Cut Your Electric Bills

This article is a sequel to Science Fair Project Ideas – Part 1 but can be read and used independently. Both articles are designed to provide project ideas. The hardest part of a science fair project may very likely be getting started. Once you have an idea in mind it is easy to formulate what experiments and research you will need to do. Until you chose a topic you do not have anything to aim toward. The science fair project is typically designed as an educational tool. This article is not designed to hand you an idea for a project. My goal is that these ideas will point you in the right direction or even give inspiration for another related idea. The three descriptions here will give you an outline, not a project; it is your job to expand on a project idea.

                               

                Idea number one: The effect of earthquakes on building structures. The main focus of this idea is to show how lateral ground movement affects the structure of a building. Some answers will only be found through research, specifically on ‘inertia’. The experiment suggested here will require a large piece of rough sand paper and at least one Slinky toy (two are needed for a second idea). The set up for this experiment is simple. Place the Slinky on the sandpaper (rough side up). Then pull on the sandpaper to move it about six inches. You should observe that the top half of the Slinky leans backward then catches back up to bottom half once the sand paper stops moving. While an actual building is much more solid than a Slinky, the walls will still bend, since the force of an earthquake is much greater than that of pulling on the sand paper. This experiment can be taken to a second phase. Pull on the sandpaper just as before but in a back and forth motion. Notice how the top of the Slinky reacts to the change in direction. Another variation for this idea is to connect two Slinky toys together and repeat the experiment. The taller Slinky combo will replicate a taller building and you can observe if the height of a building has an effect on the impact of the lateral movement.

               

                Idea number two: How is static electricity is produced. The main focus of this idea is to see how static electricity effects various objects. Some research key words will be ‘static charge’, ‘protons’ and ‘electrons’. Your study here will involve the placement, or displacement of electrons. The basic experiment of this idea will require a balloon, string, tape and a hair dryer. Blow up a balloon, tie a string around the bottom (the knot) and tape the other end of the string to a ledge like a table or shelf so that the balloon can hang freely. After washing your hands, rub one rapidly in a back and forth motion across one side of the balloon. Now, allow the balloon to hand freely again. Move your hand close to the balloon without touching it. The balloon should move toward your hand. A great variation for this experiment requires you to add two elements. Mark and ‘x’ on the balloon where you will rub. Then, get the balloon to spin slowly before placing your hand up to it. This will show that the excess charge is in the location you rubbed. Another fun trick is to turn a faucet on so a very small stream of water is flowing. Comb your hair with a standard comb then hold it up to the stream of water. The water will actually bend away from the comb.

                Idea number three: How does a first class lever work? The main focus of this idea is to build a first-class lever and to examine its advantage. Some key terms for this idea that you will need to research are ‘fulcrum’, ‘effort force’, ‘effort arm’ and ‘load arm’. In this experiment you will need to build a simple lever. Use a broom, table and a chair it you like. Place the broom handle under the edge of the table and across the back of the chair. You should be able to easily lift the table by pushing down on the brush end of the broom if you have your fulcrum (the chair) in the right spot. You can change the experiment by placing the fulcrum under the broom in different spots. Try placing the chair close the table, then close to the brush end of the broom, then in the middle. Compare the amount of effort needed in each location. Another experiment idea is the classic teeter-totter (see-saw). Using two volunteers of different weight, place one on each end of the teeter-totter then experiment by changing placement of the volunteers. What locations work best? How does moving the lighter person toward the center of the teeter-totter affect the lifting abilities? How about moving the heavier person?

                These three additional science fair project ideas may give you a good place to start on your project. Please be sure to research each idea extensively and even create your own variations of the experiments. It is likely that more ideas will be presented in future articles.

Wesley Skiles
http://www.articlesbase.com/science-articles/science-fair-project-ideas-part-2-693790.html

To extend the swimming season after summer has come and gone, many people are turning to swimming pool heaters.  A heater is great to have, especially with colder days.  If you’ve thought about buying a heater for your swimming pool, there are probably a lot of things that you’ve found yourself wondering.

When using a pool heater, you can adjust the temperature of your pool water to virtually any level that you are comfortable with.  The recommended temperature for a pool is 78 degrees, although most people prefer to have their water just a bit warmer, around 80 degrees.  The choice is up to you, as you can’t really go wrong with either of the two.

