'It's a solar-powered apartment': Western University prof's book teaches DIY solar energy projects
Aren Page is living self sufficiently.
"My van is actually a complete integrated off-grid system," says Page, whose journey can be seen @ArenPage on Instagram.
"Essentially it's apartment on wheels and it's all solar. Everything comes from my solar array on the roof, three 100 watt solar panels and it powers my entire system. I water filtration, fans, LED lights, a fridge-freezer combo and outlets to plug in and charge."
As an engineer working remotely in California, Page was able to complete the van himself using the website Appropedia, and a do-it-yourself book called To Catch the Sun.
The book was co-authored by Western University Professor Joshua Pearce, who partnered with Lonny Grafman.
"It's a book that teaches people how to create solar photovoltaic systems for themselves," says Pearce, a professor at Ivey Business School and Western Engineering.Aren Page of California built a solar-powered van as a DIY project. (Source: Aren Page)Pearce says in a single afternoon, you could get enough knowledge to build your own starter solar system.
"If you've never worked with electricity before, maybe you want to start with something really small, like solar charging your iPhone," says Pearce, who estimates that can be done for under a couple-hundred dollars.
"After you kind of get an understanding of it then you can start doing bigger and bigger projects and eventually buildings, houses, farms."
Pearce says solar prices are coming down and this is the best time in decades to act.
"For example, a business may need 10 kilowatts," says Pearce. “The going price is around $3 per watt so that's a $30,000 investment. Many small businesses just don't have that kind of capital, so what the book shows you is how you can radically reduce that capital by installing the system in chunks, kind of as small little building blocks and doing a lot of the work yourself to eliminate more than half of the cost."
Using Kickstarter for this project, they managed to get 440 backers, which doubled their fundraising goal.
The $20,376 allowed them to offer a digital version for free on their website.
"You can have an unlimited resource at your fingertips," says Page. "So if you don't have much capital, you can get your start right there."
To Catch the Sun features design-and-builds for dozens of DIY photovoltaic systems, including:
- small home in a financially rich country
- few homes in a financially poor country
- school rooms and community spaces
- ‘zombie apocalypse’ survival tools
- laptop and cellphone chargers
- tiny home and van living
- glamping and backpacking equipment
- emergency supplies, like powering an oxygen machine during a power outage
- isolated loads, like electric gates, pumps, greenhouse fans, backup generators and telecommunications gear
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.