[CoffeeLovers]

I'm new to this forum, but I'm really excited that I found it! I've been looking for something like this for a long time and I can't wait to go read more threads!

Before I do though, I want to reach out to all the locals and ask for some help.

My partner and I are trying to start a mobile coffee shop in northeastern Pennsylvania with the Wheelys franchise. We want to sell organic coffee and tea beverages, local produce, and organic freshly baked goodies - everything on the cart will be vegan. The cafe would be transported on a bike and powered by solar panels and a wind turbine. We are committed to living a sustainable and vegan lifestyle. We hope that we can lead by example and get some good conversations going in our community about alternative lifestyles, compassion, and how to be more environmentally conscious. Our plan is to serve up coffee and conversations at the same time! We feel that education is a priority and we think that this would be a good way to inspire and educate others while also following a dream we are passionate about. We have almost all of the money we need to make our final payment on the Wheelys cart, but not enough. We have been putting a great deal of effort into this dream and we have been working overtime at our regular jobs, but we are still a little short. We are hoping that some fellow vegans and vegetarians might be able to help us out by donating a few dollars or by sharing our campaign with their friends. Anyone who donates at least $5 will receive a voucher for a free baked good once we are up and running. Any help at all would be greatly appreciated <3

We hate asking for help, but we would really like to be able to make our final payment so that we can bring the Wheelys to Pennyslvania in time for Spring 2017. If you're able, please help us make this possible.

I'm not able to post links yet since I'm new. Here is our gofundme number: 2hq8pp7w

If you use instagram, I'd love to connect. My username is BurningxBright for my personal account and WheelysNepa for the Wheelys account. You can find more information about our campaign on those accounts.

 

[David3]

The cafe would be transported on a bike and powered by solar panels and a wind turbine. .

This sounds like an exciting idea, but commercial espresso machines require more electrical power than can be supplied by a portable solar or wind energy system.

Commercial espresso machines can have electrical power demands of 4000 watts: http://www.espressomachinecatalog.com/commercial-espresso-machines.aspx .

To provide 4000 watts with solar electricity, even in a very sunny area, you would need about 300 square feet of solar panels: http://www.gogreensolar.com/products/4000w-diy-solar-panel-kit-grid-tie-inverter . Transporting this many solar panels on your bicycle cart, and finding enough room to mount all of these solar panels (in a shade-free place) at your vending location, would be logistically very difficult.

A wind turbine would be an even greater challenge. A 4000 watt wind turbine would have a blade sweep-diameter of about 10 feet! http://www.beawindhog.com/t4---4000-watt.html . This size of turbine also requires a 30 mph wind to generate the full 4000 watts. Such a turbine has to be supported on a sturdy mast, anchored to the ground. For safety reasons, it would need to be elevated above the level of passing pedestrians. It's very doubtful that a mobile wind turbine (of this size) could be legally permitted.

It's not that solar and wind aren't effective. It's that commercial espresso machines are energy hogs!

Is there another renewable energy technology that could work here? Certain vacuum coffee makers run on ethyl alcohol, which can be renewably sourced from corn: http://www.espressozone.com/cona-vacuum-coffee-maker-guide
.

 

[David3]

I have more information now. You propose to purchase a "Wheelys" mobile coffee franchise. These bicycle-driven coffee carts do have a solar panel and a tiny wind turbine (see illustration below from Wheelys website). I have worked in the renewable energy industry for 19 years, and I can tell you that a solar panel and wind turbine of this size are only sufficient to power the LED lights, audio system, the micro-refrigerator, and the WiFi (all of these appliances, together, only need perhaps 100 watts of electricity - the same as a single old-style incandescent light bulb). Any cooking would be done on a gas-fueled stove (also shown below in the "Wheelys" illustration). The water heater would also need to be gas-fueled, or plugged into an actual electrical outlet.

A nice idea, but the small solar panel and wind turbine do very little to power this cart - they only really serve to promote a green image. In order to generate appreciable power with solar and wind, the equipment needs to be big. That's why solar panels are mounted on rooftops (where there is plenty of room), and that is why commercial wind turbines are enormous affairs, mounted to very tall masts.