During the year, the sun can only get your pool water so hot for a somewhat brief period of time.  When summer ends and things start to cool off, your heater can help you make swimming last longer.  If you live in the north, you can actually double your swimming season.  Those living in warmer climates, such as Arizona and California can actually triple the amount of swimming by using a heater with their pool.

Even though you may be using a swimming pool heater, you should still invest in a swimming pool cover as well.  A cover can help to protect against loss of heat from the pool, holding the heat of water inside the pool instead of letting it out.  The fact is, a good cover that has plenty of insulation can actually reduce the amount of heat loss you experience with your water.

There are a few different types of heaters available, although gas fired heaters running off LP gas seem to be the most common.  Heaters such as this are easily the least expensive to buy, and also the cheapest to run over time.  Oil is another way to heat your pool, and it is common in areas that you are unable to buy gas fired heaters.  Other pools choose to run off electricity.  Electricity is a great way to heat your pool, although it can easily be the most expensive to run and take the most amount of time to properly maintain.

Last but not least, there’s the solar pool heater.  Solar heaters may sound like the ideal way to heat a pool for some, simply because it uses the sun to heat, helping to save money.  Even though it may sound like the ideal way to heat a pool, it actually has quite a few disadvantages when you compare it to other types of heaters.  You’ll discover one flaw when you go to purchase one – you’ll see that they cost nearly half the amount of your swimming pool!

Even though solar powered heaters sound the best, they truly aren’t.  To get the most out of a solar powered heater you’ll need to have large electric pump, which can cost you quite a bit of money.  The pump delivers the water from your pool to the solar panels, which will in turn heat up the water.  Once you have finished setting up a solar powered heater, you’ll have invested thousands in it – which makes it something you should really try to avoid.

In the world of swimming pool heaters, gas fired heaters remain the best and most cost efficient ways to heat a swimming pool.  These heaters can be found locally, or on the Internet.  They won’t cost you a lot of money to purchase, and they are very user friendly.  Even if you are new to pool heaters – you won’t have any trouble using your new gas fired pool heater.

Nicholas Tan
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/swimming-pools-all-about-swimming-pool-heaters-721133.html

A new solar power solution is has been put to the test, and it’s been given the go-ahead for production in Australia. It’s a solar chimney.

This new solar power station is based on solar tower technology designed in Germany. An incredible thing about this new technology is the simplicity of its design, and its ingenious use of basic principles of physics to create energy.

So what is this new solar energy plant?

Also referred to as a solar chimney, this new solar tower uses solar energy in order to turn wind turbines.

Solar energy to turn wind turbines?

How does this work?

Well, the simplest way to describe it is to compare it to a huge greenhouse with a large chimney.

As we all know, hot air rises.

The greenhouse within the solar chimney system captures the heat of the sun. The heated air in the greenhouse is then allowed to escape through a huge chimney.

Before the air escapes through the chimney, it is forced to pass through wind turbines, which are in turn used to generate electricity. You can see a diagram of it here.

The beauty of this technology is that it uses centuries-old tried-and-true principles of updraft. This is the same principles used for chimneys in open fire places. When you light a fire in your fireplace, your house doesn’t fill up with smoke. This is because of the suction which is created by the hot air rising up through the chimney. This pulls the smoke up through the chimney as well.

But in the case of the solar tower (solar chimney) we are not using a fire to create hot air. We are simply allowing the sun to do its thing: heat stuff up. In this case, the sun heats the air up, and the air then rises through the solar chimney as a result.

Australia is the first country to build this type solar energy power plant for commercial use.

The central tower will be over 3000 feet high and 400 feet in diameter.

It will use 750,000 cubic yards of concrete.

The solar energy collector (greenhouse) will contain thirty-million square yards of space. That’s over three and a half miles in diameter.

It will have 32 wind turbines placed at ground level, each capable of creating 6.25 megawatts of electricity.

It will take 34 months to construct.

It will provide a total of 200 megawatts, enough to provide solar energy in the form of electricity, for over 200,000 households.

The solar tower will create absolutely no carbon emissions, greenhouse gases, or other pollutants in its energy generation process. In other words, it is going to be 100% eco-friendly.

Anna

In the present economic climate, with more people losing their jobs and the housing market falling month on month, everyone needs to make their money go further. One way of doing this is by shopping online. Through the internet you can visit all the well known high street shops,banks etc. There are a lot of companies you can find on the internet, if for example you wanted to buy new clothes you could maybe go onto the M&S website, find what you want to purchase, then onto another website that sells fashion clothes then compare prices, but this is rather time consuming, these days there are websites that have all the major shops on one website, thus making it exceptionally easy for customers to visit different high street shops and stores, compare prices, buy what they want, all from one website.

