Happy Fourth of July From SGE Solar!
Hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday 🙂
By Danica Bergmann
Summer Movie Night: “Catching The Sun”, a Solar Power Documentary
“Before the Flood” brought all kinds of attention and opinions out of hiding regarding climate change, and spurred an interest and an appetite in the public for environmental filmography; but this Netflix film which premiered in April of 2016 focuses much more specifically on the solar power industry.
Directed and produced by Shalini Kantayya in her film making debut, the film covers a lot of ground in explaining, outlining, and debunking solar energy; it includes a brief history of solar tech in America, as well as a look into solar practices in China, and follows everyone from laborers to politicians to show their respective connections to solar and how it impacts their lives. Best of all, it examines the ideologies behind solar energy- how people assume it will impact the economy, how industries such as oil might continue without solar, how jobs can be created and structured for this upcoming energy field.
In-depth examinations into the solar power industry such as this are a wonderful resource for the general population, to not only help dispel rumors and assumptions but to give a more rounded perspective of how the technology works, how it applies to our economic market, and how it’s influencing the present and the future as well. If you have questions but prefer a more presentation-based format of answers, or just want to inform yourself on this quickly growing industry in the comfort of your home, then this documentary is just about tailor-made for your viewing.
If you liked the overview of “Before the Flood”, but are interested specifically in solar energy and how it has progressed in the United States, I would highly recommend this glimpse into the industry, offering insight and explanation of one of our most plentiful natural resources applied to power the nation.
By Danica Bergmann
Sun Tech: Solar Powered Gadgets For Summer (or any time of year!)
We’re all about solar panels- but you can power far more than your house using energy from the sun! Check out these nifty tools and toys to help you out around the house, the beach, the pool, or wherever your summer takes you!
Solar Speakers – keeps the pool party going without having to trip over cables or change batteries!
Solar Phone Chargers – Incredible affordable and incredibly useful for maintaining your emergency calling ability on off-the-grid adventures!
Solar Headphones – Another convenient way to skip both tangling connection chords AND constantly replacing batteries!
Solar Fans – The one linked here is an attic exhaust fan (keep your upper levels cool and circulating), but porch and even desktop versions exist as well!
Solar Flashlights – Perfect for camping and backpacking, where weight and storage space are key and ditching even small batteries goes a long way! (Plus, you never have to find your way to your tent in the dark!)
Solar Decorations – A way to transform your yard or porch that won’t be heavy on the electric bill, and will stand out to your neighbors and friends!
Solar Keyboard – Even through your office window enough sun can sneak in to power your typing!
Solar Walkway Lamps – I had these along the walkway to my front door growing up, and when relatives come over or when there’s snow and ice everywhere, and especially when little trick-or-treaters come to your door, it’s so nice to be able to light their path!
And just to add in a couple honorable mentions:
–Solar Cookers, discussed in an earlier blog post, use reflection to concentrate heat from the sun on your food and make snacks, no wires or electricity necessary!
-Using the sun’s energy the good old-fashioned way: Gardening! It’s are always a great way to teach kids about plants, give them a project in responsibility (that’s not as expensive or intense as a pet), and for children and adults alike, to grow colorful flowers, tasty herbs, and even fruits and veggies to freshen up the dinner table!
Know of any other useful gadgets or toys that run on sun? Let us know: @SecondGenEnergy on Twitter or on our Facebook page, we’d love to hear from you!
By Danica Bergmann
Summer Movie Night: WALL-E is an adorable way to teach kids (and adults) about environmentalism!
Animation. Cutesy romantic plot line. Futuristic setting. Feel-good ending- this movie is set up as something entertaining for the kids to watch, but ends up being just as engaging for every age. Then again, as a movie produced by Disney & Pixar, that’s about par. Yet the message is rather unique for their style of movies; instead of focusing on anthropomorphic animals and friendly human companions, or kids off on an adventure, or the major plot point centering around love and family, this film focuses on something else entirely.
There’s not much dialogue in WALL-E, and it was originally planned to have next to none. This makes sense when you consider that the movie centers around non-speaking robots who communicate largely on noises, movement, expressions, and perhaps a few “words” that rely on intonation instead of conversation or sentence pattern. But it’s the human subplot that really stops to make you think. Humanity as a whole are the villains at the movie’s start, as they’ve littered so much on Earth that there’s no space or resources left to live on, and now subside in a spaceship where they no longer need to walk thanks to technology and have all become obese and trapped behind screens due to their lifestyles. Now i’m not dissing technology (I can only write and publish this article thanks to modern miracles such as wifi), but to become so dependent upon it as to physically atrophy and to no longer even walk by oneself is quite the situation. And the humans in this movie use technology as an escape- deserting Earth without really knowing if or when it will be inhabitable again, and living in ignorant bliss- sound familiar at all?
