ODO 7592 miles

It is the one year lease-iversary for the Spark and I! And, it is my birthday. So this post will be brief since I've spent a long day celebrating. But, I'm thrilled to report that I have banked more than 2400 miles on my lease. Leasing a car is a guessing game, one where the only way you will be truly satisfied is if you turn in your car with only one mile left on the lease. This is my first lease so I'm still figuring it out but at least I have some wiggle room. So stay tuned until next time - the Spark and I have two more years to go!

ODO 7488 miles

I've passed 1000 views! 1024 page views as of today. That is sooo amazing. I've been writing every week (more or less) with 27 posts since 5/19/2014. That's almost 40 views a post. I never thought my esoteric thoughts about a tiny electric car that runs on solar power would attract any viewers, besides my loving husband who likes a quick something to read on the train. Well, it seems like there might be few more people that enjoy a quick read on solar powered electric vehicles. So if anyone is interested in taking my Net Zero EV for a spin around the block, I'll be home for Christmas!

What other accomplishments have been achieved over the lifetime of this blog? Well, since the installation of the solar panels, we have generated 1.41 Megawatts of electricity. That is the amount of electricity needed to light the Eiffel Tower for 7  hours! So, you're welcome Paris. Or, on a more practical note, it is the electricity needed to run our refrigerator for 10 months. Just the first step to a complete Net Zero lifestyle.

And what about the impact of driving an electric car for 7 months instead of a gas guzzler (maybe one that gets 21 mpg)? According to the EPA, my Net Zero EV has saved about 3.2 metric tons of CO2 from being released into the environment. Not too shabby.

So, thanks for stopping by! Stay tuned for next week's post.

ODO 7215 miles

"Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day?" To be honest, I feel the exact opposite right now. I think the rain should stay, at least for a little while. I had been doing my best to conserve water, including supporting the Los Angeles Waterkeeper's #DirtyCarPledge. But, according to this map, Culver City has gotten almost 1 inch of rain in the last 24 hours and almost 1 1/2 inches in the last 3 days. It looks to me that the Westside of LA is some sort of rain deflector, i.e. everywhere around us is getting more rain, but we'll take what we can get.

BUT, there is a down side to the rain for My Net Zero EV. What is it? Well, I decided to check the status of my solar panels, given the dense cloud cover that has produced our much needed rain. Status: Today, my solar panels have ceased to produce energy, as in only 1 watt hour. While this is not unexpected, I don't know how this temporary loss of productivity will affect my long-term net zero energy claim. My solar silver lining is that the panels will be wiped clean of the dirty film that blocks some of the sunlight from reaching the solar cells. Maybe, it will be a wash in the end (see what I did there...the clean panels will make up for the cloudy days, a wash - get it?).