Recently, we changed over from power-hungry PC’s and monitors to VIA EPIA C3 Ezra based PC’s in Micro-ITX format with TFT displays. All the equipment is powered by ITE format (laptop-type) external power supplies providing 12v at 4.1amps. This means that each workstation consumes a tad over 100 watts of electrical energy.
As an experiment in saving power, I connected two such systems to a car battery instead of using the mains power supplies. I borrowed a wind-powered mini-generator from a friend of mine who is in the yachting game (used to top up the batteries on sailing cruisers) and erected this on the roof of my office and ran a feed to the battery. The battery was given a full charge before use.
Six days later, both machines are still running and the battery is showing 12.6v with the generator temporarily disconnected (the generator delivers 14.4v the same as a vehicle alternator, and although a car battery has a nominal voltage of 12v, it’s nearer 13.2v when fully charged and not loaded).
Both machines are left powered 24/7 but have all the usual power management settings enabled, e.g. monitor to standby after 20 minutes inactivity, hard disk spin down after 30 minutes inactivity. Between 5pm and 9am, the battery pretty much recovers what has been used between 9am and 6pm the previous day.
The cost of buying a battery and boat generator is about the same as the 4 ITE power supplies they replace, and the charging system is designed to charge a battery with a wind speed anything over 2 knots (a gentle breeze)and turn itself into the prevailing wind. I’m tempted to add a solar charger to the set-up (well, the last few weeks have been very sunny) but wind is in a more plentiful supply in Southampton (usually!) than sunshine.
I don’t think that ‘powering an office’ gets much ‘greener’ than this, but I’d be interested to hear of any other ‘green’ alternatives to traditional energy consumption that you may have encountered in the IT field.