Buying your groceries online will often save you money, you can also do your own DIY this will often save you a lot of money, try buying your clothes online, search out the special offers that are available, you can normally buy them a lot cheaper online than in store.

 Using one of the websites that have all the major stores available in one place really come into their own when you want to compare prices,it will save you time and money. You can also use price comparrison websites to get competitive quotes on car insurance and finance, plus lots of other services including gas and electricity prices, you will normally find all these at the all in one websites.

 The presence of wide collections from varied fields of activity makes the Internet even more interesting. From books and magazines, clothes and footwear, computers and electronics, to video games and hobbies, furniture and collectibles, a good site allows you to make very rewarding purchases.    

Fred Wilson

At this time of year many homes are hit with high utility bills as people look to keep themselves warm and entertained. Increased use of electrical appliances as well as heating and hot water often accounts for a costly utility bill. On receiving such a bill many people then search for ways in which they can cut back and reduce the amount they are paying for utilities.

Before even looking at cutting back on the use of electrical appliances and heating there are several steps that a person can take to save on utility costs. Ensuring your home is weatherproof will allow your house to be naturally much warmer. By making sure your doorways all have adhesive stripping and any air holes around the home are covered up will stop warm air escaping and cold air entering your home! When switching appliances off ensuring appliances are switched off at the plug as opposed to leaving them on stand by (which still uses energy!) will also cut back the amount of electricity being used.

Another technique for reducing the costs of utilities is to look at the source of your energy. In recent years the price of natural gas has soared whilst electricity prices have remained stable. Converting any major appliances such as water heaters and furnaces to electricity from gas will help to reduce costs as you will be paying less for your energy per unit. Although this method will endure some initial costs in the long run conversion will save you a lot of money.

Key to making the biggest saving on utilities is to ensure you are with the cheapest provider. You must ensure that you compare gas providers and electricity providers to make a big saving. Comparing utilities providers will significantly reduce the cost of utilities and give you peace of mind!

Ian Ramsey
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-and-family-articles/cutting-back-the-costs-of-utilities-723514.html

The shortest, and really good news for the Planet, answer is YES!

If you have any environmental awareness at all you have probably been in a terrible dilemma this Christmas. Should you send everyone Ecards as opposed to the traditional paper variety? Sending zero cards is definitely the greenest option, but not exactly a sociable or festive option. OK so you have always chosen, written and posted what 100, 200 paper printed cards? Yet you have felt very guilty on the one hand about chopping down tress and on the other about appearing ‘Scrooge-like’.

If you are already committed to using Ecards then carry on the good work and go read something else because I’m going to make the ecological case for switching to Ecards. Do we know for sure which is greener – Ecards or printed paper cards? Well yes we do. Look at the following investigation done by treehugger.com.

Ecards use less energy, rain forest resources! Treehugger took the same batch of 50-cards and calculated, in order to compare, the energy, emissions and waste of Ecards with the traditional method. Imagine you post out 50 paper cards, that will take around 2 to 5 minutes per card to select, write and allocate to their recipients. Then Treehugger assumed 2 to 3 hours of time spent on line to email out the same Ecards. According to Treehugger.com the typical laptop computer consumes between 65 – 250 watts of electricity. Using an online electricity usage calculator at the ‘Mr. Electricity’ (Yes you can do this test for yourself if you don’t believe us) website shows a laptop using roughly the equivalent of .1 kWh for two and a half of usage, and a mean of 1.37 lbs carbon dioxide per hour. Those 3-4 lbs of CO2 and small costs of electricity are a mere fraction of the amounts ascribed to printed paper cards. OK so the comparisons are only rough and ready but the difference is very significant.

For an enormous selection of Christmas themed Ecards, head over to <your company name here> where each Ecard conserves a little of the rain forest, saves a little greenhouse gas emission because the E card is definitely more ecologically sound than a print paper card.

Ecards can also be used for charity donations or ecological donations to the third World. If you could do it with a print paper card you can do it with an Ecard and ease your conscience at the same time, so happy holiday making. Ecards are more energy-efficient than paper cards so you are not only being thoughtful towards the intended recipient of the Ecard you are being a responsible World citizen to boot.

A final word then for those people who cannot imagine not sending a tactile tree killer to their family or special loved ones. How about just printing out your favorite and special Ecards and delivering them by hand at the next opportunity, minus the envelope of course.

