Meanwhile Cummins is doing well because data center often install diesel powered generators for backup.
Energy demand continues to increase. Green energy must bear the cost of new grid connections and backup systems. But fossil fuels must be replaced with something.
If all goes as scheduled, by the end of this month, my home will have enough solar capacity on it to offset just over 100% of the house’s current electricity usage plus typical local travel for two plug-in hybrids.
My best estimate is that, including the 30% federal subsidy, the system will be cash flow break even after 14 years and have a roughly 6% ROI over the 30-year warrantied life of the panels. That estimate assumes electric rates will increase by roughly 3% annually. I guess if rates go up faster, the break even will be sooner and the ROI better…
Note that my house has lots of natural gas appliances (furnace, stove, water heater, clothes dryer, outdoor grill), so it won’t be fully energy independent. That said, as appliances age out, it may make sense to consider converting, particularly if we find ourselves consistently generating more electricity than we use.
For instance, the air conditioner is a 13-SEER model that’s roughly 20 years old and on a previous generation of coolant. When that gives up the ghost, it may make sense to install a high efficiency heat pump system that uses less electricity when cooling while also acting in lieu of the furnace to heat the house in the winter.
My brother’s system broke even at a little over 7 years. That’s in Massachusetts, which has (had, anyway, may still, dunno) many incentives as it’s a net energy importer. He also has propane for heat and hot water.
As he is planning on getting an EV, he is in the process of adding a few more panels, and ran into some snags because his original set up was “approved” for certain sell-back prices and they want to change that now. I don’t know all the details; I do know he has run enough of a surplus to have about $3,000 in credits sitting at his power company. Made a good decision, that boy.
That makes sense. When I lived in Rhode Island, my electric rates were roughly double what my rates are now. Plus, this state doesn’t have state-level rebates, and my home does not have much of a south-facing roof. Those factors likely work in your brother’s favor.
Indeed, for my house, it was only a combination of a recent major rate hike and the ability to still get the federal rebate that made the panels appear financially feasible.
My neighbor (who has a south facing roof) has panels that he installed many years ago, and he too is on a more favorable net metering contract than I will be on. I’m not entirely clear on the details either, but I think it has to do with splitting the “generation” and “transmission” parts of the total cost.
I didn’t order batteries for my system, as the financials didn’t seem to make sense. Still, our electric usage is very evening/night centric, while our solar generation will be very day centric. Once I start getting the stats for the system, seeing how the actual bills come in, and getting a better feel for how the net metering works in practice, I can reassess to see if it makes sense to add batteries to the system as well.
We’d probably need around 60 kWh of battery capacity to make it through a peak summer night. As a result, it would probably take quite an ugly net metering contract or quite a reduction in battery prices or a major shift towards time of day pricing (or some combination of all three) to make batteries make sense.
“For instance, the air conditioner is a 13-SEER model that’s roughly 20 years old and on a previous generation of coolant. When that gives up the ghost, it may make sense to install a high efficiency heat pump system that uses less electricity when cooling while also acting in lieu of the furnace to heat the house in the winter.”
Obviously, all this depends on where you live, but if you have significant cooling costs (l live in the Mid-Atlantic, so I do), a high efficiency heat pump will likely make a significant dent in electricity usage. We invested in a Daikin soon after moving into our home; the existing A/C was over 20 years old and clearly struggling. Our power bills immediately fell by over half. It also eliminated the need for humidifier/dehumidifier- depending on the season.
My suggestion for anyone considering a heat pump is to check around for installers who have experience in them. Quite a few do not. They are tricky to install; in the past (about 5 years ago), they often needed adjustments until the installer got it right- particularly with the sensors. Perhaps there have been improvements since then.