Electric cost going up.. options for renewable ?

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
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I don't think any of the alternate technologies are feasible without lifestyle alterations, and/or wanting to support them out of ideology, and to boost new business. IOW, mainline utilizes will almost always be cheaper, especially in the NE.
 

ForumMaster

Diamond Member
Feb 24, 2005
7,792
1
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"Coal and nuclear plants are being shut down due to environmental concerns"

lumping coal and nuclear together is just unbelievable. despite the negative bias, nuclear is the safest energy source we have and that includes the chernobyl and fukushima disasters.

all nuclear reactors today are old. regulations and gear keep newer better plants from being built! fukushima was a plant that was built in the 1960's and was supposed to be shut down.

just recently, a $2.2 billion solar plant was completed in the california desert. it's causing massive problems ranging from frying birds to blinding airplanes.

a better solution, is thorium reactors. :colbert:

as to your question, a number of my neighbors have solar. we might get a panel this year. but you might want to check the local laws first to see how it works. (can you sell electricity? only offset? should you invest in an energy storage system? that can get expensive)
 

norseamd

Lifer
Dec 13, 2013
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as was said in the link to this article we need next generation fission in the short term and fusion power in the long term

renewable energy and effeciency technology can add to that
 

postmortemIA

Diamond Member
Jul 11, 2006
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wind energy... here Google, Microsoft and Facebook are opening data centers as state has lots of wind energy
 
Nov 3, 2004
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At this point renewable energy should be invested in as a supplement to traditional sources, but you can't beat the price and convenience of traditional sources.
 

Capt Caveman

Lifer
Jan 30, 2005
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Imp

Lifer
Feb 8, 2000
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Probably cheaper and easier to try to control how much juice you use -- the bitch is that you'll have to change your decades old habits. Shorter showers, colder/warmer rooms, smaller TV... FML.
 

T9D

Diamond Member
Dec 1, 2001
5,320
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Probably cheaper and easier to try to control how much juice you use -- the bitch is that you'll have to change your decades old habits. Shorter showers, colder/warmer rooms, smaller TV... FML.

I really want to build a house with r30 insulation in all the outerwalls, and r13 on all the inside walls. The TV alone would heat the place in the winter lol.

I'm working on my house right now and I made the existing walls deeper by adding some wood. Then put R19 on the outer walls. And also put r13 on the inner walls. Holy cow what a difference. Not the whole house but it still helps a lot, majorly helps those rooms too. And it's ridiculously cheap to do. That insulation is dirt cheap.

I also have one big drain from the roof that I redid and rerouted to the side of the house where I'm going to put a stock tank to catch all the roof water. Getting rid of almost all the lawn.

It's really satisfying doing that stuff and sticking it to the energy and water companies. And not being so wasteful. Some basic things can go a long way. Solar panels may be next. Maybe I can get my bills down to almost nothing. Already cut the cord. All this saving adds up too. It's worth it. Feel so much more free and unburdened :)
 
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rsutoratosu

Platinum Member
Feb 18, 2011
2,716
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Im really looking for something for the my house, not some data center thats in the middle of no where.. i looked at solar panels a few years ago, it was totally not worth it. wondering if anything has changed
 

rsutoratosu

Platinum Member
Feb 18, 2011
2,716
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My gf last year had solar panels installed on her house. Her electrical bill since has been $0. However, due to the lease that she signed, the Solar company reaps the benefits of the excess energy that is sold back to the electric company.

that sounds about right.. she leased the panels right ? there has been tons of ads on that..
 

ultimatebob

Lifer
Jul 1, 2001
25,134
2,449
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The Northeast is a lousy place to install solar thanks to all of the cloudy days and snowfall we have here.

If you want to break even on the cost of your solar array in a reasonable time frame, move to a sunnier climate down South.
 

K1052

Elite Member
Aug 21, 2003
49,999
40,890
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Conservation is a better first step. Check the air tightness of house (doors, windows), use a kill-a-watt to look at electrical draws, weed out old/inefficient appliances, swap incandescent for cfl/led in appropriate applications, check insulation in walls and ceilings, etc
 

Capt Caveman

Lifer
Jan 30, 2005
34,543
651
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The Northeast is a lousy place to install solar thanks to all of the cloudy days and snowfall we have here.

If you want to break even on the cost of your solar array in a reasonable time frame, move to a sunnier climate down South.

You'd be incorrect.
 

Imp

Lifer
Feb 8, 2000
18,828
184
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I really want to build a house with r30 insulation in all the outerwalls, and r13 on all the inside walls. The TV alone would heat the place in the winter lol.

I'm working on my house right now and I made the existing walls deeper by adding some wood. Then put R19 on the outer walls. And also put r13 on the inner walls. Holy cow what a difference. Not the whole house but it still helps a lot, majorly helps those rooms too. And it's ridiculously cheap to do. That insulation is dirt cheap.

Energy conservation is awesome and probably the ideal solution. I live in a century old house with no insulation, just double-brick. Piece of shit has multiple "airlocks" or rooms we leave unheated. The heated ones are so uneven it's not funny. Only true solution is a total gut and rebuild.

Unfortunately, it's hardcore expensive to "properly" retrofit a house. One could cheaply stuff insulation in the walls, but that could lead to problems and mediocre performance.
 

Red Squirrel

No Lifer
May 24, 2003
69,267
13,020
126
www.anyf.ca
I'd like to look into wind some day. We don't get enough sun for solar. Though, solar would be nice in summer. If anything it would at least offset the cost of using A/C. They still generate a bit if it's cloudy right? It could not hurt to have it. Just need a mechanism to clear the snow off. Some kind of wiper/brush system that just continuously passes.

Though it seems electric companies are lobbying against solar as I've already read several articles from various locations where the government makes it hard to do solar, such as taxing it, or forcing you to pay a flat fee to the hydro company even though you are off grid.

That's my fear with wind though, I have a feeling I am probably not allowed to put a giant wind turbine in my yard. People complain about the stupidest things and that would be one of them. "it kills birds!" And how many birds do you think oil kills?
 

bradley

Diamond Member
Jan 9, 2000
3,671
2
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A better ROI than solar would be variable speed geothermal heat pumps. The tech is pretty much there today, even if it's pricey to dig the actual loops. Plus, geothermal works well in every part of the country. Were' talking 45 EER/5.1 COP.

http://www.climatemaster.com/residential/geothermal-heat-pumps/trilogy/

Also DIY closed cell foam insulation, especially attic insulation, huge ROI. Next would be newer more energy efficient windows.

Solar? The tech is not yet mature enough with new breakthrough advancements happening yearly. Perhaps in a few years.
 

runzwithsizorz

Diamond Member
Jan 24, 2002
3,497
14
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I didn't know that. Is that due to children and quality of life assurance? Or..
The answer would be *or* you cannot continue to pay 40+ million dollar salaries to utility exec's if you allow the little people to use less of your product.
This Month, Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin signed the "solar surcharge" bill into law on Monday, permitting utilities to charge an extra fee to any customer using distributed power generation, such as rooftop solar or a small wind turbine.