Take a pan that will hold water. Build a slanted box to go around it. Lay a sheet of glass over the box. Put a gutter on bottom of the glass that can catch the water as it rolls down the glass (lowest area). Connect a tube to the gutter that will go to your gallon jug. Set in the sun. In the morning go get your water and refill the water that has evaporated. Way cheaper than $6k. Make it as big as you need.
@@humanbeing20118 I was about to make that comment but then there are some bugs in the sonoron desert survive with the little moisture by some unique structures on their hard shells (early in the morning there will be some dew in the desert). One need to do a careful analysis and find out whether it make economical sense and the quantity collected on a daily basis is enough.
Value of system $280, installation $1000. Profit all the rest. That is completely insane. Glorified tiny dehumidifier. Sometimes the lunacy on the internet is beyond comprehension. I am an HVAC design engineer. This is one of those things where I even read all the comments and its like sheep being lead to slaughter. Incredible that almost nobody understands the crazy here. INCREDIBLE!!!
I live in a tiny house with solar panels and a composting toilet. My ultimate goal is to be completely off grid for utilities. I always thought a well or rainwater collection were my only choices but these cost a lot upfront and depend a lot on where you live. I'm glad to have another option to look at.
Look up "air well". This is just a high tech version. You could stack up a lot of rocks (or any other non-water-contaminating material) for a lot less than $5k. Then add a solar still to get better than commercially distilled water. Of course the idiots in Oregon will probably make legislation banning this.
Rain water gathered from the roofs' drain pipe is our daily drinking water. All credit to God, it is very good. Parts per million of impurities get as low as 8 parts per million and on an average gather we see a result of between 20 and 30 pcm. It is beneficial to have some impurities in water i have heard as 100% pure water is said to be dangerous. Cool desert / drought solution. Good work, thanks. Cheers Charlie Peace
Lots of naysayers here, that I'm guessing are clueless about what it's like to live in the desert. Especially, in an urban setting. I've often lamented that we desert-dwellers, really have no options for SHTF, drinking water sources. Let alone systems to gather and store it. I'm so excited to find this video, and learn that there's a company, just North from me, that has been working on a solution. Here in the Sonoran Desert, we're not only extremely arid, and extremely hot, but we are landlocked, without lakes, rivers, or streams. The only time we have rain of any significance, is during Monsoon season, a few weeks out of the year, and even that can be hit or miss when it comes to any chance of catchment systems. It's just not a reliable source. Thank you so much, for sharing about this option. It makes a lot of sense for many around the world, living in arid climates.
@@jomsies You won't with this piece of junk either. Even by his own math it is cheaper to buy gallon jugs of water. Besides, solar stills draw it off of the earth, not out of the air. Without humidity there is no water in the air for this device to collect.
Yes, I'd buy this. The noise problem is fixable. I tasted solar-collected water, many years ago, from a permaculture genius in Tucson, and I still remember it as the noticeably best-tasting water I've ever had that wasn't a mountain stream in the days before giardia infected the land.
@@sammybirech5211 I've seen dehumidifier bags that they make as well. The Amish use them in their stores and they fill up with a lot of water for little bags. I think it would be a good idea worse comes to worse if one REALLY needed water, especially out in eastern states where it stays extremely humid especially in the summer. They have the survival filter straws people can buy and it will clean the water so it is drinkable.
@@kymspicks2763 the filter straws an excellent idea. I was feeding the water to the cat, but now I will drink it from the straw because its water after all
What I'd be interested in much more is a health and safety study on these... It's hard to believe that it keeps the water in the tank fresh and with nothing living in it, while at the same time being not much more than just a solar-powered dehumidifier (which aren't exactly known for producing a drinking water, where the lack of minerals is far from being the only concern).
A lexan or plexiglass box can be easily made to insulate and cover your unit during the winter months. Kind of like a sunroof effect that is also used to keep plants warm and growing when the temperature plummets.
I believe that the winter solution would be to have the unit Not installed on the roof, but installed in the ground. Of course you must have enough space in your yard where the sun can still hit the panels. The ground is a natural insulator. And with low e- glass in triple pane, it might avoid freezing temperatures in a large portion of the country. After building a semi-pit greenhouse, I was amazed at the difference of avoiding quick spikes in temperature. And it Also prolonged the growing time in the greenhouse.
That's a great idea, the problem is I can't find a dehumidifier large enough to cover my yard when I'm gardening. Let me know if you find any that work outdoors.
We usually run the water through a water softener which mixes it with salt removing the hard minerals. It’s less damaging for washing clothes and softer on the skin for showers but you shouldn’t drink it and it doesn’t taste very good
Actually ,we have water coming from the mountains here in Las Vegas,there is water in the Sahara,it is just that people waste it, we get tons of new water every day from the space that Earth travels through.
I watched it a second time. Very good video. Crucial subject. We need to apply this to agriculture. Billionaires! Step up! The definition of a business strategy is to sell water to farmers during a drought. Go! There's money to be made!
Ben, what I would like to see is how does the thing actually work? (And that noise makes me a bit skeptical about 15 years almost service-free lifetime.)
@@kayak_1 Actually the science behind the Tesla doesn't make economic sense. It uses a secondary power source (electricity) which is generated by a primary power source (gas, coal, and nuclear) which is polluting, finite, and expensive. There are other technologies which will generate liquid fuel, like ethanol and methanol from technologies that use sunlight, air, and water to capture the CO2 out of the air. This will blow Tesla away.
@@scottpreston5074 Have you looked into actual electricity source mix recently? Have you looked into the efficiency of electric cars (especially Tesla and Koreans) making them emit less CO2 that ICE cars even if the electricity is 100% coal-sourced, which it nowhere is? Have you looked into the cost of CO2 capture and processes to convert it to fuel (of which all but Sabatier process are at laboratory stage)? Don't babble.
In most places, rainwater systems would make more sense. In the desert southwest, it might make a little more sense, but even there, the monsoon season can provide a great deal of any household needs. I would consider this a supplemental system.
Get the water tested about 30 days apart for 4 months. Just saying, your tossing the word Pure a lot and as a consumer check for yourself for your family.
Pure is a chemistry term, not a biological one. Pure means that there is only one of that (element, molecule, compound, etc..). Until the mineral cartridge what this thing produces is PURE water, meaning there is only H2O (with some air gasses dissolved in it 😄). What you've implied is "sterile" or "harmless" which refers to the pathogen in it.
Ben, households use a lot more than 8 liters per day if they disconnect the water supply from the grid and only use these things. I'm sure you'd need more like 10 of them so you could take showers, baths, washing clothes, dishwasher, cooking, drinking, washing your car, etc. It's better to just off the grid if you can. Great idea.
To solve our water and climate issues, In times like these we need to add more shade trees to parking lots, convert our wasteful lawns and backyards to permaculture food forest gardens landscapes with perennial drought and heat tolerant plants to provide food year long for our family, friends and neighbors. It’s healthy and better for us mentality/physically and the environment. You will get your vitamins C from the food you grown and vitamin D from the sun. :)
How do you clean the unit To prevent mildew build up? Great concept I believe coming from the atmosphere, the water is probably negative ion charged which is actually great!
This would be an excellent addition to my WTSHTF emergency equipment. I have enough solar power, but I had not yet figured out how to solve the 'drinking water' problem. this does it quite nicely.
Well that's very interesting! I'm curious how "clean" that water is; how poluted is the air? There is a lot of magnesium oxide, aluminium oxide, graphene oxide in the atmosphere, is this filtered in the unit?
