Solar inventor gives technology a workout

Natural curiosity fuels Henderson man's work with homemade energy-efficient devices

Inventor Don Bond, 67, adjusts a Fresnel lens that's part of a solar still that enhances water distillation. Photos by LARRY CRUIKSHANK/View. Don Bond explains how his phase change material space heaters work at his home in Henderson.

Words like phasechange material, photovoltaic and Fresnel lenses are all second nature to Don Bond. The 67-year-old solar inventor who lives in Henderson pops out phrases and concepts faster than most novices can keep up, but his love of conservation and harnessing the natural power of the sun is catching people's attention.

A tax preparer by day in a business he owns with his ex-wife and self-described "best friend," Ginny, Bond's hobby of building and inventing things using solar power is taking on a life of its own. Bond has built a solar home in Henderson that has made it onto national and local solar home tours. The solar-powered domicile was featured on two outings of the Southern Nevada Solar Home Tour 2008. The tours, which are part of the National Solar Home Tour, were presented by the Southern Nevada Chapter of the American Solar Energy Society.

The solar endeavors are part of Bond's mission to expand the acceptance of solar power as practical in the eyes of the general public.

"I would like to create something that is useful for the public and conserves energy, whether it be big or small," Bond said.

Bond also built an energy-efficient home next door to his solar house, which his son Scott lives in. But the building he calls home, 597 Truffles St., cost about $18,000 for the solar component. Bond recouped about half of the investment thanks to a state-offered, limited-time solar rebate program that was in place during the home's construction.

Bond' solar generates 1.6 kilowatts of photovotaic electricity. Photovoltaic is a term used to describe the process by which energy from the sun is converted into electricity.

"The sun hits the photo cells on the solar panels, exciting them (the cells) and converting them (into electricity)," he said.

For the first half of the year, Bond's power bills averaged under $9 a month. And when the temperatures heated up, his solar-powered cooling system saved him 25 percent on his electric bill. Other inventions at his solar house include a solar still, which is used to purify tap water. The still uses a high-power type of lens called a Fresnel lens that helps magnify the sun.

Bond does his experiments whenever he can find the time from his full-time occupation as a tax preparer. But, like a Boy Scout, he is always prepared. The Henderson resident carries a little water tester, which he purchased over the Internet, to randomly test the purity of the valley's water supply. Wipping out the device to test water at a local restaurant, Bond praised his investment in the $10 tool.

The tester, which is the size of a pager or beeper, works by placing a drop or two of water on it. The tester then provides a reading on the number of solid particles in the water. The particles are typically invisible to the naked eye, Bond said.

The device also provides an easy-to-follow chart, and smiley and sad face icons to indicate the quality of the water sample. It comes in handy when examining water quality during experiments, he said.

For example, Bond can test the resulting quality of his distilled water.

"To do experiments, you have to have tools," he said. "I am trying to do a stove-top distillation. It boils the water, the steam goes up and the steam in is pure water. It leaves the contamination below. It is the same as nature."

The process may be the same as that which naturally occurs, but Bond is trying to make sure less condensation escapes during his controlled experiments by having less of an opening around the tube that goes from one water-filled pot to another.

He'll use a chiller like stills of old, he said.

"The chiller will be like that of a moonshine still, copper tubing of some type," he said. "With a Fresnel lens, I am trying to hasten the distillation process. My challenge is to create enough steam to create a gallon or more of water."

A former resident of Illinois, Utah and California, Bond has sold recreation vehicles, been an insurance adjuster and an enrolled tax agent, but solar is his love. Renewable research caught his interest as a young man.

"My solar interest began 40 years ago when I read an article about phasechange material," he said, recalling one of his earliest experiments. "And I bought a gallon-sized, black can of glaubers salt, painted black, that I would sit out in the sun to absorb heat. I would sit out with (the can) and pick it up occasionally to feel the heat and shake it. I thought this one can would heat a room."

Bond learned from those early experiments that there was a lot more work involved than he initially thought. His inventions have advanced from there.

For example, he has cobbled together a couple of solar-cooled, air-conditioning units in his backyard. Anyone can do it, he said. And it is not nearly as expansive as people think. According to Bond, less than $50 can net a person all the materials needed to make the condensation-based air-condition cooling system.

Bond listed the parts, which include two rebars, a cable tie, an "L" and a "T" connector, two mister heads, a horse bib adaptor, an ultraviolet protector hose and an aluminum panel.

The parts for the condensation cooling system can be purchased at Lowes, except for the mister heads.

"The only place in town they can find the mister heads is at the Plant World on West Charleston," he said.

The cooling system uses 720 gallons of water a month at a cost of about $1.65 a gallon, but can save 25 percent on the monthly electrical bill, Bond said. Of course, what has generated the most attention among Bond's projects are his distinct solar house and energy-efficent home, located next to each other, near the corner of College and Horizon drives.

It was during an open house last year that Bond's homes caught the eye of someone in higher education. CSN professor David Brodersen, who teaches at the Henderson campus, was jogging by one day and was intrigued by what he saw from the outside. He later returned for Bond's open house to meet the inventor in person.

It's hard to miss Bond's two homes. The two light-blue, rectangular-shaped homes stand out from the tract and custom homes around them. The solar home is adorned with solar panels.

The meeting between Bond and Brodersen resulted in an invitation for Bond to take part in the renewable energy seminar "Green Energy" in September at the Henderson campus. The seminar attracted close to 75 people. It could potentially lead to coursework in the subject, Brodersen said. If approved, the coursework would be a continuing-education class at the college.

"The reason I thought of him was his solar house," Brodersen said. "He did an excellent job of presenting, and was very informative." Brodersen said he planned on discussing more renewable collaborations with Bond after the holidays pass.

"I'd like to talk to him more about his solar and green technology," he said.

The renewable effort on Bond's part is a hobby, he said. The inventor did make a little profit a few years back when he devised a better cooling system for self-cooling vests, which are commonly used under heavy costumes worn by mascots. Bond never formally studied engineering. He didn't graduate from college, either. The self-taught solar scholar earned all of his experience hands on, he said.

"I do not have any advanced degrees in the field, but I love to investigate how things work."

Valerie Miller writes for the View's sister publication, the Business Press. Contact her at or 702-387-5286.