Case Study: Swagelok Helps A Home Declare Energy Independence

The success story of an all-electric house that needs no external power supply

Swagelok for the home? Mike Strizki relied on Swagelok to retrofit his 3,000-square-foot house so that it needs no external power supply. The New Jersey project is the first of its kind – an existing home made self-sufficient with solar and hydrogen power.

Swagelok Company was instrumental in helping Strizki realize his goal of building a home that emits no greenhouse gas to the atmosphere. Swagelok assisted in the design and provided a variety of components such as AFS ball valves, gauges, manifolds, fittings and 300 feet of stainless steel tubing.

Renewable energy sources provide all the power the home needs. Sunlight energizes 56 solar panels. More than half of the energy collected by the panels is converted to hydrogen, stored for conversion back into electricity during cloudy weather. Strizki stores enough hydrogen to keep him warm all winter, and to keep his hydrogen-fueled car running throughout the year. His monthly utility bill? Zero.

Right from the start

At the point when Swagelok became involved, Strizki already had his solar panels, storage batteries, hydrogen electrolyzer, generator and tanks, but not the connection equipment nor the expertise to tie it together.

“When I spoke to Strizki and he described his project in detail, I saw it as an opportunity Swagelok couldn’t pass up,” says Tracey Simpson, owner and president of Penn Fluid System Technologies, the Swagelok distribution and service center in Huntingdon Valley, Pa. “We’re involved in lots of interesting areas. Space missions and deep-sea explorations use Swagelok. Since we’re also developing products for the alternative fuels market, I knew we had to be involved here, too.”

Penn FST did all the CAD work to determine flow rates, pressure drops and other critical information, and select the right Swagelok components and provided a layout.

“Swagelok brought a total system approach and did whatever it took to get the job done,” says Strizki. “I gave them copies of my blueprints and they made suggestions for making them better.”

For instance, a key components are the 1,000-gallon hydrogen tanks. Ten of them are arranged alongside one another in two banks of five. The tanks in each bank are connected in parallel with Swagelok tubing. Strizki’s original design called for straight tubing between the tanks, but Penn FST recommended including expansion loops.

“Expansion loops minimize the effects of temperature changes in the weather – and the resulting pressure changes of the hydrogen in the tubing – or any shifting the tanks may experience if, say, their cement pads settle and shift their positions over time,” Simpson says.

Swagelok also provided subassembly on two control panels used for controlling the system. One is installed in front of the hydrogen tanks and the other is in front of the equipment shed that houses the electrolyzer and fuel cells.

Swagelok’s reputation and delivery on that reputation made it easy for Strizki’s home to be approved by building code inspectors. “The involvement of Swagelok went a long way in getting the backing of the inspectors,” Strizki says.

You can read about the project in more detail here under the Hydrogen House link. If you could use similar kinds of help on your own project, you get the same kind of expertise and quality right in you own back yard from Swagelok Northern California. We have the parts, the services and the know-how to help you maximize your investment and keep it running smoothly.

Additional Resources