Depence how it is made it Will filter 99.99% and you cant even compare the taste becouse it is too different. To sum it up you wuold like to invest ur self for taste and healty reason. On finland we have world cleanest drinking water on toilet and tap, but using filter it is same as clean fountain source. If you can afford it you wont be disapointed if you allso maintain it (whitout maintain/new filters bacteria get inside)
I drink rainwater all the time. The place I collect it is about six miles from the nearest road. But yes, making water in a city would need serious filtration.
I live some where around the 48th parallel it wouldn't work for me like you said, and the price is steep for someone on SS. I assume the price will come down as they sell more. What a game changer for others who don't have clean drinking water or none at all ! Cool video thanks
It would be great to place these along hiking trails and in parks for access to clean drinking water. Running the extra water to larger water tanks for use in watering grass etc or simply to have more water when crowds exist in parks. I think they could run 24/7 with solar battery backup. Even running extra water for animals and birds. As the Engineering improves over time the noise and cost could be reduced and freezing months could be addressed. Take Elon Musk approach. Cost Effective more Efficient Less parts more reliable more designed for manufacturing etc etc.. Even could be used on Mars, since pumped ground water would still evaporate. Elon and NASA would love that!!!
> "It would be great to place these along hiking trails and in parks for access to clean drinking water. Running the extra water to larger water tanks for use in watering grass etc or simply to have more water when crowds exist in parks." You're far better off installing reverse osmosis systems. These panels are nothing but glorified solar-powered dehumidifiers. > "I think they could run 24/7 with solar battery backup." Not quite. > "As the Engineering improves over time the noise and cost could be reduced and freezing months could be addressed." Lower your expectations, buddy. Lower your expectations. > "Even could be used on Mars, since pumped ground water would still evaporate. Elon and NASA would love that!!!" Don't even THINK about colonising Mars until we send astronauts on a successful manned Mars mission and get them back to Earth.
With that noise? Don’t these things need power to generate the water? I guess huge solar panels in the trees? What did your ancestors do ‘while hiking’ lol.
@@lightdark00 i got a solar powered dehumidifier for my hunting lodge that could generate around 30-40 liters per day if it's pretty humid Woods ds40fs: $400 on sale (think it's $500 normally) Solar panels: $600 (4x 410 watt) Charge controller: $200 Batteries: $350 Misc: $50? The solar part of this system also runs a fridge/freezer set and all the lights in the lodge and is way overbuilt for just the dehumidifier
@@angrydragonslayer To match it you can skip the expensive batteries, and only have it active in the full sun. With the right compressor, you may not need an inverter. Just a charge controller for a small marine battery, and have it shut off upon battery use.
To reduce the noise on the roof, install sponge walls that direct the sound to the sky, some mineral wool panels could give remarkable results. However, consider insulating the panels in case of bad weather.
@@davidbeppler3032 But the generated water is not pure. The air is polluted and can contain microscopic spores of whatever. The "heat" you are talking about, which temperature is that? Below 60C (140F) you can get a Legionella infestation. No fun there. Next to that, the stored water is not heated and should be at a drinkable temperature. So the temperature would ideally be below 20C (68F). To be honest, I think this investment is too high for what you get. Much to high. NIce if you are living in the middel of nowhere, but when you have tap water, there are much cheaper solutions to purify the water (if it is needed that is).
Savings also in time of paying...once for panels, fifteen years for others. In fifteen years you probably will have times when money is tight and one less thing on a grocery list helps. The taste may be due to the material it’s made with. I would want to know if their “minerals” are what they say they are.
I live in Cape Verde where water is scarce. This sounds like a good idea, especially with solar panels for power. Never gets very cold here, warm days, cool nights, I buy water in 5 liter bottles to drink.
Maybe they will have problems worked out for the next version that Ben said they would bring to market in a few months? It's early days for the company so lots of improvements to be made. Every new model a few % increase in efficiency/generation of water and less noise? Sounds like what i would do with this tech.
Reverse osmosis in stores where I am is .39 a gallon. The collected water from the panels would be distilled which if store bought is about $2. Distilled is purer but there is another factor I do not exactly understand about adding something to it. Would this type of collection filter contaminants from atmosphere? vs. rain barrel method? I think these panels offer a viable solution.
@@absp2006 the government actually provides incentives to set up rain water harvesting systems. In my city, any new construction whether private or commercial has to plan a rainwater harvesting system otherwise building permits are not issued.
Nice concept and for those coastal locales where breezes dissipates air pollutants, but what about the collection of air borne pollutants in the collected humidity?
Used to work for ZMW. I think they changed their name to something else. The problem is flowing enough air mass with the available PV energy. One standard cubic foot of air volume flow per minute can capture ~.0126 lbs of moisture (standard pressure, 100 degF, 20% RH, as in a desert application). So to capture 2 gallons per day (7.566 Liters at about 16.6 lbs water) means you have to flow 1300 SCF of pure through-flow (no sucking of the air you just processed, and no re-evaporation of water you've already collected. Sounds like a very doable problem, as all you need are 2 40SCFM fans running for 17 minutes. Easy right? Well it means everything must be perfect: perfect capture (absorb/release cycling matched to available air moisture at that time), leak free capture, no loss of heat, no evaporation of water you'd already collected, no spoiling of the water....you get the drift. The devil is in the details.
@@zerxilk8169 in fact it did, yet it takes two units at installed cost of $7200 to capture 5-15 liters of water per day. That's less than 4 gallons. It makes some of the most expensive drinking water in the world. Totally impractical.
Hey Ben do you think you could reverse engineer these panels and show us how they actually work? Maybe come up with a DIY project to emulate this product.
Company promises pure water, adds minerals so people won't complain about the weird taste. Tf would probably make a half hour video repeating "but if there are minerals in it, it is not pure water!". There is a reason why I have been ignoring YT suggestions to watch his videos.
@@AnalystPrime WTF, no he wouldn't. He attacks companies that lie, and mislead about their product. If this company is honest with the costs, how much water it can produce on a daily basis, and the limitations of the units ( such as no working in freezing weather ) the only complaint he would have is that there might be a system that's cheaper / more efficient. He doesn't attack companies and products for no reason, and his reasons are painstakingly laid out in his videos, with some basic math behind it. It's people that get butt-hurt that their favorite piece of bullshit is proved a lie, that have a problem with him.
What a great idea! Thanks for showing this source. I think I will make my own to go next to my aluminium can solar heater. After watching your presentation, I think it might be too loud in my 55+ neighborhood. Unless everyone goes deaf. Fallbrook.
Why not simply catching rainwater? As people already do for millions of years, including people in the deserts of Arizona and Texas and is far simpler and cheaper? Our house can catch on average 100 gallons a day and not 2, plus it costs a fraction of it. 🤷🏻♂️
@@shalokshalom rain catch is great if the right conditions exist. It's okay to have multiple solutions to problems, there's no one size fits all when it comes to solving the clean water problem.
Na you wont its a scam and call a humityfier. Takes a crazy amount of energy to get just a tiny amount of water out of it. Its a tatal scam. Even more sad somebody promots this shit.
I'm really, really glad to watch your vids. They are very interesting, especially for me, those related to renewable energy. Please excuse my grammar mistakes if they are (Google Translate). English is not my first language and I did not study it at school. Good luck in everything you do! Greetings from Romania!
Snow birds need a way to viably collect and melt snow. It would not be pollution free but it would be soft. Would a home reverse osmosis or distillation method resolve that? Does anyone have info?
