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  • This topic has 205 replies, 18 voices, and was last updated 13 years ago by briansd1.
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  • June 10, 2011 at 11:05 AM #703541
    sdduuuude
    Participant

    One thing to keep in mind that electricity is priced in tiers.

    Your first bundle of electricity per month is priced at x per kwH. The next bundle is x+a per kwH, next bundle is x+b, then x+c, etc.

    Because of this tiered pricing, it isn’t necessarily cost-effective to install enough panels to eliminate all of your electric bill but it can be cost-effective to install enough panels to ensure that you don’t leave the baseline tier.

    The cost of adding panels is tiered as well. In addition to the panels, you need some equipment to manage the power. This equipment can only handle so many panels. After 30 panels or so, you may need some new equipment and it is expensive so stopping at 30 may be best because panel number 31 costs alot more than panel number 29.

    Best to pull up a couple years of monthly usage and pricing data and make make a spreadsheet to see how these capital cost and exprense reuduction tiers overlap. It will help you find the optimal installation.

    Everyone gets all excited about running the meter backwards and selling power, but really a smart installation shouldn’t get you to that point.

    June 10, 2011 at 11:07 AM #702348
    sdduuuude
    Participant

    Passive solar water pre-heaters are pretty cheap. If you have the space, it could be worth doing. My dad built his own at my childhood home in Arizona.

    Just run the output of the solare heaters into your regular water heater.

    June 10, 2011 at 11:07 AM #702447
    sdduuuude
    Participant

    Passive solar water pre-heaters are pretty cheap. If you have the space, it could be worth doing. My dad built his own at my childhood home in Arizona.

    Just run the output of the solare heaters into your regular water heater.

    June 10, 2011 at 11:07 AM #703040
    sdduuuude
    Participant

    Passive solar water pre-heaters are pretty cheap. If you have the space, it could be worth doing. My dad built his own at my childhood home in Arizona.

    Just run the output of the solare heaters into your regular water heater.

    June 10, 2011 at 11:07 AM #703189
    sdduuuude
    Participant

    Passive solar water pre-heaters are pretty cheap. If you have the space, it could be worth doing. My dad built his own at my childhood home in Arizona.

    Just run the output of the solare heaters into your regular water heater.

    June 10, 2011 at 11:07 AM #703546
    sdduuuude
    Participant

    Passive solar water pre-heaters are pretty cheap. If you have the space, it could be worth doing. My dad built his own at my childhood home in Arizona.

    Just run the output of the solare heaters into your regular water heater.

    June 10, 2011 at 11:34 AM #702358
    ocrenter
    Participant

    [quote=walterwhite]the amount of your electric usage isnt really the determinative factor. you can buy as many panels as you want and any extra energy you produce goes back to the grid. [/quote]

    the added panels also add to your cost. which then push back when you can break even.

    June 10, 2011 at 11:34 AM #702457
    ocrenter
    Participant

    [quote=walterwhite]the amount of your electric usage isnt really the determinative factor. you can buy as many panels as you want and any extra energy you produce goes back to the grid. [/quote]

    the added panels also add to your cost. which then push back when you can break even.

    June 10, 2011 at 11:34 AM #703050
    ocrenter
    Participant

    [quote=walterwhite]the amount of your electric usage isnt really the determinative factor. you can buy as many panels as you want and any extra energy you produce goes back to the grid. [/quote]

    the added panels also add to your cost. which then push back when you can break even.

    June 10, 2011 at 11:34 AM #703199
    ocrenter
    Participant

    [quote=walterwhite]the amount of your electric usage isnt really the determinative factor. you can buy as many panels as you want and any extra energy you produce goes back to the grid. [/quote]

    the added panels also add to your cost. which then push back when you can break even.

    June 10, 2011 at 11:34 AM #703556
    ocrenter
    Participant

    [quote=walterwhite]the amount of your electric usage isnt really the determinative factor. you can buy as many panels as you want and any extra energy you produce goes back to the grid. [/quote]

    the added panels also add to your cost. which then push back when you can break even.

    June 10, 2011 at 7:10 PM #702439
    scaredyclassic
    Participant

    theya dd to your cost but they also add to the electricity produced, pushing forward your payback date. since there’s installation costs that remain stable, more is better, but not that much better. the panels are most of the cost

    June 10, 2011 at 7:10 PM #702538
    scaredyclassic
    Participant

    theya dd to your cost but they also add to the electricity produced, pushing forward your payback date. since there’s installation costs that remain stable, more is better, but not that much better. the panels are most of the cost

    June 10, 2011 at 7:10 PM #703130
    scaredyclassic
    Participant

    theya dd to your cost but they also add to the electricity produced, pushing forward your payback date. since there’s installation costs that remain stable, more is better, but not that much better. the panels are most of the cost

    June 10, 2011 at 7:10 PM #703279
    scaredyclassic
    Participant

    theya dd to your cost but they also add to the electricity produced, pushing forward your payback date. since there’s installation costs that remain stable, more is better, but not that much better. the panels are most of the cost

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