Ask the Hippie
The Green Question:
I have a "green" question. Do you leave your computer on 24/7, or do you shut it right off if not in use? I have been asking around, and am getting different answers. One friend who works for the federal gov't says that they always shut down their office computers to save energy. Her husband, who does some security duties at another large office bldg. in Ottawa, says that they are left on. An amateur computer tech told me that a professional computer tech advised her to leave a computer on, as it took more power to keep booting it up, than it does to leave it on, and is easier on the computer. Another friend said that she leaves hers on for the same reason. Another computer nerd said he leaves the upstairs one on, and the downstairs one off at night! Apparantly some laptop users just put their's in "hibernation" mode, while others turn them right off. I thought that you, being a super duper high tech computer nerd, might be able to help me out with this. I'd appreciate it!
The Green Answer:
I always turn my laptop off when I'm done work, plus I turn off the power bar so that all the little transformers are completely off too. Those little boxes use power even when the machine is off (you can tell because they'll be warm). I've worked for companies that turned off the computers but not the monitors, others that turned off the monitors but not the computers. It seems that everyone has some reason for what they do - probably based on something from the early days of computing when the technology wasn't that great.
However, today's computers and monitors can handle being turned off and on daily without problems. The only reason I can see for leaving the computer on overnight is if you are sharing files over a network. For the average home user, I recommend turning everything off not just to save energy, but also because a computer that is off cannot be hacked! This way your computer is only vulnerable for the few hours per day when you're actually using it :)
Hibernation is great in laptops (and desktops now too) because you can start it up again relatively quickly and the machine is completely turned off while hibernating - the memory gets saved to disk, so no power is required.
I have to admit that I have one more reason for turning my computer off every night - I started working on them in the days when computers crashed a lot, and a fresh reboot every day helped avoid that! :) It's never been a problem for me - in the time it takes to boot up the machine I can get my morning cup of coffee.
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Converting a VW Bus to Electric Question:
I saw your article online regarding converting a VW Bus to electric. I also have a VW Bus and would like to convert it, so I am looking for information and connections to learn what to do and what will be needed.
Bus Conversion Answer:
For an air-cooled VW conversion, the easiest solution I've found is Electro Automotive - they have examples of what they have already done, and they sell complete kits to use on many aircooled VWs. These kits include the usual replacement of the old engine with an electric motor, with an adaptor to the gearbox and battery boxes and wiring to hookup to a battery bank.
There are some other interesting options in the works though. One that I'm very interested in (and impatient for!) is the wheel-motor solution from PML
Flightlink in the UK. These are the folks who built the 4 wheel drive electric New Mini. The last I heard from them is that these motors will be going into production this year (2008). From the information I was given, it sounds like the pricing should be similar to what we would spend on a "regular" conversion. The really nice part of these wheel motors is that the motors themselves are at the wheels. You can then remove a lot of extra weight - no transmission, no driveshafts, no shifters. This also leaves your engine bay available to house the battery pack so you don't have to take up space elsewhere.
You can even choose to go with 4 wheel drive -imagine the traction and power of a 4-wheel drive bus! In my case (and budget), I'll likely just start with rear-wheel drive just as the original bus has.
There is a company in Quebec (Canada) that is also developing wheel motors, but it sounds like they are a few years from production still.
The other big decision is the batteries - right now lead-acid batteries are the cheapest solution, but NiMH and Lithium Ion batteries are coming down in price rapidly. You can already buy lithium batteries in the usual car-battery format, and while they cost a small fortune up front, in the long run those will cost about the same because they last much longer than the lead-acid type. As a short term advantage they also give you more power. A friend suggested looking into getting or buying (new or used) the NiMH battery packs from UPSs used in big business - at their IT department they replace them yearly as part of regular maintenance and the batteries have never had any real discharge cycles. So that may be a good option for folks like us.
If you are located in Canada, there is a more local option available for EV conversions, though not specifically for VW's. This company provides kits to convert almost any vehicle to electric (including skidsteers!).
I hope that helps, and good luck with your conversion!
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