UPDATE: I’ve answered questions from commenters below in the FAQs, and added additional diagrams – Anthony
Much to the chagrin of people who are sure I’m evil, in the pocket of big oil, and highly carbon positive, I’m actually an independent and pretty energy efficient guy, and I challenge any of my detractors to show their solar and energy efficiency projects. Put your money where your mouthpiece is, I say. For example, do loud climate campaigners Joe Romm and Bill McKibben have solar power on their homes? Do Jim Hansen and Michael Mann have solar power while telling us we all must cut back our energy usage linked to fossil fuels? Inquiring minds want to know.
Readers may recall last summer that I put up my third solar power project, my first being on my older home, then a large 125KW solar project I started as Trustee for the Chico Unified School District. My third project is doing quite well, and a number of readers have asked for an update on my original article as they are considering doing what I have done. This being the day of the electricity denying “Earth Hour”, I thought it would be a good day to write about how I’m beating my electric bill. You see, while many tout the supposed CO2 saving properties of solar panels, my impetus is entirely different: I’m hedging against California’s exorbitant green-driven utility rates.
For example, see below from my bill last year when temperatures went up in the summer, and tell me if where you live you come anywhere close to paying what I do.
Above: my actual rate and costs from last summer June-July 2012.
Thanks to PG&E’s new smart-meter system, they can now gouge me more efficiently and on schedule, when I need electricity to keep cool the most. I doubt there’s anyone reading this entry that pays 93 cents per kilowatt-hour to keep their home cool in summer.
I (along with millions of others in California) pay what I call a “location tax” due to my living in California’s Sacramento Valley, where summer temperatures regularly hit and exceed 100F. The majority of California’s population, living along the coast, don’t see temperatures anywhere near that, and thus don’t have similar air conditioning issues.
And, with the California Air Resources Board (CARB) running amok with cap-and-trade regulation frenzy, with refusal of coal and nuclear energy, relying on green wind power mostly for the future, combined with a looming national Carbon Tax, finding a way to generate your own electricity is in my opinion, the best hedge against future cost increases. Climate concerns don’t even rate with me on this issue, I’m thinking more about my financial future and the health and comfort of my family, and that’s why I got a solar system – it’s a hedge against the green energy and climate madness.
Here’s how I beat the green menace and PG&E.
Remember back in December when climate scientist Dr. Michael Mann was so out of touch that he couldn’t even conceive that I could do calendars for myself (I sent him a free one), but instead it must have been some nefariously funded production? Well, he probably can’t conceive of how I put up my own solar system either, since like the Josh Calendars, I did it using COSTCO and some sweat equity.
Here’s a few FAQs.
1. Did “big oil” or some other entity pay you to do this?
No.
Did you use government grants to do this? No. Did you get money from the WUWT tip jar or calendar sales to do this? No.
So how did you pay for this? Simple. I took out a low-interest loan against my savings account the contents of which was then converted to a certificate of deposit spanning five years. I’ll have the solar system paid for in five years, and the CD will be free at that time. Then I’ll have a solar system and my savings principal intact plus I’ll get interest on the certificate of deposit. Basically I’m trading my PG&E electric bill for a financing bill for five years.
How much did it cost? About $25,000 and change, fully installed, plus shipping and tax on the hardware portion.
2. Why didn’t you get one of those “no money down” solar systems being advertised today?
I’m borrowing and adapting a popular credit card slogan to best explain this: “ownership has its advantages”. I looked into several of these other plans, and when I penciled out the entire scheme, it didn’t make much financial sense, and at the end of the lease, I either had to buy the system at “fair market value” (to be determined) or they come and remove the system. And given the number of solar company bankruptcy/failures out there (think Solyndra), I was concerned that I’d be straddled with a system that was orphaned due to the company going out of business and the debt purchased by some holding company, who could then argue that previous contracts were “null and void” due to such bankruptcy and “oh, by the way here’s your new payment schedule”. When you want to control your own destiny, relying on others is not a safe bet.
