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Switching To Solar Power — Six Months Later

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the it-burns-my-eyes dept.

ThinSkin writes "Slashdot readers may remember an article regarding ExtremeTech's Loyd Case's experiences with solar power for the home after one month of usage. During that time six months ago, it sure seemed like a great deal, but the tables have turned significantly once winter approached. While it's no surprise solar power generation is expected to dwindle during the winter, Loyd compares solar power data of the last six months to determine if solar power is still worth the time and money."

5 of 591 comments (clear)

  1. $400 a month? by Gothmolly · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Who the hell uses that much electric power?

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    1. Re:$400 a month? by je+ne+sais+quoi · · Score: 5, Interesting
      Look at the kWh, he's using 1,635kWh per month. While it is high, it's not surprising if his house is especially large and he has a heat-pump. Those things are notoriously inefficient if the temperature drops below 40 degrees F. It getting that cold should be rare in silicon valley, but it does happen.

      What I found interesting was that, while December was bad for solar power, he says:

      My total power consumption cost for the last six months is $389.39--less than my utility bill for January, 2008.

      Basically, his solar power does what it's supposed to more often than not. But then again, we've always known that about solar power, the big problem with solar is the large up-front capital cost of installing it.

      (Or other strange things, like my mother just moved into a retirement community and her housing rules say solar panels are not allowed because they're unsightly, but directTV antennas and satellite dishes are just fine. One must have priorities I suppose. Television is obviously more important than renewable energy.)

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      Gentlemen! You can't fight in here, this is the war room!
    2. Re:$400 a month? by Andy+Dodd · · Score: 5, Interesting

      "but directTV antennas and satellite dishes are just fine"

      After a couple of legal battles, there are some federal laws that say that banning antennas and dishes in a housing development is not permitted. Many developments try to do it anyway but you can fight it if you know the right laws.

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      retrorocket.o not found, launch anyway?
    3. Re:$400 a month? by drunkennewfiemidget · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I live in Canada. The weather today is -25c or so. My power bill never exceeds $46/CAD a month when I have a window AC unit going in the summer, and my gas bill never exceeds $70/mo.

      The # of kWh/mo he's using would suggest to me he'd be a lot better served putting the time and energy into replacing bulbs with CFLs, turning off computers that don't need to be on, and buying higher efficiency appliances rather than those solar panels. .. or both, of course.

  2. fixed angle panels are sub-optimum by RichMan · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Who ever installed the panels mounted them directly flat on the roof. That is bad.

    They need to be angled for the best sun during the time the power need is greatest. Ideally they would be adjustable semi-annually/quarterly/monthly for the best angle. And if fixed would be biased toward the point of worst number of sun days and power need.

    Doing a suboptimal installation and not accounting for sun angle is not a good installation and should be perform at a fraction of potential output.