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RAINBOW POWER COMPANY LTD
E-mail newsletter #72
3 June 2004
CONTENTS:
1. WEBSITE
2. NATURE LOO COMPOSTING TOILETS
3. ‘CPAP’ (Constant Pressure Air Pump)
4. JUNE SPECIAL
1) WEBSITE: We are continuing to add significant amounts
of
information to our website. If you want to get on your soapbox and
express an opinion, check out our Forum-BBS. At your suggestion, we
will soon add a What’s New Section, so you now can see what is actually
new!
I am also keen to expand the educational content of
our website. So if
you have any articles, essays or theses that you wrote and would like
published on our site, please let me know. We can accept most formats
including Word, Word Perfect and PDF. I am happy for you to leave your
name and contact on it, if you like. I am interested in articles about
Renewable Energy, eg, solar, wind, hydro, methane production, composting
toilets, solar cookers, etc.
I am also building up our Links page, so if you know
of any good
websites you’d like to suggest, let me know. For example, I recently
added a link where you can download a free 240-page book for Renewable
Energy teachers (grades 6-12).
2) NATURE LOO COMPOSTING TOILETS: We now stock Nature
Loo’s whole
range. It is possible to purchase individual components if you are
making up a ‘homemade’ or especially modified toilet for your
self – eg,
you can purchase the pedestal, etc, separately on request.
3) CPAP: With our ageing population, a condition called
Sleep Apnea is
becoming more prevalent. A typical symptom is excessive snoring, which
can be very disturbing to any partners.
CPAP machines (Constant Pressure Air Pump) are sometimes
prescribed to
alleviate the condition by delivering a constant pressure of air through
a hose and mask while you sleep.
Unfortunately, these devices use a reasonable amount
of power. We
measured the current on the 12V side of a 240V inverter using a Resmed
model. It used 5.1 Amps when running at 9cm of water pressure. The
Wanderer Magazine recently published an article where the current on
another unit was measured at 6 Amps.
A 5-6 Amp current at 12 Volts for several hours is a
reasonable load –
if it is running for say 8 hours each evening, you would need around
a
120W Panel to keep your battery charged. This would, of course, depend
on how much sunshine you were getting in your area.
The good news is that the article’s author found
a 12 Volt model that
only uses 1.5 Amps which is about a quarter of the power (depending on
the setting). They can be purchased through Sleep Easy.
If you want to use one on a Renewable Energy system
(perhaps on a mobile
home), we suggest you first seek appropriate medical advice. Then you
can contact us for advice about how to keep it powered up!
4) JUNE SPECIAL: Get 5 Watts for free by purchasing a Kyocera 125 Watt
solar panel for the price of a 120 Watt panel! These are an A grade
panel with the full Kyocera 25-year warranty. These modules come with
flying leads with quick connectors (designed for series connection).
You’ll need a little
J Box/connector to attach your regulator/battery cables to these leads.
That’s all for this month folks! Your comments
and questions are most
welcome; however, there is no need to send our newsletter back to us
when you reply! If you would like a price or product information, please
tell us which country you are from if it is not evident from your e-mail
address. This allows us to assess if local GST (tax) is applicable or
whether 240 Volt 50HZ products will work in your country, etc.
Dave Lambert and the RPC crew
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