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UPDATE --
March 17, 2009
Santa Rosa Ethanol Depot...
The last time we sent out our GEN-Alert
we mentioned that the Voltage
Vehicles electric car dealership in
Santa Rosa has agreed to host our new depot,
and all we needed to do was to raise a bunch
of money and get the permits. Well... we
raised a bunch of money, and our first permit
should be in hand by the end of this month.
So it looks like we will (finally) have
e98 ethanol made from waste beverages available
to our members sometime in June. We are
trying to keep the price under $3.00/gallon
and will keep you posted!
Laguna Farm Depot...
Also in our last GEN-Alert, we mentioned
that Laguna
Farm was not going to be able to host
our depot. Looks like we have a second chance
now and are planning on having a new and
improved depot up and running before the
Santa Rosa depot is online. So, keep your
eyes and ears peeled for news on that front
as well.
Local Production...
We are still running waste wine through
our still and producing 180 proof alcohol.
In many ways, we're quite satisfied with
the distillation ability of our frankenstein-like
invention - but unless we can remove enough
water through a separate dehydration process
to yield at least 196 proof, we can not
really use our final product. After much
trial and error using cheap and simple methods,
we have concluded that a $3,000 investment
in materials and labor would be required
to essentially build a dehydration unit
that mimics the devices the industrial ethanol
producers use in their systems. Did I mention
we accept donations?
Your New Fuel...
Corn-based ethanol (AKA e85) has a bad rap.
Whether it deserves the put-downs or not,
our new fuel will be coming from a source
far removed from conventional e85. Our e98
is 2% gasoline and 98% 200 proof alcohol
made from waste beverage products in California.
Once the alcohol is extracted from the liquids
and solids, the remaining materials are
converted into water and animal feed. GEN
will have the fuel trucked from Southern
California to our storage and then distributed
to the local depots.
The more donations we can receive from
folks whom have the where-with-all, the
more accessible and affordable our alternatives
become for the average member. Please
go to our donation
page to help us go further.
Alcohol Can Be a Gas...
Anyone who is serious about switching
from gasoline to a more sustainable and
cleaner alternative should read this book.
It covers every angle of the subject and
has the references to back up it's claims.
Click
here to buy the book!
 If
you live or work in Sonoma County, consider
joining our user group. To find out how
you can become a member of Green Energy
Network, please visit our member
page or call 707-829-1714.
Or if you are interested in actively
helping us to produce our own, local,
sustainable source of ethanol, you may
want to work with our special interest
group - Sebastopol Ethanol Collective
(SEC). The SEC has about a dozen or so
local folks finding sources of feedstock,
building stills, and making fuel. Just
send email to Damon@GreenEnergyNetwork.com
for more info.
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