Okay, really quickly, picture the size of, say, 200 meters, in your head. Now picture 250 meters. See the problem? The size of a highly identifiable object is easier to picture in your head than "x meters". We also use school buses, Australia, the Statue of Liberty, football fields, city blocks, lamp posts, dollar bills, elephants, etc..
I like the concept, but the issue with freezing makes it a no go for me. I live in Colorado and we definitely have freezing weather for a goods part of the year.
Q1. How heavy (pounds) is each panel? (You had 2 of these panels and you said 350 pounds, but I didn’t know if it was for one panel or 2 panels.) Q2. What are the dimensions of each panel? Q3. Can the system be moved to another location, or is it portable in any way like for camping, etc? I also live in California, and was interested in something that would work for camping, or tap water disruptions such as after an earthquake, and maybe to water plants, etc. Thank you 😀
@@lifeinmalay4588 It's actually much easier to use a desalinator on boats. There are advanced hand pump and powered desalinators that are very compact and produce as much drinking water as you need on demand.
Solar stills would be very difficult to use on a boat: Pitching and rolling would be constantly threatening to contaminate your freshwater with the saltwater you're trying to desalinate. They might be useful for something like an offshore platform, but even then... given all the other plant they have running it's as easy to just use a desalinator.
COOL! I'd love to see how far they've come now that it's 2022. Are they quieter? Do they have bigger tanks? How do they connect in to the house? Can they be used to drain into long term water storage?
This was debunked years ago. You can't pull more water from the air than is there. These things would yield more water as rain-catchers than they can produce by "pulling water out of the air".
We purchased an Air-2-Water generator about 8 years ago. It is an enhanced dehumidifier with walter filtration capabilities. I looked at at the tpye of unit you demonstrated but the lower cost of Air-2-Water made the decision. In Missouri, the higher humidity gives us about six gallons of water a day. I siphon off water to store for days that are colder. It isn't perfect but it does a good job. I want to install one in an off-grid RV with a composting toilet and recirculating shower. It could happen.
Here, in central NM the humidity has been single digits for months. With a small amount of rain that brings it up for a day, maybe three days this year, so far. June '22
But they got an open check. You seen Biden’s budget? It is crazy to think that over 730 billion is assigned to the military yet your citizens are condemned to sickness and misery, maybe even death, due to “massively expensive” infrastructure costs.
Only if there was an option for winter time in CO. Maybe heating elements (larger solar panel) then I would definitely be interested. I think in time after a few generations I would be more comfortable buying these!
When I lived in Kentucky I had a quarter acre garden I used a store-bought 34 pint dehumidifier to water that garden and I powered it off his solar so dehumidifiers do not necessarily need to be hooked to the grid if you know what you're doing
We love the system. Had it for two years and was the best decision after going full solar for the power. I LOVE the noise it makes because it reminds me of a Sci-Fi movie and high-tech. Best of all, it does that without any source of external power. Zero Mass installed a lot of them here in Puerto Rico at various fire departments after the hurricane.
@ Ben Sullins its been two years since your video, how is the system working now? Have you seen any upgrades on noise dampening or improvements to use for harsher/cold weather areas? TIA!
I'm wondering about putting them in a small greenhouse? Might help with freezing? Also maybe use a solar panel and fan with pipe system in ground to keep the greenhouse from freezing in winter? Would the green house temps reck them in the summer? Also need to muffle the noise. Is there a way to insulate around them?
Great video, however I wonder the cost comparison to water delivery truck, or if you fill up refillable bottles at a store. Usually it's about 0.25 a gallon but can vary.
Im off grid and you want a well. Your not going to get the hundreds or thousands of gallons of water youll need daily to grow your food with this. I have a garden thats about 3000sqft and i use around 500-1500 gallons a day depending on how hot it gets. I do grow about 5 times the food i need and give alot away though
Until they drink too much of this water with no minerals in it, and it strips their body out of minerals and they get sick like that young girl did. She actually died from drinking too much of that type of water. This water can be used in emergency but not daily unless it is re-mineralized
The theory is that HVACs already produce potable water based on the condensation process of pulling humidity out of the air.. it's a question of rerouting the water for drinking purposes. Don't tell Ben .. he might be disappointed knowing he spent a few more dollars than he had to..
That's the easiest thing in the world, and hardly requires Elon's engineers to figure out; you just route the condensation drain line into a tank for a filtration system.
@@ArcherWarhoundYes. The only challenge is that they don't have a more powerful system yet for home use. The HVAC system in the Model Y is too small. They could push it though as a compact dehumidifier/heatpump for small rooms.
ArcherWarhound. I'm sorry but if you look inside your condensorat your home, you will have a total change of mine. Their not build adequate for consuming the water produces that is produce. Maybe for watering your plants
its a great Idea the only problem is in Michigan you have a BIG problem call winter. how would this solar panel system work in the winter covered in SNOW?
Essentially, get a dehumidifier, connect solar for the electricity, as soon as the water is condensed, drain it out of the dehumidifier and filter(with any OTC alkaline filter) and store in a light proof container(to stop algae growth). About $600-$1000 on amazon for the components. That is all they did here. As opposed to wells, rain catchment, and land management installing swales to increase surface and ground water. When you do the maths, it is obvious that any "water from air" device is as practical as a perpetual motion machine.
I have a watermaker on my boat that generates around 150L/h from seawater. These hydropanels sound like a good option if you live in a third world country or the United States ;)
Very interesting, and something I will consider. But I feel like the best comparison would be with rainfall capture (and filtering)... tough to do though because of regional variations.
*When will you residents get together and put your officials in jail? Denying this problem exists is criminal already. Jail for willful incompetence is too good for demons.*
I own a small home in the Midwest with a big yard in an urban area (KC area). It seems like everything in our township is regulated so I could see neighbors complaining about the noise level. Also I think the price is a bit high for part time hibernating utility. The Midwest can go months with below freezing temperatures. And if most people are seeing this as a survival option it won’t do any good if it’s just cold with no snow. Of course when it snows one can simply melt the snow to drink. I would consider it in a sunnier climate zone. Why does it need a mineral filter? And are those filters really necessary or are they just adding it to the system so that they can have a perpetual profit?
The more I watch this the more it feels like an ad 😂 For one a average recommend water consumption per day for a grow up is 3 ltr minimum. When taking water from air it depends on your location ie water content in the air if you like close to the shore you will get peak efficiency and the energy spent is equal to the energy required to boil the water so it's not really a efficient usage of the energy Adding a simple water filter to the tap will be much more economical
Not everything can be filtered by a normal filter. For example lead is not easy by just a simple filter... It is a very inefficient methode but it makes you independent from external forces for your basic need of water and that is a huge bonus. In general they are looking to make homes more and more independent from the grid for several reasons. This might be one of the last steps needing to do so: For electricity use solar and wind + battery as buffer For non-human water use rainwater (toilets, showers, dishwashers, ...) Now for clean drinkable water (drinking and cooking warer) you have this project and hopefully many improved version/alternatives in the near future (independent from this company or not) 🙂
@@Stinosko I agree rain water harvesting is a highly beneficial technology, so why not filter that water and use it in the kitchen point was the only places these will work is places which have good rainfall or lot of water in the air..like islands where desalination makes much more sense . I don't get the point of spending huge amount of energy to capture water from air ? When compared to rh world there is a tiny geographical pocket where this would work and even in those areas it's not energy efficient compared to other technologies
@@DA-sp2qy Same issue: you can't passively filter the every toxic element from rain without using many energy to boil it and let clean water condensate and catch the clean concentrated water. Which probably is around same size of energy investment as this technology (is my assumptions) The main point here is: it's possible to be 100% off grid if you want or need to be. For example what he said in the video: not all homes have clean water reliably provided by goverment. (No foundation, lead foundation, no good regulation, ...) There is a valid usecase that this technology (clean water anywhere) is useful or even needed. Not everyone benefits from it (just yet) for example like you 😊
It would be nice to see a comparison between the power usage of this technology and other technology to clean rain water to the same healthy level as this technology. I don't know who is gonna win so we both can be right or wrong until a independent researcher investigates it 🙂
Here in CA. and all the South West States are going to be Needing these in the very Near Future !!! This like the Invention of Making Crud Oil into Gold !!!
