(DOE) For run-of-the-river microhydropower systems, a portion of a river's water is diverted to a water conveyance—channel, pipeline, or pressurized pipeline (penstock)—that delivers it to a turbine or waterwheel. The moving water rotates the wheel or turbine, which spins a shaft. The motion of the shaft can be used for mechanical processes, such as pumping water, or it can be used to power an alternator or generator to generate electricity. A microhydropower system can be connected to an electric distribution system (grid-connected), or it can stand alone (off-grid).
Ways to Generate and Save Energy at Home
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NOVEMBER 18, 2009
John Roach, MSNBC

Prepare for battle if you're ready to pull away from the electricity grid and generate at least some of your energy at home. "The first thing you do is make war on consumption," said Richard Perez, the publisher of Home Power Magazine, which guides people through the transition to a life built around renewable energy. "In other words, analyze where you are using electricity and see where you can make it more efficient."
For example, replace old-fashioned incandescent lightbulbs with electricity-sipping compact fluorescent bulbs and junk that 20-year-old fridge for an energy-efficient model.
Once that's done, it's time to integrate the reduced use with at-home energy generation, noted Ren Anderson, a researcher at the Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colo.
Solar power keeps going and going ...
Between 80 and 85 percent of the at-home renewable energygeneration systems installed today are solar panels, which in industry parlance are called photovoltaic modules. "If it is installed properly, it is pretty much a forget-it proposition. There's no maintenance involved, there's no noise involved and it is easily installed on roofs of houses," Perez said.
Incremental advances in solar technology over the years have made today's photovoltaic modules more powerful, less expensive and longer lasting. Warranties offered by many companies last for 25 years, noted Perez, and life-cycle testing indicates many systems will perform for 50 to 100 years. "Just because the warranty runs out doesn't mean the modules stop making power," he said.
Solar water heaters for the masses ... and geeky celebs
Bill Nye the Science Guy stands on his roof in Los Angeles, next to a solar water heating panel. Such heaters sit on roofs and use the sun's rays to heat up water to temperatures hot enough for most basic household needs.
Nye and his celebrity-actor neighbor Ed Begley Jr. are entrenched in a friendly competition over who can outfit their homes with the most environmentally friendlytechnologies. But don't think that solar water heaters are just for Hollywood celebrities.
"It's a snap to put up, and in most places of the U.S. it will supply all the hot water needed for washing, bathing, doing the dishes and stuff like that," Perez said.
A true classic: Passive solar heating
If you’re in the market for a new home and have time to work with an architect, you can take advantage of the millennia-old practice of positioning the home to take full advantage of passive solar heat. The basic concept hasn’t changed much, Perez noted: Use a lot of south-facing windows and not a lot of north-facing ones. That’s the method used in the Lakewood, Colo., home shown here.
In addition, add insulationbeyond standard levels to lock in the heat on cool days. Insulation is measured in resistance to heat flow, known as R-value. An R-value of 19 is standard, according to Perez. Solar homes have insulation with R-values up to 60.
Wind is not always a breeze
There's a ton of energy to be harnessed from the wind, though doing so "is a tough one for individual homeowners because, in most locations, the wind can be somewhat intermittent," said Anderson. In addition, many municipalities have zoning laws that can make sticking a tall tower up into the breeze a challenge.
Nevertheless, some homeowners jump through the regulatory hoops and end up saving a bundle on their electricity bills. For example, Kelly and Lisa Maxwell, shown here, shaved about 50 percent off their monthly bill with this turbine in Oak Hills, Calif., according to a NREL report. "I certainly wouldn't discourage anyone from doing it," said Anderson. "You just need to know going in that you may not have a reliable stream of power."
Micro-hydro: If a river runs through it ...
For people lucky enough to live on property with a river or creek running through it, there's the potential to tap it for electricity. "You can snake a pipe up in there, steal some of the water, run it through a turbine and return it to the creek," explained Perez. "These systems do not dam creeks," he added.
The setups require at least 25 feet of drop and a flow of 10 gallons per minute to generate enough force to drive a turbine. More drop and more flow equals more power.
"Micro-hydro, if you can get it, is the absolute choice because it is the cheapest form of renewable and it is also a 24/7 kind of deal," Perez said.
A Consumer's Guide to Microhydropower Systems
Get earthy to reduce electricity bills
Though the air gets hot in the summer and cold in the winter, the ground temperature stays consistent year 'round, between 45 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit, depending on latitude. Geothermal heat pumps take advantage of this consistency to keep homes comfortable. The systems include a series of water-filled tubes that absorb the earth's heat, plus an electrically driven pump that moves the water into the house.
"In the wintertime, when you want to put heat in your home, the pump is going to extract the heat from the ground loops," explained Evie Sibert with Oklahoma-based ClimateMaster, which makes the pump shown here. "In the summer, when you want to cool your home, the pump is actually removing the heat from your home and putting it back in the ground loop."
Although an electrical source is required, under optimal conditions such systems may use half as much electricity as conventional heating and cooling systems do, according to the Department of Energy.
© 2009 msnbc.com
Reproduced with permission of MSNBC, from 7 ways to generate and save energy at home: Go beyond using fluorescent bulbs and try solar panels, turbines and moren by John Roach, November 17, 2009; permission conveyed through Copyright Clearance Center, Inc.
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