Lina Smith
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-and-family-articles/do-ecards-really-mean-green-cards-716332.html

The Internet is growing at an exponential rate and almost everyone out there is building a website and looking for web hosting companies and servers to host their websites. This implies increased usage of electricity and has raised various environmental and health concerns related to manufacturing this source of power. An eco-friendly hosting service is therefore the way to go in order nip this problem in the bed lest it exacerbates and causes irreversible damage to mother earth.

Green Web Hosting is the solution

There are many environment friendly web host providers like Dreamhost, AISO and green web hosting. These companies run their servers off renewable energy. In a bid to arrest the environmental hazards caused due to the traditional modes of generating power, the eco-friendly web hosting providers run their offices and servers off geothermal energy, biogas, solar or wind energy. A few of them also produce their own in house energy. Furthermore, few web-hosting companies are certified with a renewable energy certificate in order to ensure the highest standards in eco-friendly web hosting. These green web-hosting companies encourage their employees to telecommute in a bid to minimize transportation pollutants. They even discourage excessive paperwork in order to encourage tree preservation. Web hosting companies such as Green web hosting plants a tree for every hosting that they register with their company.

Reliability of Eco-Friendly Web Hosting Providers

People often hold the misconception that renewable may not be as effective or powerful as the conventional electricity. If the company is able to meet the energy demands of its customers; renewable energy is just as powerful and effective for running the servers as conventional electricity. Therefore the reliability and capacity of these forms of electricity is guaranteed as long as the company can keep up with the energy demands.

It is only wise to opt for green web hosting or eco-friendly web hosting companies as this small decision can help save the environment and the entire globe. It is however advisable to compare the tools, pricing structures and features of various eco-friendly web hosting companies before buying your we hosting package. Also, look for any hidden costs involved and read their service agreements in its entirety in order to avoid any future complications.

Even if you are not looking at buying their hosting services and yet want to contribute to the environment in a certain way, you can always choose to become the company’s affiliate and earn cash in the process.

Most of the eco-friendly webs hosting companies offer affiliate programs as well. You can contribute in your own way by spreading awareness about these companies and save the environment as well as minimize the rather damaging effects on our planet.

It is however highly advisable to read customer reviews, company profile and analyze the credibility of the company before you go on to buy their web hosting packages. A little preliminary research and homework in advance will save you ample money and prove to beneficial in the long run.

Bob Willis

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United Kingdom economy is presently battling with the nemesis of economic turbulence. At this time, absence of ample liquidity too has complicated the issues. At this time, websites which offer the feature of comparison of energy services prove to be a mighty valuable alternative. These websites with their efficient price comparison feature, provide valuable hints to the people regarding the fact how to curtail their budgetary needs. Here, people who are struggling with the problems such as high charges, false meter readings, overstated billing can find solace here. The Online price comparison tool available on these websites help the people to get an idea about the other service providers in the same domain.

Energy is one integral part of daily life, however, this sector too has faced wrath at the hands of liquidity crisis. By this compare energy prices tool, one can have a direct access to an important instrument that can help them to measure the performance of the service provider serving them.

After the economic tragedy hit the UK economy, a depletion in the spendings on the energy segment in the family budgets across the country was noticed. In an endeavour to overcome this deterrent, some websites took an initiative with a view to offer the aforesaid service. Recognising the importance of this service, many service providers too became a part of it. Eminent energy giants both in gas and electricity domain joined these websites. British gas, London Energy and npower are the few giants in the gas service segment. While the electricity energy segment includes names like Scottish Hydro Electric, Green Energy UK, SWEB and many more.

This compare energy prices tool does the billing on the facts and figures furnished by the users and processes them to give precise amount depending on the already existing parameters. People can even opt for the different kind of billing depending upon their choice, such as if they are interested in getting the billing done according the Standing billing parameters, Quarterly billing parameters or according to any other existing parameters.

What more if the users’ energy consumption varies from one to other household even then he/she can take the benefits of this compare energy prices mechanism. Thus, almost every household gets covered under this price comparison tool. Even if the users doesn’t know his energy consumption, even then also he can take the services from the above mentioned price comparison tool. It even provides for quarterly billing, monthly billing and for annual billing, thereby reducing the burden on the customers who are looking for some respite in these tense economic scenario.

If viewed from the top then one will definitely recognise the significance of this remarkable price comparison tool, especially at the times when the country like United Kingdom is combating with the problem of recession.