Personally building something similar would not be difficult. The cost point is a little high with crain installation. I'm in a place that freezing cold temperatures 4 months out of the year. My ground water is also clean to drink. There are many places this would be good to have. Thank you for the video I watched in full.
Hey, I'm wondering if you could show a video on how you get the water out of those devices. That will better help me decide if it's going to work for my intended use.
Imagine having something like this on the roof of your RV. You could Boondock for weeks without running out of water! But the noise and the inability to operate in the winter up here in Canada are the two drawbacks to such a system. Very good video and thanks for sharing this!
You don't have to worry about winter here in Canada you got snow boil it for 10 minutes just to make sure you get rid of any bacteria and your good to go bro.....don't forget to add some minerals.
Take a pan that will hold water. Build a slanted box to go around it. Lay a sheet of glass over the box. Put a gutter on bottom of the glass that can catch the water as it rolls down the glass (lowest area). Connect a tube to the gutter that will go to your gallon jug. Set in the sun. In the morning go get your water and refill the water that has evaporated. Way cheaper than $6k. Make it as big as you need.
Finally, I can change my name to Luke, move to the desert, and open a moisture farm!
Change your name to Mouse, you could start a movement.
No desert air is dry. This will work in humid air only.
@@humanbeing20118 I was about to make that comment but then there are some bugs in the sonoron desert survive with the little moisture by some unique structures on their hard shells (early in the morning there will be some dew in the desert). One need to do a careful analysis and find out whether it make economical sense and the quantity collected on a daily basis is enough.
Make sure you pick up some power converters at Toche station
Good luck with that. 🤣
Value of system $280, installation $1000. Profit all the rest. That is completely insane. Glorified tiny dehumidifier. Sometimes the lunacy on the internet is beyond comprehension. I am an HVAC design engineer. This is one of those things where I even read all the comments and its like sheep being lead to slaughter. Incredible that almost nobody understands the crazy here. INCREDIBLE!!!
Water coming from thin air
I live in Scotland
I'm not impressed
Me in Sonoran desert - awesome! You in Scotland,meh.
Underrated comment right there!!
@@roboSKAY Hermosillo?
😂😂😂😂💦👍💜
It's called rain.
I live in a tiny house with solar panels and a composting toilet. My ultimate goal is to be completely off grid for utilities. I always thought a well or rainwater collection were my only choices but these cost a lot upfront and depend a lot on where you live. I'm glad to have another option to look at.
I'd go rain catch in that situation
Look up "air well". This is just a high tech version. You could stack up a lot of rocks (or any other non-water-contaminating material) for a lot less than $5k. Then add a solar still to get better than commercially distilled water. Of course the idiots in Oregon will probably make legislation banning this.
Rain water gathered from the roofs' drain pipe is our daily drinking water. All credit to God, it is very good. Parts per million of impurities get as low as 8 parts per million and on an average gather we see a result of between 20 and 30 pcm.
It is beneficial to have some impurities in water i have heard as 100% pure water is said to be dangerous. Cool desert / drought solution. Good work, thanks.
Cheers
Charlie
Peace
Lots of naysayers here, that I'm guessing are clueless about what it's like to live in the desert. Especially, in an urban setting.
I've often lamented that we desert-dwellers, really have no options for SHTF, drinking water sources. Let alone systems to gather and store it.
I'm so excited to find this video, and learn that there's a company, just North from me, that has been working on a solution.
Here in the Sonoran Desert, we're not only extremely arid, and extremely hot, but we are landlocked, without lakes, rivers, or streams. The only time we have rain of any significance, is during Monsoon season, a few weeks out of the year, and even that can be hit or miss when it comes to any chance of catchment systems. It's just not a reliable source.
Thank you so much, for sharing about this option. It makes a lot of sense for many around the world, living in arid climates.
1yr review coming soon!
I'm guessing you've never heard of a solar still.
@@jomsies You won't with this piece of junk either. Even by his own math it is cheaper to buy gallon jugs of water. Besides, solar stills draw it off of the earth, not out of the air. Without humidity there is no water in the air for this device to collect.
LOLOLOL......... Dehumidifying desert air to solve a water shortage. Im done. These people are insane.
the air in the dessert is dry doofus.
crossing the Mexico border, a couple of years ago. i remember seeing a huge contraption like this. it was water for the homeless. neat idea.
Hey...that is Awesome!
@Vintage IPAD likewise
@Vintage IPAD you're gross dont talk to people like that
@Vintage IPAD Funny, but you don´t know which way Marley crossed.
@@zainabzolita8436 do you have unknown uninvited people living in your house? If you won't allow that, then don't be a hypocrite.
Yes, I'd buy this. The noise problem is fixable. I tasted solar-collected water, many years ago, from a permaculture genius in Tucson, and I still remember it as the noticeably best-tasting water I've ever had that wasn't a mountain stream in the days before giardia infected the land.
this came from az...
This reminded me of a dehumidifier, the one I have in my basement fills up in less than a day .. this system must work something like that.
Yah I think you are right
@@sammybirech5211 I've seen dehumidifier bags that they make as well. The Amish use them in their stores and they fill up with a lot of water for little bags. I think it would be a good idea worse comes to worse if one REALLY needed water, especially out in eastern states where it stays extremely humid especially in the summer. They have the survival filter straws people can buy and it will clean the water so it is drinkable.
It’s just air blow across a cold metal coil and then reheated. The cold coil is below the airs dew point causing water to condense on it.
it's exactly that, but with a solarpanel on it, so they can sell this garbage for 40 times the cost of a regular dehumidifier.
@@kymspicks2763 the filter straws an excellent idea. I was feeding the water to the cat, but now I will drink it from the straw because its water after all
I would like to see a cost analysis of this system vs a solar electric + dehumidifier system. To me that's the real cost comparison.
Or even the cost of this vs a rain collection + purification system.
@@andrewc662 rain is not reliable enough for survival needs, exclude that
What I'd be interested in much more is a health and safety study on these... It's hard to believe that it keeps the water in the tank fresh and with nothing living in it, while at the same time being not much more than just a solar-powered dehumidifier (which aren't exactly known for producing a drinking water, where the lack of minerals is far from being the only concern).
I think it's pretty easy to add a low power uv light in storage which would keep the water sterile.
@@andrewc662 that assumes you get rain. not all places in the world that are water insecure have large amounts of precipitation
A lexan or plexiglass box can be easily made to insulate and cover your unit during the winter months. Kind of like a sunroof effect that is also used to keep plants warm and growing when the temperature plummets.
I believe that the winter solution would be to have the unit Not installed on the roof, but installed in the ground. Of course you must have enough space in your yard where the sun can still hit the panels. The ground is a natural insulator. And with low e- glass in triple pane, it might avoid freezing temperatures in a large portion of the country. After building a semi-pit greenhouse, I was amazed at the difference of avoiding quick spikes in temperature. And it Also prolonged the growing time in the greenhouse.