3. Grid-tied or battery storage?
It is a grid-tied system. Battery storage systems really don’t make any sense for a city dweller, as they are primarily off-the-grid type applications where you need independent power 24/7. This was primarily a financial consideration, not a power security one.
4. Did you get any government rebates?
No, there was a PG&E rebate program, which put about $1200 (based on my system size) back in my pocket, but as I said earlier, I got no government money related to this. There will be some small tax advantages for me.
5. Does it make any noise or heat?
No, the inverters are essentially silent, except for one small fan. The inverters do make some waste heat, but they are mounted outside, and not an issue. The solar panels actually help keep the house a bit cooler, as they absorb sunlight for a good portion of the roof space, which otherwise would have gone to heating the attic.
6. Has it saved you money?
Yes, absolutely. More details follow.
7. How does your power bill work now?
We get a quarterly summary showing our electric use/surplus, and a year-end “true up” bill to balance any difference. We still have to pay for natural gas usage separately.
8. How big is it? How much power?
36 panels, of 250watts each, for a maximum DC output of 9000 watts (9KW). Of course that’s under optimal sun angle and atmospheric conditions, and with DC to AC power conversion loss, the real max is closer to 6500 watts of AC power. Typical days run anywhere from 4500-5500 KW at peak sun. I opted for the better monocrystalline (blue color) panels rather than the polymorphous (brownish) solar panels as they are more efficient and longer lasting.
9. (added) How soon do you expect to be able to pay back your investment?
If I assume a linear payback rate, it would be about 12 years. However, I think it will be closer to 9 years based on my estimates of what the future holds. First, a look at recent rates by state:
Source: http://www.pacificpower.net/about/rr/rpc.html
Now, look at the forecast for residential electricity prices. It isn’t linear.
Source: US Department of Energy
10. (added) What is your cost of capital?
The way my loan is setup, guaranteed against a certificate of deposit earning interest, the APR works out to 0.8%. Over 5 years, that works out to be $511.66 for the cost of the loan.
11. (added) How does the mounting system affect your roof integrity? Will you get leaks?
The installation was guaranteed to be leak free, and after this winter rains, I can testify to that. The way the roof mount works, the screws used to secure the rack support post are put under a metal “flashing” cone, and screwed in with a sealant applied to the screw threads. This guarantees that there’s no rain penetration because the flashing not only prevents the screws from getting rain in the first place, the flashing acts just like another shingle. Here’s a diagram I prepared showing how it works:
See a descriptive animation here: http://www.unirac.com/video/animations/solarmount-i/index.html
12. Why didn’t you go with larger panels (like the 300 watt panels of the same size).
Because the volume pricing COSTCO had arranged (at that time) did not offer that size. Adding my 2% COSTCO rebate combined with the lower overall cost made the 250watt panels a no-brainer.
Specs on the panels are here: 
GRAPE SOLAR 250W MONO PDF
13. How was the system shipped?
It arrived by truck as two large pallets, plus a third long package of rails. I stored these in my garage, unpacked them, and hauled the shipping materials to my office dumpster.
14. What about possible hail damage?
The rated impact resistance: hail diameter of 28mm (1.1″) with speed of 86km/h. (53mph)
These panels are really tough. My installer says you can drop them from the roof onto the concrete and they’ll survive just fine (he’s done it by accident more than once). here is a video and a news item that suggests the panels are tougher than the roofing.
News item:
Surprisingly little damage to rooftop solar panels
The epic hailstorm did surprisingly little damage to the tens of thousands of pricey solar-power arrays built on metro Phoenix rooftops in recent years.
http://www.azcentral.com/business/articles/20110930biz-hailstorm1002solar.html
======================
Purchasing the system
As I mentioned, I used COSTCO to buy the entire hardware system. They resell from a company in Oregon called “Grape Solar“. Here’s their largest package:
I actually wanted more power than that, so I contacted Grape Solar directly, described my needs, showed my house roof plan and power bills, and they came up with a custom design for me at no charge. Here’s the line item summary of what I bought:
I did a lot of research on this system, and found it was well designed and likely to live up to its claims, 8 months in, so far so good.