Amongst robot antics, the movie ends on a happy note, with humanity reconnecting with nature and with each other sans technology and sand disregard for their home; but on a realistic scale, the happy end wouldn’t hasten to arrive. It may not be our future, or even our kids’ future, but we are headed down a path not dissimilar to that portrayed for humanity in the movie. The sooner we take action, the less of an inevitability this path becomes and the better of a chance we have to preserve what little nature we have left, instead of losing it all entirely. But that’s more my musings than the movie; Pixar keeps things colorful and optimistic, and I love this film for the sense of hope it instills even in the face of such a self-made future.
Check out Vox’s piece along the same lines for more thoughts on the movie’s message!
By Danica Bergmann
Simple Sun Fun: Sunscreen tips and tricks
As much as this solar energy company loves the sun, we can’t ignore that you can have too much of a good thing! Keep sun protection in mind this summer, and keep yourself and your family free from sunburn with these tips for keeping things shaded and safe:
-The FDA recommends about a golfball-sized amount of sunscreen per adult body per application (a little less for small kids), which means ~1/3 of a teaspoon’s worth on the face ; but given that facial skin tends to be more delicate, I would err on the side of more rather than less.
-Also in regards to that space on your face, skincare and makeup brands like Neutrogena make facial sunscreens that are lightweight and less oily so you won’t get clogged pores from being protected; some companies even make foundation, BB creams, and powders with a small amount of SPF in them.
-Why bother with sun protection in your everyday makeup? Because even if the only time you spend outdoors is walking from car to building, that can still affect the skin and accelerate signs of aging such as wrinkles. Also, UV rays can penetrate many types of windows- so that sunlit desk or long commute home at sunset could be doing damage as well.
-Sun Protection Factor, or SPF for short, is a measurement of protection against the sun’s UVA rays. (It also blocks UVB, but this is not measured on a scale and is often blocked ~1/3 the degree of UVB). SPF isn’t a linear scale; SPF 15 blocks 93% of UVB rays and SPF 30 blocks 98%, and anything above that is really negligible. Save your spare change and stick with SPF 30, and just be sure to reapply as religiously as you can.
-Going swimming, or gonna be sweating? Get a sport sunscreen that advertises water resistance, and be sure to reapply every time you exit the pool.
-If you’re going to be outside for long, continuous periods of time, stay out of direct sunlight when you can. Cover your skin with coverups and wraps and your face with wide-brimmed hats and sunglasses for walking around the beach. Bring an umbrella on excursions for static activities like reading, picnicking, and napping.
-Sun around the eyes can cause crows feet and even cataracts, so be sure to save your vision! Always wear sunglasses outdoors. The bigger the better, and go for polarized lenses when possible for driving and filtering out glare.
-Coming inside after a long hot day? Cleanse your skin of sweat and oils, then moisurize to keep things supple. And if you did get burned, aloe helps to cool the heat and keep the skin from peeling. Try to use a brand that doesn’t contain any alcohol – or best of all, grow an aloe plant in your kitchen and break off the leaves to apply the juice as needed.
Stay sunny (and healthy!)
By Danica Bergmann
Sources: FDA, BadgerBalm, Wikipedia
Simple Sun Fun: Solar Cooker
A fun activity for kids over the summer, as well as a handy tool when going camping or getting involved in other outdoor activities, building a solar cooker is a cheap and easy way to spark a child’s interest in renewable energy technology. (It’s also a great way to keep them occupied outside instead of wreaking havoc around the house while they’re out of school!) I made this style of cooker myself in my middle school Tech Ed class, and fondly remember that day- if mostly because we got to eat treats the whole day through! A simple solar cooker like this one can be used for warming up leftovers, melting chocolate for fondue, or best of all, making s’mores with just the right level of ooey-gooey deliciousness- and of course it sure helps keep the microwave clean!
You will need:
- Aluminum Foil
- Cardboard or poster paper
- Scissors/Glue/Tape
- Foods to warm up and enjoy!
First, design and plan what your solar cooker will look like. There’s no single correct way to make it; it functions by the aluminum foil reflecting and concentrating the sun’s rays on a focal point, so feel free to play around with angles- this is a great learning opportunity with mathematical and scientific applications that you can sneak in without the kids knowing that they’re learning outside of the classroom!