OMG! I live in Florida, forget the water production, use these to pull the soul-sucking humidity out of the air!
😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣
You can buy a dehumidifier for less than $50 on Amazon. That's much cheaper then the $6000 for these.
That's a great idea, the problem is I can't find a dehumidifier large enough to cover my yard when I'm gardening. Let me know if you find any that work outdoors.
@@DemocracyorDie, I'm with you!
a massive bubble with a dehumidifier could work for you
Being Swiss, I sometimes forget not everyone has mountain water coming out of the tap. This concept is really interesting. Cool upload.
We usually run the water through a water softener which mixes it with salt removing the hard minerals. It’s less damaging for washing clothes and softer on the skin for showers but you shouldn’t drink it and it doesn’t taste very good
Weird, i got this video from "the American guide to Swiss water" video
Mountainwater is just the greatest, feels like a half an hour of meditation allmost, from just 1 glass, the best 👌🏽🙂
@@alieustiansamateh6401 +the minerals.
Actually ,we have water coming from the mountains here in Las Vegas,there is water in the Sahara,it is just that people waste it, we get tons of new water every day from the space that Earth travels through.
I watched it a second time. Very good video. Crucial subject. We need to apply this to agriculture. Billionaires! Step up! The definition of a business strategy is to sell water to farmers during a drought. Go! There's money to be made!
Ben, what I would like to see is how does the thing actually work? (And that noise makes me a bit skeptical about 15 years almost service-free lifetime.)
So if it has a 15 year warranty you think they expect it to last less than 15 years?
Jason Kates is that the same way Tesla will be gone?
@@kayak_1 Actually the science behind the Tesla doesn't make economic sense. It uses a secondary power source (electricity) which is generated by a primary power source (gas, coal, and nuclear) which is polluting, finite, and expensive. There are other technologies which will generate liquid fuel, like ethanol and methanol from technologies that use sunlight, air, and water to capture the CO2 out of the air. This will blow Tesla away.
Jason Kates I already have solar panels. Why not just buy a dehumidifier?
@@scottpreston5074 Have you looked into actual electricity source mix recently? Have you looked into the efficiency of electric cars (especially Tesla and Koreans) making them emit less CO2 that ICE cars even if the electricity is 100% coal-sourced, which it nowhere is? Have you looked into the cost of CO2 capture and processes to convert it to fuel (of which all but Sabatier process are at laboratory stage)? Don't babble.
Please release a follow up video on the newer models especially if they're going to run quieter.
In most places, rainwater systems would make more sense. In the desert southwest, it might make a little more sense, but even there, the monsoon season can provide a great deal of any household needs. I would consider this a supplemental system.
I agree! I still love the idea and plan on building my own systems like this for fun
Get the water tested about 30 days apart for 4 months. Just saying, your tossing the word Pure a lot and as a consumer check for yourself for your family.
@@fatboy19831 thx, water is tricky.
legionnaires disease does spring to mind.
@@Bangpath247 Maybe a silver or copper or UV or ozone screening method, if not a pathogen filter process?
G ary I was thinking the same. Think I’d have it go through a house filtration system anyway.
Pure is a chemistry term, not a biological one. Pure means that there is only one of that (element, molecule, compound, etc..). Until the mineral cartridge what this thing produces is PURE water, meaning there is only H2O (with some air gasses dissolved in it 😄). What you've implied is "sterile" or "harmless" which refers to the pathogen in it.
Ben, households use a lot more than 8 liters per day if they disconnect the water supply from the grid and only use these things. I'm sure you'd need more like 10 of them so you could take showers, baths, washing clothes, dishwasher, cooking, drinking, washing your car, etc. It's better to just off the grid if you can. Great idea.
To solve our water and climate issues, In times like these we need to add more shade trees to parking lots, convert our wasteful lawns and backyards to permaculture food forest gardens landscapes with perennial drought and heat tolerant plants to provide food year long for our family, friends and neighbors. It’s healthy and better for us mentality/physically and the environment. You will get your vitamins C from the food you grown and vitamin D from the sun. :)
How do you clean the unit To prevent mildew build up? Great concept
I believe coming from the atmosphere, the water is probably negative ion charged which is actually great!
"I believe coming from the atmosphere, the water is probably negative ion charged which is actually great!"
Uhhhh... no. On almost EVERY level.
I think you should store the energy during the day, and run at night, when dew point is lower. Thus getting more condensation.
Interesting.
But it is loud as hell...
@@BangC137 I thought about saying that, too. Sleeping with ear muffs is an idea... 🤔
@@BangC137 no louder or maybe even less noisy then some of your neighbors driving by with their car stereos just vibrating your whole house.
But this is a constant lol or at least a lot longer than just a drive by, neighbors would LOVE you lol
This would be an excellent addition to my WTSHTF emergency equipment. I have enough solar power, but I had not yet figured out how to solve the 'drinking water' problem. this does it quite nicely.
Well that's very interesting! I'm curious how "clean" that water is; how poluted is the air? There is a lot of magnesium oxide, aluminium oxide, graphene oxide in the atmosphere, is this filtered in the unit?
nope. not a long-term solution
Depence how it is made it Will filter 99.99% and you cant even compare the taste becouse it is too different. To sum it up you wuold like to invest ur self for taste and healty reason. On finland we have world cleanest drinking water on toilet and tap, but using filter it is same as clean fountain source. If you can afford it you wont be disapointed if you allso maintain it (whitout maintain/new filters bacteria get inside)
I drink rainwater all the time. The place I collect it is about six miles from the nearest road. But yes, making water in a city would need serious filtration.
@@mnemonic5819 why? and I also curious how good is the panel kill the virus in the air.
@@RRSustainibility it can't live in the air without a cell...
I live some where around the 48th parallel it wouldn't work for me like you said, and the price is steep for someone on SS. I assume the price will come down as they sell more. What a game changer for others who don't have clean drinking water or none at all ! Cool video thanks
It would be great to place these along hiking trails and in parks for access to clean drinking water. Running the extra water to larger water tanks for use in watering grass etc or simply to have more water when crowds exist in parks. I think they could run 24/7 with solar battery backup. Even running extra water for animals and birds. As the Engineering improves over time the noise and cost could be reduced and freezing months could be addressed. Take Elon Musk approach. Cost Effective more Efficient Less parts more reliable more designed for manufacturing etc etc.. Even could be used on Mars, since pumped ground water would still evaporate. Elon and NASA would love that!!!
My thoughts exactly old friend
> "It would be great to place these along hiking trails and in parks for access to clean drinking water. Running the extra water to larger water tanks for use in watering grass etc or simply to have more water when crowds exist in parks."
You're far better off installing reverse osmosis systems. These panels are nothing but glorified solar-powered dehumidifiers.
> "I think they could run 24/7 with solar battery backup."
Not quite.
> "As the Engineering improves over time the noise and cost could be reduced and freezing months could be addressed."
Lower your expectations, buddy. Lower your expectations.
> "Even could be used on Mars, since pumped ground water would still evaporate. Elon and NASA would love that!!!"
Don't even THINK about colonising Mars until we send astronauts on a successful manned Mars mission and get them back to Earth.
"Take Elon Musk approach" So, just make an outrageous claim and then never follow through? Sounds like a plan!
With that noise? Don’t these things need power to generate the water? I guess huge solar panels in the trees? What did your ancestors do ‘while hiking’ lol.
You hit the nail on the head: it’s a glorified (solar powered and very expensive) dehumidifier. Nothing more; nothing less.
I wonder how much a solar powered air conditioner would cost, then just collect all the water from the condenser coils.
