The reality of solar energy.

The Reality of Solar Energy

By Adam P Barr

Solar Energy is another one of those alternative means to power your hot tub, your TV, and a host of other appliances that consume large amounts of energy.  The roommate uses his TV as a night light to keep the angry monkey away or something, I don't know. One day, I broke down the facts. Running the TV on 20 hours a day, 30 days a month is 600 hours a month.  Coming out to around $15 a month, this did make a noticeable difference in the bill.  Now I will admit that the TV is still being used as a night light but we did identify the cost and he decided it was worth the expense. :) Most of us have large appliances that suck a lot of power. Identifying costs and ways to plot a "beat down" on them is important to $avings and the grid that is getting overloaded.

Putting your HVAC system, your hotwater heater, or any other large or small appliance on a solar source of power is perfectly logical.  You can break-even on the cost within a couple years and then its running for free.  Being willing to absorb the upfront cost for savings in the future is personal choice, not all will choose.  We save for the future, isn't it only logical to cut future expenses by investing the money today to keep money in savings later. 

Granted these ideas aren't for everybody you know and not all will jump all over them but, there are good uses for this source of energy.  The company researched a few different ideas for alternative power for a good reason.  We are on one of my partners parent's land and operating out of their buildings. So in our quest for other ways to get power, we found a solar hot water heater that will be incorporated into our processes and defer over $100/m of operating costs to the ole piggie bank. 

There are many reasons to stop and take a look at whats out there.  Tax incentives are a major factor but consult a CPA before jumping in head first.  For under $5,000 in a lot of cases depending on your state and numerous other factors, you could power an entire average sized house for 20 years with the tax incentives available today.

Practical Green