[Greenbuilding] bio fuels and ethanol

[Michael Smith]

  I read and learn constantly about all forms of energy for us all. We have many areas. Let's try to look at ways to consume and pay for our usage. Let's also look at the zero (or close to) effects possible with the practical options. 
 Our homes are heated by gas, oil, and electric. 20% of our usage is for heating our homes and water. If we used solar (evacuated tubes) for the primary source, we could use radiant floor heating and store our hot water for 24-48 hour usage. We would save an enormous amount of CO2 and generated power.
  If we used switch grass and the other cellulose types of organic mass (including stalks and other stem material) for our ethanol, we can use the residual wastes there as fertilizers in the cycling process. 
  If we used coal processed into bio-diesel and use the waste as building material for road repair to cement blocks, we could produce the requirements of fuel for the military, the mass transit, the railways and airline industries. 
  The ethanol would be for domestic vehicles, probably Hi-brids.
 The wind and PV industries could be designed to expand the power grid for our growth and the future demands that will be the results of growth. 
 The ethanol production should be done in very specific ways. For example, the raising of meat products should be located near to an ethanol facility. The corn residual would return to the food chain for the meat production and the animal droppings managed as a methanol source to power the operations of the animal farms.     
 The methane problem would be resolved, and the problems of food production would be manageable. 
We haven't even discussed wind farms across rural America, recycling our organic wastes from our own existence, efficiencies in lighting and travel. 
Our dependency of foreign energy sources would decrease with the goal of managing ALL our energy needs here at home. 
The increase in use as time goes on is inevitable. We must be realistic in growth and manage it for all.
As far as solar PV, we can't afford to power our electric grid from solar cells...but we can power a DC fan to move hot air out of our attics and buildings to lower the air conditioning loads. If the sun shines, your home heats up. Use a solar panel to cool it down first and watch your air conditioning bill drop tremendously.
 Use natural light effectively by the use of mirrored walls to bounce the free stuff throughout the house. 
 The most efficient use of florescent bulbs is the long ones with a reflective shield above to direct the upper half of light down around the fixture. They are better than the compacts in that the compacts leave almost half the light inside the fixture. 
 Hope I have made some think more about the right ways to think and not get stuck in the don't drive, don't build mold.