@@lightdark00 i got a solar powered dehumidifier for my hunting lodge that could generate around 30-40 liters per day if it's pretty humid
Woods ds40fs: $400 on sale (think it's $500 normally)
Solar panels: $600 (4x 410 watt)
Charge controller: $200
Batteries: $350
Misc: $50?
The solar part of this system also runs a fridge/freezer set and all the lights in the lodge and is way overbuilt for just the dehumidifier
@@angrydragonslayer To match it you can skip the expensive batteries, and only have it active in the full sun. With the right compressor, you may not need an inverter. Just a charge controller for a small marine battery, and have it shut off upon battery use.
@@lightdark00 of course, you could easily make this system cheaper than $1000 if you want just the water
but as i said, this isnt just for that.
@@DataLog ?
To reduce the noise on the roof, install sponge walls that direct the sound to the sky, some mineral wool panels could give remarkable results. However, consider insulating the panels in case of bad weather.
I’m sure you could install some sound dampening pads like they have in recording studios to mitigate the sound levels
Thumbs down for the "save the planet" BULL SH@T propaganda, but thumbs up for the coverage of a new product. Ben.
@@amypatterson9851 we are way past that now, its about getting what U can get sustainability from nature.
@@sitdowndogbreath thank you
Yeah just let the neighbors have it.
This sounds fine for warmer climates, but I wonder how well it would work in places with freezing winters.
During the freezing moments (nights and days), this system hybernates, like my turtles ... It states that clearly.
How often do you have to clean these out? I'd imagine a lot of bad stuff will start growing inside them if you don't.
David Beppler
Water and heat is not always ideal, except when the temperature is high enough. Else it is a risk.
@@davidbeppler3032 Legionnaires disease... This seems ideal conditions for it to grow.
Every time you get diahrea from water poisoning you should clean out the filter
@@iihoipoiii
Preferably before you get diarrhea ;-)
@@davidbeppler3032
But the generated water is not pure.
The air is polluted and can contain microscopic spores of whatever.
The "heat" you are talking about, which temperature is that? Below 60C (140F) you can get a Legionella infestation.
No fun there. Next to that, the stored water is not heated and should be at a drinkable temperature. So the temperature would ideally be below 20C (68F).
To be honest, I think this investment is too high for what you get. Much to high.
NIce if you are living in the middel of nowhere, but when you have tap water, there are much cheaper solutions to purify the water (if it is needed that is).
I’d like to see an update when you have info on the new version.
soon!
@@BenSullinsOfficial thanks! I am interested in a quieter version that is 100% recyclable.
@@BenSullinsOfficial a large fog catcher can collect 200 liters of water a day
@@robinsss Nice. What if there's no fog? No water.
@@LG-universe the fog catcher collects water from the atmosphere
the term fog catcher is not literal
Savings also in time of paying...once for panels, fifteen years for others. In fifteen years you probably will have times when money is tight and one less thing on a grocery list helps. The taste may be due to the material it’s made with. I would want to know if their “minerals” are what they say they are.
I live in Cape Verde where water is scarce. This sounds like a good idea, especially with solar panels for power. Never gets very cold here, warm days, cool nights, I buy water in 5 liter bottles to drink.
I will be looking into this Very Soon !!!!
Please show a video, where one can see, how the water is generated in the system. Thanks a lot in advance. Regards Stefan.
6000$ for 2galons per day.
Why don't u buy a filter.
Nice! But, how clean is your air, and how does that effect the water quality produced? 🧐
I did something similar with Avasva solutions.
That is great, do you have a link or video? Thanks! 🌺
@@fransjebik8554 Welcome !
You had me until the loud noise. I would be pissed if my neighbor got that and I had to hear that all day
You won’t hear anything at night!! lol
Can't be much louder than a pool pump.
Also that it doesn't work in cold weather. :(
I wonder how it compares to A/C compressors - they are also pretty loud
Maybe they will have problems worked out for the next version that Ben said they would bring to market in a few months? It's early days for the company so lots of improvements to be made. Every new model a few % increase in efficiency/generation of water and less noise? Sounds like what i would do with this tech.
I wonder how effective it would be in lowering the desalination load of a yacht water maker system?
What quality of water would we get if these panels were installed in areas where there is very poor air quality.
you would have to change the filters all the time
Very interesting idea, I wonder if they can make an RV version., Thanks.
Genius!
Reverse osmosis in stores where I am is .39 a gallon. The collected water from the panels would be distilled which if store bought is about $2. Distilled is purer but there is another factor I do not exactly understand about adding something to it. Would this type of collection filter contaminants from atmosphere? vs. rain barrel method? I think these panels offer a viable solution.
Also 2 gals may be enough to drink but not enough to use for cooking also. But this is definitely forward.
Excellent presentation Ben. I'd like to see a followup on how they remedy the noise issue which for me is a show stopper.
Thumbs down for the "save the planet" BULL SH@T propaganda, but thumbs up for the coverage of a new product. Ben.
How much are the mineral cartridges and do they provide information about the mineral content of the resulting water?
Thanks, I would love to hear about updates. EcoloBlue also produces an in-home unit (no worries about freezing) and commercial unit.
In India we collect rain water :) hence our water bills are just 15 $ per year
You also don't have the city government fining you for collecting rainwater, so NICE!!!
@@absp2006 the government actually provides incentives to set up rain water harvesting systems. In my city, any new construction whether private or commercial has to plan a rainwater harvesting system otherwise building permits are not issued.
@@hafeexius Weird, I was scolded years ago as to why I'm not allowed to collect rainwater.
@@absp2006 I should have posted in my earlier comment that I meant the local government here in South India
@@absp2006 why cant you collect rainwater? why is that an issue?
Nice concept and for those coastal locales where breezes dissipates air pollutants, but what about the collection of air borne pollutants in the collected humidity?
Stephen, I have asked the company on this and I'm waiting for their answer.
Love it. It would be interesting to understand the operating costs like replacement minerals, annual cleaning, filters, etc.
coming soon!
Some filters, like with the Berkey water filters, can be self-cleaned any number of ways, so hold out hope for that!
Used to work for ZMW. I think they changed their name to something else. The problem is flowing enough air mass with the available PV energy. One standard cubic foot of air volume flow per minute can capture ~.0126 lbs of moisture (standard pressure, 100 degF, 20% RH, as in a desert application). So to capture 2 gallons per day (7.566 Liters at about 16.6 lbs water) means you have to flow 1300 SCF of pure through-flow (no sucking of the air you just processed, and no re-evaporation of water you've already collected.
Sounds like a very doable problem, as all you need are 2 40SCFM fans running for 17 minutes. Easy right? Well it means everything must be perfect: perfect capture (absorb/release cycling matched to available air moisture at that time), leak free capture, no loss of heat, no evaporation of water you'd already collected, no spoiling of the water....you get the drift. The devil is in the details.
prolly has 4 of those fans
@@zerxilk8169 in fact it did, yet it takes two units at installed cost of $7200 to capture 5-15 liters of water per day. That's less than 4 gallons. It makes some of the most expensive drinking water in the world. Totally impractical.
Hey Ben do you think you could reverse engineer these panels and show us how they actually work? Maybe come up with a DIY project to emulate this product.
Oh no opened up a can of worms with this one @thunderf00t will be here soon
THIS.
Thunderfart
Company promises pure water, adds minerals so people won't complain about the weird taste.
Tf would probably make a half hour video repeating "but if there are minerals in it, it is not pure water!".
There is a reason why I have been ignoring YT suggestions to watch his videos.