NOTE: Detailed instructions on how to order your own system from COSTCO follow at the end of this article.
Here’s links to manuals (PDF) on the items above:
- Grid-tied Solar System Layout Example
- Solar System Install Guide
- Solar Panel Specification Sheet
- PV Power Inverter Manual
- Solar System Quickstart Guide
I particularly like the Kaco Blue Planet DC to AC PV inverters, which are compact, quiet, efficient, and good-looking to boot. Here they are (5000 watt and 3500 watt models) on the side of my home with the PG&E SmartMeter. DC power comes in at the conduit from the solar panels at top right, AC power exits at bottom left in the curved conduit to junction box to tie into my AC mains breaker box.
=======================
Installing the solar system
While I “could” have done the entire installation myself, having mad electric and electronic skills, I opted to have someone experienced in this particular technology do it for me. The Grape Solar company contact gave me a list of certified installers in the area, and I called each of them up and asked them questions. The guy who held up under my intense questioning (A fellow in Redding named Baran Galocy) got the job. For some of the installers, I knew more than they did, never a good sign. Choose wisely.
Plus, this fellow was willing to work with me to trade some sweat equity for a lower installation cost. Since a good portion of time is spent in transport, unpacking, staging, and disposal of packaging, I opted to perform those tasks in sync with his job schedule to save labor time and thus money. Check with an installer you might choose to see if they will do the same for you.
Permits, of course are required. The first step was getting a city work permit, so that the city could get their “cut”. I say this because their inspection was total BS, the inspector never opened a panel box or climbed on the roof to inspect panels. He was most interested in whether mandated warning labels like this below (to protect the stupid) were properly applied. Your mileage in your city may vary. Fortunately the installer handled getting these, keeping my blood pressure down.
The next step was to put up the UNIRAC mounting system on the roof:
This took about three partial work days to complete, since only mad dogs and Englishmen work on rooftops in the midday summer sun. Here it is completed:
The next step was placing and securing panels, while doing base panel wiring:
Note the ladder contraption at the right. This is carpet remnants secured to ladder and rooftop. Shown in red to the left of the ladder is a nylon rope hawser with clips I designed that allows the man on top to pull up the panels while I push from below. This saves your back, plus virtually eliminates the possibility of dropping them and/or an injurious fall. The carpet prevents the panels from being scratched or damaged while they are pulled up.
This paneling operation took about two partial work days to complete.
Finally, the last step was to hang the inverters on the outside wall and to finish all the interconnect wiring. which took about another day.
Waiting for the city building inspector and for PG&E to “approve” the installation for grid connect took far longer than the actual installation. Then I discovered that PG&E changed one of their forms in the middle of the process, and we had to re-do the paperwork. While the install was competed in August, we didn’t actually get the final connect and switchover to net metering until December. Ain’t bureaucracy grand? I was just unlucky, you can figure about 2-4 weeks in most cases.
==========================
Results!
Here is a photo of my SmartMeter running today at about 940AM:
The 5.01 kW reading is my instantaneous generation, note at the right side it says “Received”. If I am using more power than I generate (or it is nighttime) that will switch to say “Delivered”. So now as I’m writing this, I’m 5kW net positive at my home.
At the top, in the big numbers is the summation of Kilowatt-hours over the lifetime of the meter. When the meter is delivered, it is set to read 00000. If I am using more electricity than I generate, it will show a net positive value (i.e 00234) if I have generated more electricity than I used, it will go backwards from 99999 and as this shows I’m at 99340, leaving a surplus of 660 Kilowatt-hours since the system was switched over in December. most of December and January was fairly overcast here, so my biggest gains have been recent, as shown in my SmartMeter summary online (highlighted in Yellow), I’ve now surpassed energy-efficient homes in my area:
My usage has gone negative:
Nice to see the money flowing to me too, here’s my quarterly bill:
Unfortunately, I still have to pay all those taxes and fees amounting to $4.66, even though I’m a net generator rather than a consumer, but I’ll take the deal.
