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Doing a lot of research about solar panels lately. I will turn fifty this year, and I'm thinking bout slowing down selling everything but my farmhouse ,truck and boat. Just keeping the neccisaties trying to conserve my money and fish more..... Who has experience with solar panels? I pay about grand a month in power bills on four structures . I mite get a payback at that. Just thinking out loud
Here are two good sources: self-reliance | homesteading | canning | backwoods | magazine
and Backwoodsman Magazine
I subscribe to the 2nd one. Pretty interesting stuff.
Unless you are one of the chosen few to get picked for the Government rebate I highly doubt you would ever come close to seeing a return. Sat in an office next to a green energy salesman when I was a salesman for a global electrical supplier. Heard all the training sales pitches and corporate dialog. If you are considering, be very cautious and read all their contracts very carefully and get stated life expectancy of the arrays and associated equipment. And be very very suspicious of everything said. Last thing, make sure and ask to see that everything installed is UL listed. We just removed and destroyed over $150,000.00 of solar equipment off an older model center for a national homebuilder that was not listed. Solar company got investigated after numerous fires were caused by their equipment. Closed up shop and ran overnight. Homebuilder wanted it destroyed and video taped in case anything ever linked them. Just be real careful.
Good info hunting slabs. I am looking at the Lennox sunsource because I have a Lennox XP 25 solar ready heat pump. I can by the stuff at cost and install my self. I'm thinking my cost would be around 5-10 grand for materials.
Remember that the power company owes you for any surplus power put back in the system. We had this battle in our area.
I did a work up about 5 years back for a doctor friend of mine for a single family home. With all the rebates and so on at the time it was going to take her something like 20 years to start seeing gains with what she had to invest. She was not going with a complete off the grid system as she had no space for batteries. I wish I had saved my work up as I put a lot of time into it...but I am sure a lot has changed in the past 5 years.
Regards
Investments in energy efficiency may give the fastest return.
Yep Jack, gettn alota negative feedback on return. I may just foam my roofline instead of doing the solar panels.
I worked in a house years ago in south Alabama that was foamed. The attic temp was the same as the air temperature outside. That was on the coast with a black roof. I was impressed to say the least.
Tell me more about this foam roofline deal. My house has a black shingle roof and it is unbelievable how hot it gets up there. Got a link to info maybe??
Thanks
Ray
PS
Saw a cartoon on Facebook this week about a guy standing knee deep in the flames of Hell and he said "At last some relief from the heat!" The devil said to his partner "Looks like we got another one from Columbia SC!"
Our temperature here is projected to be 102 Tuesday and 103 Wednesday of next week. Already been over a 100 twice last week.
Searay. If you foam your roofline it can cut your power bills 25-50percemt. And I'll keep it cool in attic
Don't believe anything Al Gore says. You be fine.
This!Quote:
Originally Posted by DockShootinJack
Also if your roof is white metal, reflect instead of absorb.Quote:
Originally Posted by BAMA S
Galvaluim is even better, makes a big difference and us country folks aint got to be all that fancy!!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by Tracker123
You're right John, have white metal on mine out here in the country. Not as pretty (to some) as black asphalt shingles, as some prefer to look "traditional." Whatever that means.
Big thing I see with energy is "IF" your power company has the ability (or offers) the ability to back feed the grid. Of course, my local one does with one exception... you won't get paid for it. They do not have the meter technology to be able to reverse what you are adding and what you are pulling from the grid. Everyone wants you to go green but at a considerable cost that most of us will not begin to see in our lifetime.
I live in Michigan and we obviously spend more on heating then on cooling. I added geothermal several years ago. This year I took the liberty of having foam shot into all my walls. It isn't as good as starting from a bare skeletal structure, but it takes up all the voids the insulation didn't hit. It made a big difference.
A few years back, I had the opportunity to spend several days in the Alaskan bush with a retired commercial fisherman in his home. This was a yellow pine log home (about 20 inch diameter trees) and was located about 1 hour (by boat) from the Island town of Wrangle Alaska. He was, to say the least, completely off the grid. I asked a ton of questions while I was with him. His words to me were.. "I'm not very smart when it comes to all this". In my opinion, the man was a genius!
His home was not small by any means and had all the comforts that mine does. Washer, dryer, microwave, oven, range, lights, satellite TV, you name it. He sourced his power three different ways.
First, he had a small stream (really small) that flowed on his property and ended in the bay. He utilized hydroelectricity to charge a bank of batteries. Next, being as he is in a temperate rain forest and it rains all the time, he used hydroelectricity inside his down spouts coming off from his metal roof. The rain water (perfect PH level) was collected in a 500 gallon enclosed cattle tank set in a very well insulated structure directly below the stilts on his house. He used this water for cooking, cleaning, bathing and so on. Hot water was supplied via on demand electric water heater. To supplement what he was not producing, he had a big diesel generator that topped off his batteries. The generator ran once every 2.5 days and only for about an hour.
I asked him how often his generator would run without the hydro electric. He told me it would run 2 hours every day. Keep in mind the stream was small. I wish I had one close to my house. Doing the math on the amount of batteries he had and the cost of fuel every couple of days vice electricity going to my house and it easily paid for itself in short order.
My suggestion if you want energy to pay for itself. Get some form of generation (wind, solar, hydro) and a bank of batteries. Separately wire different circuits in your house (microwave, lights... a few different items) and run them from your bank. This way you are not wasting stored energy as you would select the circuits you utilize all the time. Thus, saving you money by not having to "pay the man" when the bill comes due. Who knows how much we utilize with just our microwave alone each month but sometimes that is all it takes to make a difference.
My two cents anyway
Anyone know what that attic foam costs?