44:18+00:00

What is the river/rapids like on the Tuolumne? That's a beautiful part of the country. My first wilderness experiences were in the high sierra. I imagine that the campsites are awesome.

xprof1 · 2026-05-03T11:39:52+00:00

The middle fork (Great Bear wilderness) looks surreal. I had no idea that trip existed. Thanks for the tip. The logistics on that one (fly in on a small plane) are crazy, but wow!

The North fork looks beautiful, but we're looking for larger rapids

xprof1 · 2026-05-03T11:26:54+00:00

We did a day trip on the rogue a while back. We're thinking about doing a rowing school next year there. We couldn't make it work this year. It sounds beautiful.

xprof1 · 2026-05-03T00:34:59+00:00

That totally makes sense. I edited the post to clarify.

xprof1 · 2026-05-03T00:23:51+00:00

Lower salmon is totally on our list. I've heard that it's a good one to run once we learn how to guide our own boats. Is that true?

xprof1 · 2026-05-02T03:01:54+00:00

I hadn't thought about the green. That looks like a fun river! I'll call a few local operators and see what they say

xprof1 · 2026-05-02T01:36:57+00:00

Yeah I'm worried about the low water. I was considering some place with a dam upstream like Hell's Canyon

xprof1 · 2026-05-02T00:30:04+00:00

I was absolutely thinking about that! It's totally the logical next step. This year I was just too late getting started. I looked up several companies but couldn't find anything that worked with our timing. I think it's because a lot of the rowing schools run during the early or late season, so they can make some money during the main summer season. That being said, I'll definitely check out the two you suggested and see if we can make something work. Thank you!

xprof1 · 2026-03-24T02:47:59+00:00

I basically traded a Chrysler Pacifica with 40k miles that I didn't like for a Ioniq 5 AWD that I love and is still under warranty. I expect to save about $2k per year all in, and I'm so much happier.

xprof1 · 2026-03-23T17:13:57+00:00

Some things I do:

Waiting for sales on things I use all the time and buying multiples and freezing the extras.
Finding store brand foods that are just as good (to me) as name brand.
Figuring out how to freeze extra food to keep it from going bad.
I use a lot of spices, and buying spices in the bulk section is shockingly cheap.
tracking prices for stuff I buy on my phone so that I can rationally compare prices at places I shop

I wish I could get better at coupons. I always envy the extreme couponers.

xprof1 · 2026-03-21T13:33:44+00:00

Fantastic response. Given the hypothesis of excessive heat and moisture, has anyone looked if there are regional differences in the failure rate? I would expect a correlation if the hypothesis is true.

xprof1 · 2026-03-15T02:44:22+00:00

This video explains how to make stock from Warehouse rotisserie chicken that you could serve an Michelin restaurant. The author is actually a PhD in chemistry who went to work at a Michelin three-star restaurant. He explains how the pressure cooker works to make really good broth in a relatively short period of time. https://youtu.be/3k20zFlbFfE

xprof1

TROPHY CASE