@@AnalystPrime WTF logic fail, but that means it's very pure and you have to methodically add good minerals. No problem there.
@@AnalystPrime WTF, no he wouldn't. He attacks companies that lie, and mislead about their product. If this company is honest with the costs, how much water it can produce on a daily basis, and the limitations of the units ( such as no working in freezing weather ) the only complaint he would have is that there might be a system that's cheaper / more efficient.
He doesn't attack companies and products for no reason, and his reasons are painstakingly laid out in his videos, with some basic math behind it. It's people that get butt-hurt that their favorite piece of bullshit is proved a lie, that have a problem with him.
What a great idea! Thanks for showing this source. I think I will make my own to go next to my aluminium can solar heater. After watching your presentation, I think it might be too loud in my 55+ neighborhood. Unless everyone goes deaf. Fallbrook.
Great presentation; compact (not overly long) with lots of information. Bravo. More please.
Awesome video man. Seems like a cool technology
Deeper grove at level 8
I'd love to see you do a review of this product 😀.. i wanna see its anatomy
Why not simply catching rainwater? As people already do for millions of years, including people in the deserts of Arizona and Texas and is far simpler and cheaper?
Our house can catch on average 100 gallons a day and not 2, plus it costs a fraction of it. 🤷🏻♂️
Wait, this product is a scam? tf
@@shalokshalom rain catch is great if the right conditions exist. It's okay to have multiple solutions to problems, there's no one size fits all when it comes to solving the clean water problem.
I'd like a series of follow up videos with all their future iterations. This is promising! I'll probably get this system in a couple years.
Na you wont its a scam and call a humityfier. Takes a crazy amount of energy to get just a tiny amount of water out of it. Its a tatal scam. Even more sad somebody promots this shit.
You could just look at the dozens of past iterations and get the same info.
I'm really, really glad to watch your vids. They are very interesting, especially for me, those related to renewable energy. Please excuse my grammar mistakes if they are (Google Translate). English is not my first language and I did not study it at school. Good luck in everything you do! Greetings from Romania!
Great video Ben, this is very interesting!! Question -- does air pollution pose any threat to the quality of the water?
Yes
Thumbs down for the "save the planet" BULL SH@T propaganda, but thumbs up for the coverage of a new product. Ben.
@@amypatterson9851 too bad Ben became the biggest tool in the Tesla community.
Michael, I've asked the company the same question and I'm waiting for an answer.
Snow birds need a way to viably collect and melt snow. It would not be pollution free but it would be soft. Would a home reverse osmosis or distillation method resolve that? Does anyone have info?
2:29 You know when you're American when you measure large areas in units of Texas lmaoo
Loudness is measured in screaming eagles.
We even have degrees of rock, topping off at "like a hurricane."
I'm from Australia, we only have two states smaller than Texas
Okay, really quickly, picture the size of, say, 200 meters, in your head. Now picture 250 meters. See the problem? The size of a highly identifiable object is easier to picture in your head than "x meters". We also use school buses, Australia, the Statue of Liberty, football fields, city blocks, lamp posts, dollar bills, elephants, etc..
@@spacecaptain9188 yeah, we use texas as a measurement as well.....as in "This cattle station is larger than texas"
Thank you so much for sharing 🙏 we are installing them on our spring
I like the concept, but the issue with freezing makes it a no go for me. I live in Colorado and we definitely have freezing weather for a goods part of the year.
wow the noise....super dealbreaker....were you aware prior purchase Ben? i would be returning if I was you
Q1. How heavy (pounds) is each panel? (You had 2 of these panels and you said 350 pounds, but I didn’t know if it was for one panel or 2 panels.)
Q2. What are the dimensions of each panel?
Q3. Can the system be moved to another location, or is it portable in any way like for camping, etc?
I also live in California, and was interested in something that would work for camping, or tap water disruptions such as after an earthquake, and maybe to water plants, etc.
Thank you 😀
This would be an awesome addition to any world sailors who could get them installed on sailing vessels
I am thinking the same thing too.
@@lifeinmalay4588 It's actually much easier to use a desalinator on boats. There are advanced hand pump and powered desalinators that are very compact and produce as much drinking water as you need on demand.
@@Blztrls THAT is what I would love to buy for all occasions. That has got to be cheaper than this video project.
Solar stills would be very difficult to use on a boat: Pitching and rolling would be constantly threatening to contaminate your freshwater with the saltwater you're trying to desalinate. They might be useful for something like an offshore platform, but even then... given all the other plant they have running it's as easy to just use a desalinator.
“Whether or not you stay in that same place for 15 years is up in the *air* ”
Nice 😎
COOL! I'd love to see how far they've come now that it's 2022. Are they quieter? Do they have bigger tanks? How do they connect in to the house? Can they be used to drain into long term water storage?
This was debunked years ago. You can't pull more water from the air than is there. These things would yield more water as rain-catchers than they can produce by "pulling water out of the air".
We purchased an Air-2-Water generator about 8 years ago. It is an enhanced dehumidifier with walter filtration capabilities. I looked at at the tpye of unit you demonstrated but the lower cost of Air-2-Water made the decision. In Missouri, the higher humidity gives us about six gallons of water a day. I siphon off water to store for days that are colder. It isn't perfect but it does a good job. I want to install one in an off-grid RV with a composting toilet and recirculating shower. It could happen.
Yes I would love to hear the updates
Here, in central NM the humidity has been single digits for months. With a small amount of rain that brings it up for a day, maybe three days this year, so far. June '22
The military has been using a mobile water maker successfully for a while now.
But they got an open check. You seen Biden’s budget? It is crazy to think that over 730 billion is assigned to the military yet your citizens are condemned to sickness and misery, maybe even death, due to “massively expensive” infrastructure costs.
Lol maybe they should try deploying them at the bases with all the contaminated water that's causing cancers.... Join a stupid cult win stupid prizes
Only if there was an option for winter time in CO. Maybe heating elements (larger solar panel) then I would definitely be interested. I think in time after a few generations I would be more comfortable buying these!
When I lived in Kentucky I had a quarter acre garden I used a store-bought 34 pint dehumidifier to water that garden and I powered it off his solar so dehumidifiers do not necessarily need to be hooked to the grid if you know what you're doing
We love the system. Had it for two years and was the best decision after going full solar for the power. I LOVE the noise it makes because it reminds me of a Sci-Fi movie and high-tech. Best of all, it does that without any source of external power. Zero Mass installed a lot of them here in Puerto Rico at various fire departments after the hurricane.
You just annihilated thousands of dollars. This thing is a scam.
As someone that lives in an area affected by desertification due to human actions, I really appreciate this video!
Thumbs down for the "save the planet" BULL SH@T propaganda, but thumbs up for the coverage of a new product. Ben.
@ Ben Sullins its been two years since your video, how is the system working now? Have you seen any upgrades on noise dampening or improvements to use for harsher/cold weather areas? TIA!
I'm wondering about putting them in a small greenhouse? Might help with freezing? Also maybe use a solar panel and fan with pipe system in ground to keep the greenhouse from freezing in winter? Would the green house temps reck them in the summer? Also need to muffle the noise. Is there a way to insulate around them?
For a minute their I thought this was a April Fools joke...
@@wd269 My thoughts exactly.
Great video, however I wonder the cost comparison to water delivery truck, or if you fill up refillable bottles at a store. Usually it's about 0.25 a gallon but can vary.
