• Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social
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    5 months ago

    The sun transmits a lot more heat energy than light energy, so using it to heat water is actually really smart. Especially if you can run that hot water through your HVAC system and heat a living space.

    Solar thermal systems are so simple to build you can do it with a bit of wood, some aluminum cans, a piece of glass, and some black paint. And you get a lot of heat out of something like that with no moving parts.

    • mojofrododojo@lemmy.world
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      5 months ago

      yup. and critically, it was all available in 79, when this was rolled out. I would love to see a 100% renewable federal energy budget but we literally can’t do it today with our modern tech, 1979 it was a dream. but Carter realized that examples like the white house saving tens of thousands of dollars every month on something as simple as hot water was a win, no matter if the tech was a panacea for our energy needs - the action of doing something.

      reagan and conservatives are in the pocket of big industry and big oil, so yeah, no shit they didn’t go for it, chuds.

      • Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social
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        5 months ago

        My dad really loved Carter, and designed and built a passive solar home that he hoped would be the blueprint for whole developments of them.

        Then Reagan got elected.

        Luckily he’s still got the plans somewhere.

        • mojofrododojo@lemmy.world
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          5 months ago

          I think Carter was one of the best presidents we’ve ever had in a lot of ways.

          Former military, submariner, without an ounce of warmonger in the dude. avoided conflict intelligently. did the best with a shit-sandwich of multiple world crisis landing. genuinely believed in his religion without ever forcing it on others. lived humbly. knew we were building the f117 and it’s existence basically negated a lot of the need for the b-1 (lol bone) (which had a host of other threats and problems dogging it) - and Reagan crucified him for the choice by pandering to the military industrial complex even after he was read-into the situation. Was scientifically literate enough to understand stealth changed the entire landscape of war.

          There’s a lot to love, the right just hates him because of bullshit.