Issac Brandon

Commodity price has been increased more than ever before; this brings a toll upon our energy cost. The cost of our electric bills have increased more than ever, this make a lot of people choose solar energy as an alternative solution.

One way is to build your own solar power generator. Now before you laugh it off as impossible, read below and learn how other ordinary people have successfully build their own solar power generator and generate their own electricity.

1. Why Solar Energy?

Why solar energy? Simple, it is free you don’t have to pay anything and unlimited in supply not forget to mention free from pollution. A simple solar power generator can generate enough energy to supply one small house. Most often than not, you will have an excessive supply of energy that you can share with your neighbor.

2. The Cost

You can build a readymade package of solar power generator at Ebay; this will cost you around $2000 to $3000. For those who prefer a cheaper price, you can build your own solar power generator at a price less than $500, what a huge saving!

3. The Equipments Needed

The equipments needed include small solar panel, deep cycle 12 volt battery, box, 12 volt DC meter, DC input. You can find all of those at local electric store for a price less than $500.

One thing I like about solar power is you can use this energy anywhere in the world. Once you have wired everything, your last task is to aim the solar panel in direct sunlight and you can start collecting some solar energy immediately.

4. Conclusion

Building solar power energy is a perfect alternative for people who need a cheaper solution for their electric energy needs. Solar energy are free, unlimited, and don’t produce any pollutant.

You can build your own solar generator at a price less than $500 compare that with $3000 you need to spend if you buy that from Ebay, you can build your own solar generator easily and cheaply.

Ricky Lim

Most of us have already seen a sharp increase in our monthly mortgage payments and a dramatic rise in our shopping and utility bills. We are told by the media that this is the effects of the credit crunch as it takes hold of our wallets and our lives. Well it is now time to fight back and make our money go further. Don’t just pay for products you see, have a good look to see if you can make saving on every purchase you make. Let me talk you through a concept that can and will save you money everytime you shop online!

Recently I purchased two mattresses from a shop on eBay. First I looked for the lowest price on and off the internet and then I looked to see if there were any other discount offers around the internet. I discovered that the mattresses from the eBay seller were the best price I could find. Armed with the information, I then approached the eBay seller and asked whether they would reduce the cost from £169 per mattress to £145 as I wished to buy two mattresses. Be cheeky it really does pay. It worked for me and I can see no reason why with some practice it won’t work for you.

If you buy goods and services from the internet then cash back shopping is a shrewd method to use. It can be used by anyone looking to save money on purchases that they would normally have made. You can sign up for an account today and start saving on ever purchase you make immediately. There are many websites that will give you money back every time you buy products and services through their website. Just look for your usual online retailers or suppliers that you would have approached anyway on these money back websites and purchase as normal. The main difference you will notice is that these websites will give you money back on every purchase you make.

Back in February I came across cash back shopping and decided to try it out. I decided it was time to see if I could find a better supplier for our gas and electricity. I went to a utilities compare website, where I discovered who was the best supplier for my gas and electricity supplies. Armed with the knowledge that Scottish Power was right for me I approached Top Cash Back and applied for a new gas and electricity account. Three months later I was paid £62 by them for having bought a dual fuel package through them or their link.

Recently, I replaced my car insurance with More Than Insurance and received £75 cash back. My car insurance was already insured by More Than Insurance before I applied and somehow I managed to receive a £9.20 saving per month on my previous policy. After this result, I replaced my wife’s car insurance with More Than and the policy was slightly cheaper, again I saved £75. Todate I received £212 just for buying products and services I would have normally bought anyway – What a result!

Top Cash Back website claims to be the most generous cash back website in the UK today, they are free to join, have no annual administration fees, they give you 100% money back, they claim to have over 2000 different offers and they have a free payout by cheque, BACS or pay pal. They also allow you to donate your savings to charity if you wish.

As the credit crunch continues to take hold of your free money in your wallet and you’re your mortgage costs escalate, your shopping bills and utility bills (gas, electricity and water rates) spiral out of control; we all need some way of controlling our costs. Always shop around on and off the internet to find the best price for the item or items you wish to purchase first; then armed with this information see what savings you can receive. Always do your own research first to see that you are actually buying your goods and services cheaper from your chosen provider. When you are sure that the provider is offering the same product and or service cheaper with your cash back then proceed.

Mark Aucamp
http://www.articlesbase.com/finance-articles/earn-cash-back-everytime-you-shop-online-712551.html