Dump Load and Waste Heat

Another primary source of heating for the home is the renewable electrical system's air resistance dump load. This is not a very significant source of heating, and it is intermittent and unpredictable. The wind generator-PV panel hybrid system produces variable quantities of electrical energy throughout the day and year. I sized each - the wind generator and PV panels - so that each could provide individually on an average day practically all of the home's electrical energy needs on a low energy usage day. Because the majority of days are 'average' days for both the wind generator and PV panels, my electrical system is almost always producing significantly more electrical energy than I consume. The power center, the electrical control box that monitors the electrical energy coming from the wind generator and PVs and the battery state of charge and turns the wind generator and PVs on and off as required to prevent battery overcharging, has the option of connecting a dump load where excess energy can be diverted to and used. If this option is not used, the power center simply turns off the PVs and/or the wind generator, and that excess electricity goes completely unused. The dump load not only helps regulate excess electrical nergy flows, but it also allows that energy to be put to good use. My 24VDC 1000W resistance air heater dump load is not yet connected. I will do this soon. It will be located in the central bedroom next to its entrance door. Unfortunately, I will only be able to use this dump load for about five months out of the year; using it from mid-spring to mid-fall would cause chronic daily overheating of the interior and simply be an annoying, uncomfortable waste of electrical and heat energy.

Another small primary source of heating is waste heat. A number of things within the house produce waste heat that gets transferred to the home's interior air. There are electrical sources. These sources include the refridgerator, which pumps heat from its interior and expels it into the kitchen air. The small electrical grill oven, which leaks some heat into the kitchen during cooking. The same holds true for electric toasters, water kettles, etc. Home entertainment equipment also give off some waste heat when on. This includes televisions, DVD players, laptops, stereos, etc. The small transformer cubes that usually come with electronics are usually quite inefficient and the electrical energy losses are converted into waste heat. The electrical wiring and electrical socket connections also produce some amount of waste heat. Light bulbs do as well, including CFLs (but much less than incandescents). Another source of waste heat is from the butane gas system. Whenever the gas stove burners are lit and cooking, some of that heat goes to heating the air. The same happens when the gas demand water heater is lit. Another source is from hot water. Whenever hot water is used, for dishwashing, showers, baths, shaving, etc., part of the heat of the hot water flows to the colder surrounding room air. Another source of waste heat is living being. My wife and I put off waste heat constantly, as does my house dog. Furthermore, my wife and I frequently like to have some candles on at night, and virtually all of the energy consumed is converted directly into heat.