================
How this works
The strategy is simple, generate/save as much electricity as you can during non-summer months, bank it (as shown on the meter) and then draw against that bank of generated energy during the summer or when you need power. Hopefully at the end of the true-up period, I’ll end up with surplus, in which case PG&E is now mandated by state law to send me a check. Amazingly, it didn’t used to be that way, and they were getting free surplus electricity.
If at the end of the true-up period, I used electricity, I pay for that then. Since I’m able to watch usage online and on the SmartMeter, it should be manageable to ensure we come out ahead (unless we have an extended heat wave). No matter what though, we are pretty much free of the tyranny of the 90 cents per kilowatt-hour in the summer when tiered rates kick in to punish us valley dwellers.
More info on the net metering program is here: http://www.pge.com/en/myhome/saveenergymoney/solarenergy/solarupgrade/index.page
=========================
Do you want one for yourself? Here’s how you can help yourself and help me in the process.
Since I’ve done all the work of documenting the process, the Grape Solar Company has agreed to offer me a finders fee for anyone who purchases a similar system through them via COSTCO. Here’s how to do it:
1. Contact Steve Bouton or Garret Towne at Grape Solar via telephone or by email:
Grape Solar, Inc. 1305 South Bertelsen Road, Eugene, Oregon 97402
Tel: 541.349.9000 Fax: 541.343.9000
Email: steven.bouton “at” grapesolar.com or garret.towne “at” grapesolar.com
2. Tell them you read this article, give them my name so they will credit me.
3. Give them your details, they will design a system to suit your needs free of charge. They’ll need your address, description of your view of the sky to the south (sometimes visible on Google Earth) plus your goals for electricity saving, (full replacement, supplemental, add as you go, etc.). Arrange financing if need be – note how I used my local bank to finance a loan against my savings account for a win-win.
4. Grape Solar will set you up with a custom order you can place on COSTCO.com that will include everything you will need. Then contact an installer. They’ll also supply a list of installers in your area if you don’t wish to do the work yourself. As I mentioned, you may be able to do some work yourself to help the installer to save money. Be sure to ask.
5. You’ll make the order with COSTCO, either you’ll need a credit card with a high limit or you’ll have to wire the money to COSTCO (which is what I did). BE SURE TO ASK TO HAVE YOUR COSTCO MEMBERSHIP NUMBER APPLIED TO THE SALE. This will ensure that if you have an account that gives you a rebate for year total purchases, you’ll get that year-end 2% cash back. 2% of a $20K system is $400, well worth the effort!
6. You have your installer get work permits and do the paperwork with your local utility company – this is key. Without these being done right, you are dead in the water. make sure your installer will do these for you.
7. Install the system – get it inspected and turned on. Submit final paperwork to your local utility company for any rebate programs they may have.
8. Keep all your paperwork for tax time – you may be eligible for tax credits – check with your tax preparer.
9. Enjoy a lower or zero power bill
============================
I hope this gives everyone who is interested the path forward. if you have questions about this please ask in comments. – Anthony
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Lots of PV installations here in U.K. Unfortunately the rest of us have to subsidise them through our bills. Have just switched to Spark Energy. They are charging £0.026/kwhr for gas. Am hoping to convert 2.5kvA generator to gas so as to make myself independent of the grid and install a digester to produce my own gas. I can get virtually unlimited quantities of grass mowings and wood chippings. Does anyone know of methods of improving the rate of decomposition so as to reduce volume required.t.wakeling
A smart person using a smart energy solution. Green can be smart. JP
While I won’t spend a dime based on the “Save the Planet!” hype, I would spend a dime to save a dollar. Good for you, Anthony!
I imagine Anthony, that you watch the developments in battery technology closely. That’s really all your system needs to be completely off grid. A quick and easy to charge and not overly expensive (i.e. simple) electricity storage system. The graphene batteries look promising. This article of their commercialization is from today: http://www.bit-tech.net/news/hardware/2012/03/23/graphene-battery-tech/1
Anthony has been co-opted by Big Wine?
Grape Solar – according to google translate – is Raisin Solaire in french. Sounds nice.