Off grid living people: I see this as an absolute win
I think off grid people would rather build a well... but yes this is a win for humanity
Im off grid and you want a well. Your not going to get the hundreds or thousands of gallons of water youll need daily to grow your food with this. I have a garden thats about 3000sqft and i use around 500-1500 gallons a day depending on how hot it gets. I do grow about 5 times the food i need and give alot away though
Until they drink too much of this water with no minerals in it, and it strips their body out of minerals and they get sick like that young girl did. She actually died from drinking too much of that type of water. This water can be used in emergency but not daily unless it is re-mineralized
@@briananderson2219 they mention pretty early in the video that they have mineral packs to put in the water
@@GonzoDonzo exactly. This is like for someone with some cash to spend.
Elon is thinking of an HVAC system that also produces potable water.
The theory is that HVACs already produce potable water based on the condensation process of pulling humidity out of the air.. it's a question of rerouting the water for drinking purposes. Don't tell Ben .. he might be disappointed knowing he spent a few more dollars than he had to..
That's the easiest thing in the world, and hardly requires Elon's engineers to figure out; you just route the condensation drain line into a tank for a filtration system.
I’m pretty sure Tesla’s HVAC will make way less noise.
@@ArcherWarhoundYes. The only challenge is that they don't have a more powerful system yet for home use. The HVAC system in the Model Y is too small. They could push it though as a compact dehumidifier/heatpump for small rooms.
ArcherWarhound. I'm sorry but if you look inside your condensorat your home, you will have a total change of mine. Their not build adequate for consuming the water produces that is produce. Maybe for watering your plants
its a great Idea the only problem is in Michigan you have a BIG problem call winter. how would this solar panel system work in the winter covered in SNOW?
We need a lot more of this kind of tech!
Just use a dehumidifier same outcome.
kinda pricey for a solar powered dehumidifier, too heavy and required professional installers
Essentially, get a dehumidifier, connect solar for the electricity, as soon as the water is condensed, drain it out of the dehumidifier and filter(with any OTC alkaline filter) and store in a light proof container(to stop algae growth). About $600-$1000 on amazon for the components. That is all they did here.
As opposed to wells, rain catchment, and land management installing swales to increase surface and ground water. When you do the maths, it is obvious that any "water from air" device is as practical as a perpetual motion machine.
If you live in AZ state there is no humidity in the air .sometimes gets down to 4%>
I have a watermaker on my boat that generates around 150L/h from seawater. These hydropanels sound like a good option if you live in a third world country or the United States ;)
I was thinking the same! Wonder if the design could be simplified to allow local manufacture and service in places like Africa?
In India we get a 200-300$ RO/UV filter which is better, than this 6000$ richy$rich toy
May be in desert it's best option
It’s perfect for south east Asia. Humid and never freeze.
I was thinking about communities near ocean with ground water being salty.
and rains a lot.
Does it have any supply pump or is it just gravity feed? And does it cut power if the tank is full as to not overflow?
Very interesting, and something I will consider. But I feel like the best comparison would be with rainfall capture (and filtering)... tough to do though because of regional variations.
Yeah that's def a better option if you can do it. Needs tons of space, and rain!
I have to admit, this subject is fascinating!
Great quote from a great scientist and sci-fi writer.
As a Flint resident, we still don't have clean drinking water and the city has raised water prices. We're beyond ready to sell this house and leave.
I don't blame you, it's criminal what they're doing up there
Moses west
*When will you residents get together and put your officials in jail? Denying this problem exists is criminal already. Jail for willful incompetence is too good for demons.*
@@FEMBT-yb8rh I honestly think they should do alot more than just jail, but you are on the money
Propaganda.
I hope someone someday on TH-cam will teach us how these panels work
Look up atmospheric water generators
I own a small home in the Midwest with a big yard in an urban area (KC area). It seems like everything in our township is regulated so I could see neighbors complaining about the noise level.
Also I think the price is a bit high for part time hibernating utility. The Midwest can go months with below freezing temperatures. And if most people are seeing this as a survival option it won’t do any good if it’s just cold with no snow. Of course when it snows one can simply melt the snow to drink.
I would consider it in a sunnier climate zone.
Why does it need a mineral filter? And are those filters really necessary or are they just adding it to the system so that they can have a perpetual profit?
The more I watch this the more it feels like an ad 😂
For one a average recommend water consumption per day for a grow up is 3 ltr minimum.
When taking water from air it depends on your location ie water content in the air if you like close to the shore you will get peak efficiency and the energy spent is equal to the energy required to boil the water so it's not really a efficient usage of the energy
Adding a simple water filter to the tap will be much more economical
Not everything can be filtered by a normal filter. For example lead is not easy by just a simple filter...
It is a very inefficient methode but it makes you independent from external forces for your basic need of water and that is a huge bonus.
In general they are looking to make homes more and more independent from the grid for several reasons. This might be one of the last steps needing to do so:
For electricity use solar and wind + battery as buffer
For non-human water use rainwater (toilets, showers, dishwashers, ...)
Now for clean drinkable water (drinking and cooking warer) you have this project and hopefully many improved version/alternatives in the near future (independent from this company or not) 🙂
@@Stinosko I agree rain water harvesting is a highly beneficial technology, so why not filter that water and use it in the kitchen
point was the only places these will work is places which have good rainfall or lot of water in the air..like islands where desalination makes much more sense . I don't get the point of spending huge amount of energy to capture water from air ?
When compared to rh world there is a tiny geographical pocket where this would work and even in those areas it's not energy efficient compared to other technologies
@@DA-sp2qy Same issue: you can't passively filter the every toxic element from rain without using many energy to boil it and let clean water condensate and catch the clean concentrated water. Which probably is around same size of energy investment as this technology (is my assumptions)
The main point here is: it's possible to be 100% off grid if you want or need to be. For example what he said in the video: not all homes have clean water reliably provided by goverment. (No foundation, lead foundation, no good regulation, ...)
There is a valid usecase that this technology (clean water anywhere) is useful or even needed. Not everyone benefits from it (just yet) for example like you 😊
It would be nice to see a comparison between the power usage of this technology and other technology to clean rain water to the same healthy level as this technology. I don't know who is gonna win so we both can be right or wrong until a independent researcher investigates it 🙂
Thank you! Very well presented, easy to follow.
Since it only produces 2 gallons a day it could also be used to keep a small koi pond full or for watering your hedges or small garden.
When these get really efficient and quieter, it could be an amazing addition to sailboats.
They already have them on sailboats. Most people call them by the name of a company that started selling them... google "Watermaker".
Here in CA. and all the South West States are going to be Needing these in the very Near Future !!! This like the Invention of Making Crud Oil into Gold !!!
Personally building something similar would not be difficult. The cost point is a little high with crain installation. I'm in a place that freezing cold temperatures 4 months out of the year. My ground water is also clean to drink. There are many places this would be good to have. Thank you for the video I watched in full.
Hey, I'm wondering if you could show a video on how you get the water out of those devices. That will better help me decide if it's going to work for my intended use.
I would love to implement something like this, sadly I live in an apartment ☹️
Just install it on the roof. No one will ever know.
@@jmatt98 i have the feeling they will know as soon as they her the noise it makes... or if you arent home for some days and it starts to overflow :)
Imagine having something like this on the roof of your RV. You could Boondock for weeks without running out of water!
But the noise and the inability to operate in the winter up here in Canada are the two drawbacks to such a system.
Very good video and thanks for sharing this!
700lbs on your roof and that awful noise is not worth it. If they could get the weight and noise down, it would be an awesome product for rv life.
You don't have to worry about winter here in Canada you got snow boil it for 10 minutes just to make sure you get rid of any bacteria and your good to go bro.....don't forget to add some minerals.