Your Questions About Wind Generators For Home
Sandra asks…
Are we being gouged by the electric company?
I’ve noticed a new charge on our electric bill called PCA. It was explained that it stands for Power Cost Adjustment, which varies from month to month to compensate for the regular fluctuations in the price of the coal and natural gas used to generate the electricity you consume.
What a crock! Our house is totally electric. Our last bill was $423.00 for the electricity…the PCA charge was $268.00. Doesn’t the cost of the electricity already factor in the cost of making it? But now we have to pay for it to be generated. I think a wind generator made specifically for one home‘s electrical needs would be money well spent. Any ideas if this PCA charge is legal? Any ideas on where we can find alternate sources of electricity for our home? As high as the bill is, we’re going to be left in the dark anyway.
admin answers:
The state review board is looking into it to decide if the price hike is legal. Unfortunatly it could take up to three months to decide if it is legal.
Laura asks…
I would like to work in the field of alternate energy (sell, install, educate). What should I major in?
My husband and I would like to start a business involving alternate energy. We would like to sell and install wind generators and solar panels in homes, and possibly grow into building eco-friendly homes. My husband wants to do all the business stuff (selling, etc) and I would like to learn more about it from the scientific stand point. The problem is, I’m looking at colleges and I’m not sure what I could major in. I would like to go to Univ. of Oklahoma since I live close by, but looking at their majors, I’m not sure they have anything even close. Anyone have any suggestions?
admin answers:
Are you good with math and sciences? You could go about this two different ways. You could go the more techincal route or you could go the more hands-on route.
If you are more techincal you could look into going into Electrical Engineering. This is not an Easy major so you would have to consider that in most cases this a 4-5 year investment. However you would learn about most of the principles behind how we generate, route, and use electricity. You would also learn the skills needed to design some of your own ideas. If you don’t have 4 years to spend learning. This may not be an option. Electrical Engineering requires you to go through all of the maths… (algebra, trig, Calc 1-3, Differential Equations, etc…) also all of the basic sciences, Chemistry, physics, thermo dynamics, etc.. And then onto your EE courses. Once you have your batchelors degree you can take your EIT (engineer in training) test or equivalent. After a few years experience you can then apply to take the PE (professional Engineer) test which would allow you to design, build, and sign off on projects. (a requirement in most states)
Another route would be to go to a 2 year Tech school for electronics or to be an electrictrian. These would give you a more hands-on knowledge of how physically connect and work on the devices you are interested in. You may not learn how to design a system but you could sure hook one up. This may require you to get an apprenticeship with an established electrician but it would provide good experience.
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