If possible, I’ll drink to that.
I have always thought that subsidies, if they can be justified at all, should be paid for generation on the load side not the supply side. Solar at the load makes sense in a place such as southern california where it helps shave the peak load. Problem is without a suitable storage system if the supply goes down it still doesn’t do you any good with online solar since if there is nothing to syncronize to the inverters will shut down. Also if a substantial number of these installations get installed then the supply authority will rely on them for distribution and also rely on the home owners to properly maintain the systems. After about 5 years or so that could turn into a problem. Still all boils down to needing a safe, reliable and cost effective storage system. Until that time supply authorities will still have to have backup rolling. I can see a time where with the smart meters if you have something like this installed on your home and you don’t maintain it so as not to disrupt the grid at all, the supply authority will cut you off until the system is fixed and to remove your load from the grid. Smart meters already have the capability to limit or shut down loads. It is just not used yet.
Klench Mychiques says:
March 23, 2013 at 11:31 am
“So when are you going to thank all those environmentalists that have pushed for legislation to force breakthroughs in solar PV costs? :-P”
Cost of PV panels per Wattpeak halfs about once per decade; since 1980. It has little to do with legislation, but more with the experience curve (as it gets cheaper, volume rises; with a doubling of volume, PV’s experience curve brings a 20% reduction in cost per unit), and with research – which is paid for by my taxes (I’m German, so I’m automatically funding people like Fraunhofer society).
What was your point about legislation again? Oh you mean the 250 EUR every German is forced to cough up to pay our local wind turbine and solar panel owners? How should that drive down cost? Subsidies work to keep costs UP, not down – as long as owners of solar panels can get huge subsidies they are willing to pay HIGHER prices for a panel.
Over time the FIT in Germany has been gradually reduced, and that of course creates price pressure… but because of an exponential growth in solar panels (in a very cloudy country with only 800 sunhours) the total subsidy sum has grown exponentially to 20 bn EUR a year anyway.
One could have bought a lot of research for that. But one didn’t. The “push for legislation” by environmentalists has turned out to be one of the biggest money grabs ever.
Thanks for the article. I think it makes sense all round. If you can offset the cost of your power and maybe even win financially in the end and reduce CO2, why wouldn’t you? I think most people who genuinely approach the whole GW thing with an open mind, accept that CO2 is causing some warming, it’s just a question of how much that is the debate. I just love the idea of being self sufficient and if you can minimise your impact on the environment at the same time… well it’s a no brainer really. I say well done that man.
So what would happen is one installed a simple generator that uses a natural gas powered IC engine to “augment” what you sell?
What would prevent one from selling excess power back more often then not?
(fraudulently I might add?)
couldn’t imagine paying those prices for electricity
arthur4563 says:
March 23, 2013 at 1:09 pm
“Inverters are expensive, even the cheap and inefficient centralized inverters used here (instead of microinverters). ”
I still have to see a microinverter that is as efficient as a 5 kW inverter can be, for two reasons, first, with microinverters you have a higher total installation cost, as you have simply way more electronics. Second, the inverters Anthony installed look like they are not the most efficient ones. SMA Solar or Bosch Solar (if they are still available; i’m not sure about whether Bosch keeps on making inverters, they just killed their panel business) should get at least 95%. I’ve seen MPP’s running at 98.5 %.
Stephen Richards says:
March 23, 2013 at 12:26 pm
“My biggest gripe about solar systems is that it is a method for making the poor poorer and the rich richer. It is an inverted Robin Hood scheme and that really bugs me. However, for all those that want to game the system I say good luck. I chose not to.”
As long as the prices are not rigged by subsidation/taxation/price fixing it is plain old supply and demand. If solar producers – who all produce at the same time – would sell for spot market prices, they would compete against each other, driving the price to zero as soon as supply exceeds demands, and this would regulate the number of people who actually would want to produce / feed in their electricity.
As always, the fault is not with the technology but with meddling politicians.
The issue of neighbors subsidizing Anthony. Per economics thinking, they are. Anthony has simply realized the cost of getting electricity in one way, at one cost, versus another.
