Residential Solar Solutions

The Problem

America is relying more and more on fossil fuels including foreign oil imports to meet our increasing need for energy.

Our energy dollars seem to be going to big oil companies who import vast amounts of oil from unfriendly countries.

President Bush suggests that we should focus on conservation and that we should subsidize the oil companies to encourage drilling more wells here.  He seems to think that the continued use of fossil fuels to generate electricity is always going to be necessary.

We have not built a new nuclear power plant in 30 years. It has been decades since we have built a new hydro power plant and dam. Wind power is starting to become viable and shows great promise but installing and maintaining the powerline infrastructure to get the power from wind farms to consumers is incredibly expensive and unsightly. Wind power is unreliable except in certain regions. Large wind turbins are unsightly and take a large amount of space.

Homeowners are seeing increases in the cost per KWH of electricity delivered to their homes averaging over 2.1% per year.

Every time you turn on a light, you are a part of the problem.

Why not look into becomming a part of the solution? http://www.jointhesolution.com/solarelectrichome

The dream of FREE ENERGY

Throughout the ages, man has sought to use the forces of nature to do work.  First, it was that little bit of fire he used to cook his food. Then he harnessed draft animals to carry his burdens and plow his fields.

Water was used to float his boats and run his mills. Wind was used to fill the sails and provide motive force.

Man produced ever more complex systems. Fire and water combined to make steam.  Steam drove engines and turbines to produce enormous amounts of power.  Power to drive ships when the wind wasn't blowing. Power to pull trains when all fuel had to be obtained locally in an undeveloped countryside.

With the Industrial Revolution, came the introduction of the internal combustion engine and dynamo generated electricity.

Man took a step back and used water to power larger and larger dynamos. Huge public works projects, costing millions of dollars, raised dams on major rivers around the world.  Even so, the demand for this energy outpaced the supply.  Power plants were built, burning fossil fuels like coal and oil to try to keep up with demand. Huge powerlines snaked across the landscape, bringing power to the people.  Large cities were the primary consumers and were catered to by the big electric companies.  Farms and villages and rural areas were left to last. Even now, there are areas of the United States that are not served by electric utilities. Residents, of small towns and rural communities, often joined together to form electrical CoOperatives.

If you lived on a mountainside or outside of the reach of a coop, you still had to depend on yourself if you wanted the creature comfort that electricity provides. 

The simple method of supplying electricity in remote places was batteries. These were costly and tended to be limited to 12 volt systems. You also needed some way of charging them either on site or at another location.

Another method was a gas or diesel powered generator.  Noisy and fuel had to be purchased and hauled in.  A generator that could supply a typical suburban home could cost up to $10,000.00.

If you had swiftly running water, you could build your own hydro electric generating station.  I have never seen one like this but have heard of one in the mountains of Costa Rica. 

Another option is a wind turbine.  Prices of turbines capable of powering a home are still pretty high. You would need batteries to back up the system when the wind isn't blowing.

The last one is Solar Photo Voltaics with a battery backup.  The solar array charges the batteries when the sun is shining and an inverter converts the 12 volt DC to 110 volt AC to run your home. Cost, uncluding installation and batteries, for a suburban home, about $40,000.00.

Notice that I didn't suggest a home nuclear power plant.

So OK none of these are FREE. Sure, they produce energy. The energy produced, except for the generator, has a very low ongoing cost per KWH.  The problem is the high up front cost. Why do people buy them? They buy them because they have to.

All of them are environmentally friendly, except for the generator.

With the threat of Global Warming, many Americans are looking for a way to help cut down on greenhouse gases but they don't have 10 to 40 thousand dollars to spend. They don't live in remote locations, but in cities and towns where there is already a power company.

The US Congress has passed laws recognizing the need to move from dependence on foreign oil toward energy independence.  They now offer incentives promoting renewable energy. Even so, the average homeowner cannot afford to buy a system.

Energy legislation sets a target for renewable energy as a percentage of the total power provided by power companies.  Power companies are looking for ways to improve their renewable offering without effecting their bottom line.  My local power company, Florida Power and Light (FPL), has built a showcase solar facility.  They call it a "Pilot" site. Pilot... Hmmm. I think that maybe they want to show how expensive it is so they can push the government for more rebates and push their customers for higher rates. They have been offering subscribers green energy (from renewable sources) as an add-on to their basic electric bill.  All you have to do to get this renewable energy is pay an extra $9.95 a month on your electric bill.  So far, the additional cost is optional but I think that we will see another rate increase soon. It's funny how they bill for electricity here.  They read your meter and send you a bill with charges for the electricity you use and charges for the fuel that they use to generate the electricity.

Wouldn't it be nice if someone could come up with a way for average Americans to get solar panels installed on their homes, generating electricity and helping their electric companies cut down on oil and coal use?  Maybe we need a pilot program to show that it works.

I did find a company and they are setting up a pilot program.  The people who register now will be first in line to have a system installed for their home. You can read all about it and register at the ecopreneur website, http://www.jointhesolution.com/solarelectrichome  or http://solarelectrichome.info