Solar powered Bitcoin mining!?

[Duane Vick]

It's a giant bird roaster apparently. Birds flying in between the mirrors and the collector are getting scorched from the very high temperatures generated there.

As for cheap electricity, I have 20 acres in Southwestern Utah that is approximately $0.055 per Kw of electricity. Commercial power is supposed to be cheaper. It's rural co-op power so any profit at the end of the year goes back to the customers. Unfortunately, it would cost about $12,000 to get the power extended to my land. I live in Arizona and pay around $0.10 for electricity now. If ever my mining expands into a large scale operation, I would have to move it there.

While it might not be possible to reduce your power costs too much, recovery of the energy output (heat) would be an opportunity to save money elsewhere. Everyone uses hot water in their home. Heat from mining can be transferred to the incoming cold water supply branch that feeds the hot water heater. This way, the water is heated up before hitting the hot water heater. I guess it is a matter of cost but I've always thought that the incoming water that feeds the water heater could circulate through the home and pick up heat in the summer time and be bypassed in the winter time.

[lightfoot]

Useful hashing? That's a new concept, explain.

Heat for house.

[hostmaster]

http://gizmodo.com/the-worlds-largest-solar-plant-started-creating-electr-1521998493?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_facebook&utm_source=gizmodo_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

 

yes solar energyis not new thing . China has great products on solar power.

[lightfoot]

I was talking on a personal level, if someone is lucky enough to have a stream or river running through the backyard they can pretty inexpensively implement a solution that might actually save them some money. 

There is an abandoned dam near my house. I have thought of setting up a wildcat turbine and use it for bitcoin mining. Cops would probably think its a meth lab....

[TheFootMan]

I've looked into the this.  problem is that solar is less cost efficient that electricity coming through your socket, most of the time.

Now, power generated by a water turbine, if you have access to moving water, is another story altogether.

there are a handful of different types of alternative energy, although I still haven't found anything that is more cost effective than power coming in through the sockets already.

could be wrong and if anyone has any bright ideas, I'm all ears.  

[/size]


There is the very important issue of ecosystem impact of the turbines. In the Mekong river for example many people have and will fall into poverty (Because of damming of the river in many key parts, a physical barrier for fish and other such effects) as well as many rare species will disappear (including a dolphin species).

Look it up. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dC07S8QuSlw (Ruthless damming of Mekong river could displace millions)



Nuclear is by far the best option.

Isn't it possible to make both a dam and think of the environment? I guess in places like Mekong, the rich people who build could not give less of a fuck of the environment, that's very sad. The way we treat mother earth will eventually come back to bite us in our ass.

[64dimensions]

The best place on the planet to coin mine has to be Iceland or Greenland where they have 24 hour geothermal power and free air conditioning.

[Phinnaeus Gage]

Every kWh spent for useless hashing == one kid suffering from malnutrition

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEV5AFFcZ-s

FREE Energy baby!

http://thrivedebunked.wordpress.com/tag/thrive-movement/

[Noisskal]

Too much cost !

[Sheldor333]

Not worth it. Simple as that. Solar is still more expensive to produce than conventional electricity production.

[lightfoot]

Depends. I have about 4kw of solar panels outside, some on my main shed, some on a smaller shed, and some sitting around. I used to have them grid-tied, but since my state put in "smart meters" I got a nice letter saying that unless I had them re-installed by a "certified" solar installer my power would be disconnected. This is what we call "one union protecting another", so that is as they say that. Technically with the bitcoin miners I would never back-feed the utility, but I abide by rules.

Oh they also had the gall to send me an "efficiency" letter that I was using 20% more power in the last year. Guess it was the panels. Screw them.

However I can use them to charge about 400ah of 24 volt batteries in the shed (house backup for when we lose power) so I have been re-wiring them appropriately. 24 volts is not as good as 300 volts (what you feed a grid-tie inverter) but it will still work. So this spring/summer I'll try running miners off the panels and see how many I can run with 4kw *5 hours of sun/24 hours a day.

C

[dmartig]

I've looked into the this.  problem is that solar is less cost efficient that electricity coming through your socket, most of the time.

Now, power generated by a water turbine, if you have access to moving water, is another story altogether.

there are a handful of different types of alternative energy, although I still haven't found anything that is more cost effective than power coming in through the sockets already.

could be wrong and if anyone has any bright ideas, I'm all ears.  

[/size]


There is the very important issue of ecosystem impact of the turbines. In the Mekong river for example many people have and will fall into poverty (Because of damming of the river in many key parts, a physical barrier for fish and other such effects) as well as many rare species will disappear (including a dolphin species).

Look it up. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dC07S8QuSlw (Ruthless damming of Mekong river could displace millions)



Nuclear is by far the best option.

true.

I was talking on a personal level, if someone is lucky enough to have a stream or river running through the backyard they can pretty inexpensively implement a solution that might actually save them some money. 

micro hydro is the best form of personal energy generation

[V4Vendettas]

Depends. I have about 4kw of solar panels outside, some on my main shed, some on a smaller shed, and some sitting around. I used to have them grid-tied, but since my state put in "smart meters" I got a nice letter saying that unless I had them re-installed by a "certified" solar installer my power would be disconnected. This is what we call "one union protecting another", so that is as they say that. Technically with the bitcoin miners I would never back-feed the utility, but I abide by rules.

Oh they also had the gall to send me an "efficiency" letter that I was using 20% more power in the last year. Guess it was the panels. Screw them.

However I can use them to charge about 400ah of 24 volt batteries in the shed (house backup for when we lose power) so I have been re-wiring them appropriately. 24 volts is not as good as 300 volts (what you feed a grid-tie inverter) but it will still work. So this spring/summer I'll try running miners off the panels and see how many I can run with 4kw *5 hours of sun/24 hours a day.

C

Hey bud I can see why you are pissed with them but there are some real concerns for not the energy companies but for the guys who work on the grid.  

Self installs can be done exceptionally well and pose no danger whatsoever to anyone but equally these installs can also be done by total idiots. In most case's they have no way of knowing if the system has been linked to the grid or that it may become so when said tinker decides to tinker some more.

As I'm sure you know a system that does not have a self imposed shut down (and very strict rules about starting back up again)  should the grid go out is a major hazard to line workers at least in my country.  

Cool project for the miners tho I did something like this back in 2011. Great way to mine

@dmartig aside from ufo sourced power I agree with you 100% about micro hydro    nothing beats it.