I could power a flashlight with 2 fifty cent duracells, or $4 NiMH that wil recharge 100 times. The choice is up to me.
The low prices on apples have gone, and now grapes are low. I simply opt for the grapes.
Anthony has a choice.
What drives the choice? 1 who cares, says Adam Smith. We continue to move toward maximal efficiency when the free market is allowed to work. 2 yes, you can make this into a moral issue if you want. The low income cannot afford to throw down $25K on a home improvement that happens to be a revenue saver, versus granite countertops which might add a bit to resale value.
Are other Californians subsidizing Anthony? Yes, in a roundabout way. But they ASKED for it by voting / not voting, voting for one person versus another, choosing to advocate or not advocate FOR and AGAINST certain initatives.
Cali has various power taxes to fund pie-in-the-sky marxist ideas. With the power rate thus artificually driven WAY up – I pay abt 11 cent/KwHr – he unfortunately has to face this choice.
But that is the hand he is dealt. The avg person, the timid, the vain who choose granite countertops versus solar panels. and the low income are all paying the high power rates while Anthiony is now dodging them by using what, in the economic equation, is called a “substitute.”
If the liberals of Cali don’t like supporting this self-interest-motivated effort, they can vote and get politically busy.
It does not make sense where I live… The going rate in the top tier is $.13 a kw/h so Average cost per year is around $2,000. If that same system was around $12,000 it would make sense for me to do it as the payback would be within the 5 – 6 year time period, whereas right now it is in the 10 – 12 year period. The time value of money at a decade out is such that it is best to not invest. Add to this the pv has dropped over the last 10 year to about half of where ti was and…
I don’t think I saw this in your post:
When you are sending electricity to PG&E, do they credit you by the value of the peak rates or is it just a flat rate?
thelastdemocrat says:
March 23, 2013 at 1:53 pm
“The issue of neighbors subsidizing Anthony. Per economics thinking, they are. ”
Don’t think so. PG&E takes absolutely outrageous prices for their top tier; three times higher even than the ludicrous prices for a German kWh which include the cross subsidy fee.
It is rather so that the other Californians have tried to steal from Anthony by voting for lunatics; and that Anthony simply refuses to get robbed.
Don’t tell me PG&E has actual costs of 90 cent producing one kWh.
What is the expected lifetime of monocrystalline panels? What are the expected maintenance costs for the entire system (per annum)? What about hail damage resistance?
I think it is not going to work out.
hints: guarantee, short, burning up of the panels, fire etc.
I will hear you again in 6 years.
solar geyser works. I have had one for 12 years.
solar matts also work (for warming up the swimming pool)
You are probably payed feed in tariffs well above the wholesale prices (I suspect). If you think that through, that will tranfer a substantial part of the system cost onto your neighbours pockets.
DR says:
March 23, 2013 at 12:19 pm
“Where are the data available for hours of sunshine for each state? Anyone? ”
Here are two places, both from NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory)-
http://rredc.nrel.gov/solar/old_data/nsrdb/1961-1990/redbook/sum2/state.html
This has 30 year averaged solar insolation at many places around the country, actually measured so it includes normal weather conditions. They provide data for fixed tilt, single axis tracking and dual axis tracking designs, as well as data for concentrating solar systems that require direct sun.
I looked up Lansing, MI for a fixed array tilted at latitude, and found an annual average of 4.2 kWhr/m^2/day. This is equivalent to 4.2 hours/day of full sun. If you installed Anthony’s 9kWDCpk system with an AC output of 6.5kWAC, you could expect an average of about 27 kWhr per day. Multiply by your current utility rate to figure out how much you’ll save per day on average.
http://maps.nrel.gov/imby
This is an online tool that allows you to type in your location, specify the array size, local kWh price, costs, and then calculates the system output each month.
Anthony, very nice installation. Thanks for all of the details.
It would be really interesting to see how well your total generated energy over a year compares with what NREL claims you should be able to generate at your location.
Life cycle costs.