Next, assembly. Cut the cardboard out into panels or portions of your design, and cover one side of each piece with aluminum foil- the less wrinkled the better – and secure it with a little glue on the inside and a little tape on the edges. Make sure to have a flat bottom section in the middle, also covered in aluminum, on which you can place the food! Attach everything together with tape, only applying it to the non-aluminum outside to keep the reflective inside, well, reflective (or for larger designs and older, more craft-interested children, attach everything with methods such as staples, glue guns, or hinges).
Finally: Food! Place the cooker in a sunny spot and put your snack of choice inside, and let your meal warm while you play!
Some examples of solar cookers:
The Space Station:
The Big Shiny Bowl:
The Travel Unit:
Have kids experiment with different design ideas to spark creativity (and help them gain a practical understanding of angles and reflection)- or even compete for which child’s cooker is the most efficient!
Bon Appetit!
By Danica Bergmann
Photo Cred (and more info on solar cookers): Nifty Homestead
Summer Movie Night: “An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power” comes out in July!
Al Gore’s film, “An Inconvenient Truth” was eye-opening when it came out in 2006, and today is the tenth largest grossing documentary in the country; and as climate change- centric media tends to turn out, it was loved and lauded by most yet also laughed at by many.
But of those who viewed it, how many took that message to heart? How many of those individuals took action? Has progress been made, or is doom only more closely impending? With the sequel, “An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power” coming out July 28, we may soon get the chance to see where we are, where we’ve been in the past decade, and now how to move forward as the stakes get more tense and the political climate gets more dicey.
Solar energy is something mentioned as a solution across these and other climate films like “Before the Flood”, but many hesitate to turn to this solution due to worries about cost. In reality, solar is far cheaper when you look at the bigger picture; once the panels themselves are purchased and installed, it gives you your own means to generate electricity. This often means little to no more monthly bill, and in some cases depending on your weather and location, you may have the option to either store excess energy in a battery to use on cloudier days or sell it back to the power company for a profit. This means that even though there’s a large upfront cost, you’ll be paid back that price and then some in what you end up saving on energy! And with multiple loan and funding programs available it’s only getting cheaper to save more- in terms of money, energy, and of course, the environment. And if this sequel tells us we need to step up our game (which I think I can safely predict it will) then solar energy is one of the most impactful changes you can make, with some of the best longterm benefits.
A couple other fun tidbits: the film, which has yet to come out, has almost five hundred ratings on IMDB. The voter demographics show that ratings are highest in the youngest age range and decrease with each subsequent age category, which can be easily understood, but interesting to me is that in every single age range, women gave higher ratings than men. Whether this speaks to a gender trend in movie reviewing or a gender gap in environmental activism, I cannot say, but when women are half the population and near nowhere in politics it definitely suggests that a more balanced gender distribution in public office could help push environmental action in this renewable energy enthusiast’s favor.
By Danica Bergmann
Citations:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Inconvenient_Truth
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt6322922/
Photo Cred: Paramount Pictures
Solarize109 brings Solar and SRECS to the masses!
Its official! SGE Solar has launched a regional solar group buying campaign effectively called Solarize109.
SGE Solar, as a service to the public, is administering Massachusetts first regional solar buying campaign. Building on the Solarize group buying model, we’re taking it to the next level!
Solarize 109 will focus on the following towns:
Dedham Westwood Norfolk Dover Medway
Sherborn Holliston Medfield Millis Milford
SGE Solar will be coming to each town hosting info-sessions, solar tours, and offering group buying discounts for solar.
Come and learn more about: Solar and how it works, What solar costs and what you’ll save, what the government will pitch in, if solar works when its cloudy, different types of solar panels, different types of financing, and more!
Hear solar industry professionals talk straight about solar. How does it work? How about shade? What about snow? What does it weigh? How much does it cost? What does it look like? How much do they weigh? Do they really work? What does solar cost? How much will it save me? Are there rebates? (YUP!) Sounds complicated, is it? How do I know if I have a good site? What about my roof? Should I replace it? Is it strong enough? Is it big enough? Come get the answers! To learn more call the Solarize109 folks directly at 508-473-8011 or just submit a contact form and we’ll let you know when we’ll be coming to you’re town.
Before The Flood
Oh my goodness…because of my feminine intuition I know this is truth, but so hard to comprehend. Do whatever you can to limit your personal contribution to the climate emergency.
We are the chosen installer for the Heritage Sands Solar Challenge!
Congratulations to Heritage Sands of Dennis, MA for participating in the Heritage Sands Solar Challenge! We commend Heritage Sands’ dedicated efforts and commitment to conservation, sustainability and solar energy.
We believe that widespread community adoption of renewable solar energy offers solutions to the problems of environmental degradation, climate change, national security and rising energy costs.
We recognize that this is a true collaboration between the community, the developer, and the installer and have an incredible team who are dedicated to widespread solar implementation.