Ecotec #2: Hydrogen Home/Joule Box

Hello Friends @cookiekush here with an idea that I want to bounce off you guys about the hydrogen home. I'm an Ecotec nut and sometimes I like to geek out on zombie apocalypse/ Dooms Day Prepping ideas. So when I saw this website about the Hydrogen Home my inner nerd got aroused.

Energy independence is something I would love to have. It's not such a big deal when I'm in cali since I've never really experienced a power outage in the states. The only time I know that the power went out is when I look at the clocks, its flashing (12:00), and needs to be reset.

However when I'm here in the Philippines power goes out over the slightest storm and if its a big one power can be out for a week. They also have scheduled power outages here where some days there won't be any electricity from 7am to 7pm because they don't have enough energy to power the whole city so they shut down certain neighborhoods. Plus we have some of the highest electricity rates in Asia so you can see why I want energy independence here.

The Joule Box

The Joule Box is an energy producing unit that was created by the same person as the Hydrogen House. Its basically all the parts that create and store the energy for the Hydrogen House minus the house. Prices Range from $30,000-$75,000 so its not cheap. But if your a DIY bug like me you can build your own to save money.

I really want to build this but I'm probably going to wait 5-6yrs for the price of the technology to be more affordable. Solar has been dropping year over year due to mass scale adoption. I expect the same thing to happen with the Electrolyzer and Fuel Cell which are pretty much the most expensive parts of the whole thing. Everything else besides the solar panels is pretty cheap.

Basic Diagram For A DIY Joule Box

• The Energy from the Solar Panels or Wind Turbine Goes to The Charge Controller
• The Charge Controller then sends that power to the batteries
• The Batteries maintain a stable source of power to send to the Inverter
• The inverter converts DC-AC for the Electrolyzer
• The Electrolyzer splits H2 from H2O and sends it to the Hydrogen Tanks
• H2 is stored in the H2 Tanks and can either be used to refill a hydrogen car or sent to the Fuel Cell
• The Fuel Cell combines H2 gas with Air to produce (H2O + electricity) and is sent to your home or can be used to charge your EV

Hydrogen Storage VS Battery Storage

Hydrogen

• Hydrogen Stored Properly In A Tank Will Have Relatively The Same Energy 20 yrs Later. Given That It Hasn't Leaked And Not Reacted With Any Other Gases Inside Of The Tank.
• Environmentally Friendly
• Tanks Have A Good Life Span
• No loss Of Storage Capacity Over Time
• Energy Can Be Quickly Discharged If Need Be

Batteries

• Batteries Have A Short Life Span And Start Losing Energy From The Moment Charging Has Stopped.
• The Amount of Energy Batteries Can Store Slowly Diminishes Over Time.
• Not Environmentally Friendly
• Long Recharge Times and Slow Discharge Rates

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So what do you guys think? Is this the Future of home energy or just some DIY fad that'll be forgotten in a few yrs?