General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsSolar wins
Remarkable news out of Australia. For the first time, the cost of electricity - and get this, in the middle of the day no less - fell into a NEGATIVE cost due to the use of solar energy.
Article makes the prediction that coal and fossil fuels obituaries are being written each day. Makes one hope.
Could you imagine the impact that this is going to have? Truly an energy revolution in the making in just the building of transmission and distribution of power. On-spot energy creation, be it a building or a home, will change fortunes and make fortunes.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jul/07/solar-has-won-even-if-coal-were-free-to-burn-power-stations-couldnt-compete?CMP=fb_gu
randome
(34,845 posts)[hr][font color="blue"][center]You should never stop having childhood dreams.[/center][/font][hr]
OffWithTheirHeads
(10,337 posts)My house will soon be running on Arizona sunshine! Pics later.
a kennedy
(29,658 posts)packman
(16,296 posts)and give us lots and lots of follow-ups - we love this stuff on DU. First question, what was the initial cost, what motivated you to do this, how did you select a company to do this, did you have any qualms at all?
OffWithTheirHeads
(10,337 posts)Being retired, I went with a 20 year lease. The company I chose, Solar City, has 5 different options for paying for this. Being retired and on a fixed income, I chose the path of least resistance. The up front costs are nothing. O, nada, zip. Once it's up and running, I pay them $119.00 per month for the lease. Since my lowest electrical bill here in Tucson is about $100.00 a month and in the summer, bills in the $300 to $450 range, $119.00 a month works for me. Also, Tucson Electric will be sending me a check every quarter for the juice I produce but don't use. If you are young and have extra cash laying around, you could pay for the installation up front and have $0.00 electricity costs forever. There are in between options available but at my age, $0.00 down and a small fee every month worked best for me.
I spent a year researching this and went with Solar City. Their C.E.O is Elon Musk, C.E.O. Of Tesla and space X. Qualms? None! Some people say that the pollution caused by producing the panels is harmful. I think the initial downside is more than outweighed by the fact that for the rest of my life, my house will run on Arizona sunshine. Not on coal, not on Nuclear, not on however Tucson Electric produces their power.
What motivated me? You've got to be an idiot to live in Tucson and not run your house on the sun.
Next year we are buying the wife a Prius. It will be charged by my roof and the idea of driving around town on a tankful of Arizona sunshine just gives me a Boehner!