Estimate your array should net you around 22kWh per day averaged over a year. Maybe 8000 KWh per year. With average grid at 10 cents per kWh, thats $800/year for similar systems. You have much higher grid costs, say $2000 per year. Essentially, you are paying for 12 years of electrical usage up front. Estimating a 20 year life span for the system, you will be getting 8 years of free electricity. That is, 20 years of grid electric costs you $40000, but you will pay only 25000.
For most people, grid electric will cost about $16000 for those 20 years. At low interest rates and high grid costs, your array makes sense. That neglects other costs, such as insurance and lower resale value on the house. In most places, solar photovoltaics can’t compete with grid electric, but it now looks like photovoltaics can compete in areas with good solar input and high grid costs.
For those interested in estimating their solar input, NREL has maps of annual solar insolation.
Sal Minella says:
March 23, 2013 at 12:07 pm
“Nice installation and documentation, however, I have a problem with the utilities paying for dribs and drabs of intermittent power being generated at tens of thousands of sites. It would seem that most of the power fed back into the grid in this way cannot be relied upon by the utility company and is, therefor, just dissipated making the cost of energy even higher for all ratepayers.”
Sal, think of an AC power grid as a bunch of electron shakers (generators} vibrating the valance electrons in the wires back and forth throughout the grid including the home wiring. The more power that is consumed the more electrons that need to be vibrated and therefore the more generation needed to provide the input power to vibrate more electrons. And the closer the generators are to the load centers the lower will be the heat losses in the wires.
First of all, great post.
In your case the return on investment will pay off. I have checked and, economically, it doesn’t make sense for me to install solar panels.
Now the bigger picture….
Why do you pay such an extravagant price for your power?
If market forces were in play, the cost of power generation would be a fraction of the price. However, in California and countless other places the cost of power is determined by:
1. The insistence of government that power companies use uneconomical, expensive and unreliable, ways to generate power. This is encouraged by subsidising ‘alternative’ generation such as wind and solar.
2. The insistence of governments that power companies do not use coal, gas and other hydrocarbons for power generation. This is ‘encouraged’ by taxing generation.
3. Additional taxes on energy at the source, the consumer or both.
With energy prices artificially high, consumers are forced to look for alternatives.
Only consumers with enough money will be able to do this.
What will happen now…?
As less consumers will make use of centrally generated power, this will become even more expensive as fixed production and maintenance costs will stay the same.
Governments relying on the extra taxes to pay for the subsidies on alternative energy production and a host of other things (Paying off the unions, party supporters and their voter base) will have to increase taxes.
At some point the price of electricity will become too much of a burden on consumers that cannot afford alternatives.
At that stage the government will come knocking on your door Anthony.
1. First, all those who generate their own power won’t be able to sell their excess power anymore.
2. After that, connection charges (For those with alternative power but still on the grid) will be increased.
3. A minimum user charge will be set, no matter if you use the power or not.
4. And last but not least, additional taxes will be implemented on all tax payers such as ‘development taxes’.
In the end the government is going to get you, one way or another….
“Stephen Richards says:
March 23, 2013 at 12:26 pm
My biggest gripe about solar systems is that it is a method for making the poor poorer and the rich richer.”
This is disingenuous talk. What Watts has done wouldn’t be necessary if the morons who run western democracies adopted power generating policies where the interests of the general population were paramount. Contrast and compare the policies of India and China with say the US, UK and Australia. If our cretinous western leaders continue to screw us by, for example, the increased use of wind farms then the only solution is for citizens to protect themselves by whatever ways they can.
I don’t see how others are subsidizing Anthony’s energy use. He’s now producing his own energy and selling it to the power company. I’m sure he’d had gotten batteries if they did not buy it. And as for the discounts, he isn’t going to intentionally go against savings he can get when it’s what people voted for.
I think it’s a very conservative project to get someone more independent (energy independent in this case) and it’s somewhat of an irony that conservative principles are better than the liberal view of those who were pushing “green” energy in the first place.
I wish I could get something like this, but it snows 9 months of the year here, or is very cloudy for that long.