coming soon to a beach near you

They will buy it back, but the last two montly cycles I used net metering the paid around .0365kwh which is a crap rate. But if they don't allowing me anywhere else to sell it, where is the competition.

They tried to get rid of net metering (them buying it back) with Amendment 1 in November 2016, but it got shot down.

 

I wish that were the case, "The Trump administration is overhauling how federal officials monitor safety procedures on offshore drilling operations, revising a pair of rules enacted in the wake of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill on the grounds that they are overly burdensome on industry."

"The Deepwater Horizon disaster, the largest oil spill in U.S. history, released more than 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. It killed thousands of dolphins, sea turtles and other marine animals, exposed hundreds of cleanup workers and other gulf residents to toxic chemicals and prompted a six-month shutdown of all deepwater drilling in the gulf."

 

Here's what I know about solar, it gets more efficient *every* year, and the cost to fabricate solar panels drops *every* year. Both trends have been occurring at exponential rates for some time. Humans are doing what humans do best, iterating on an idea, and improving it with each iteration. 15 years ago, who knew that we'd all be carrying super computers in our pockets, but we are.

The biggest barrier to solar is entrenched interests, as it always is with any new disruptive tech, but eventually as the price continues to drop, the economics will win out.

And don't forget, with solar you have a power source that has virtually no carbon emissions, this is a good thing.

 

The Economist put out a decent article regarding the politics and incentives of clean energy about a year ago: https://www.economist.com/news/lead...ting-them-wind-and-solar-power-are-disrupting

And for the record, The Economist isn't left or right... I think it's fairly... fair.

 

Thanks man. I'm just replying back now cause I had to work in that ice storm last night. I think this is something I'm going to tackle when I retire and get my last two remaining "dependents" out of the house. I want put all my energy into it and it looks like I will need all my energy to deal with the mountain of BS you dealt with. Same motive as you. Self sufficient is the goal with the added bonus of being more green.

 

Why don't we destroy the ozone so that our solar panels can receive more of the suns rays and become more efficient ha!? Doing so would also make winter surfing more tolerable and perhaps create more storms.

In reality it comes down to economics. Until solar energy becomes cheaper than fossil fuels, solar power will not be the fuel of choice. We should however be preparing as much as possible now; considering that most of the things we manufacture are carbon based. We will need to conserve fossil fuels and carbon compounds for the future.

 

Self-sufficient?? You are NOT ALLOWED to be self-sufficient in the USA. You have to be part of the "team". If not, you are blackballed by everyone; didn't you know that?? The stench of "team spirit" rules in this country. Self-reliance or self-sufficiency is considered a threat within the American society. At one time it was a virtue, individualism was honored. But no longer. It is the migration towards socialism that is pushing it so.......

 

A few years ago I would have disagreed with you vehemently Barry; however, after going to the process and having an FPL rep actually ask me "why would you not want to be part of the grid like everyone else", I have to concede there is some truth to this. The herd mentality can be a dangerous thing.

 

It already is cheaper, and that's a problem. That article I linked to above talks about subsidies and incentives, and how they impact the economics of our energy policy.

 

Interesting. The part where it says there may be a premium required for guaranteed energy supply, even during bad weather, high demand periods, makes sense but is scary if you are running an Assisted Living Facility, for example.

 

Good read. Also be sure to renovate your roof prior to installing solar panels on said roof. I've heard stories of people who install a 20+ year lifespan solar system on top of a roof that only has 5 years of life left.

 

Yes, I understand. As we age, we see things differently, and we are less likely to face delusions--we see things as they really are, not as we want to be.
And soon, I can see you standing on your front porch waving your fist at passerby's yelling, "Get off my lawn!". lol

 

Ask your solar installer if the have any warranty on relocation. My System has a 25 year hardware warranty and 15 year warranty on relocation (i.e. removal and re installation on a new roof). Also I've noticed, at least in FL, most solar system installing companies started as roofing companies and 90% do both. So they should offer the relocation warranty as well as a rebate if you get a new roof from them of course.

Side note: The 30% Tax Credit from the feds applies to all cost of labor and hardware. So, if you are like me and your roof is 10+ years old and you are using a roofing/solar company you can lump the cost of the roof into the cost of the PV install. So, the cost of the roof is applied to the 30% federal tax credit. The credit can rollover for 2 years too, in case you don't pay a ton of federal taxes. But, if you don't, then before the second year, you need to adjust your W4 to take out as little tax as possible so you can use the credit against what you owe on your taxes the next year. Any way you can put more cash in your pocket and less in uncle sam's, right?]

But you will have to act in the next few years to get the most out of the credit. Obama extended it in 2016. It stays at 30% thru 2019, 2020 26%, 2021 22%, 2022 and on it drops to 10%.

 

That's pretty good! Most of the systems around here... at least they guys I've talked to... only offer 15-year warranties. Another good reason to consider the "break even" horizon. The system may well last longer than 15 years, but if your break even point is 15 years away, you're better off making sure you have at least a 20-25 year warranty.

 

This is what I was getting at and ole berry eluded to...cost. I just replaced an 18 year old AC unit for roughly $5k...to replace the heat furnace would have (or will be) another few Gs (electric AC and natural gas for heat...and water heater. I think just as the compressors/furnaces etc break down over 15-20 years, so will solar tech. The price of implementation needs to come way down...

 

With oil being so cheap it isn't even a concern. There won't be drilling.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/jan/10/trump-offshore-drilling-florida-ryan-zinke

"Coastal States to Trump: why is Florida exempt from drilling and not us?"

 

Gov. Scott is an alien, and told Trump hands off on his oil. He's secretly pumping it out from below Disneyhood, that's why there's so many sinkholes popping up in Central FL. Just so you know.

 

This is why we are programmed to die.

 

I forget, what state is Mara Lago in?