Global Warming: Fact or Fiction?

I repeat... its friction and nothing works without lubrication.

 

Are you having problems with your girlfriend??

 

well atlas you didn't call me a homo or a moron!

 

I have mellowed out......lol

 

I don't know if this is the propre tread (or maybe the musky tread), but I found this article informative regarding leased solar panels (TPO model). Any swellers considering adding panels to their homes or purchasing a home with such an arrangement, caveat emptor.

https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2019-sunrun-solar-panels/

 

Fuck ranchers. Most of them take just as many handouts as other groups deemed 'entitled' in this and other politically motivated threads.

And instead of getting our collective panties in a bunch about how the news or whatever the fuck is focusing on cow farts, how about the simple fact that most land cleared is done for cattle grazing and corn production, for feed. Also the number one reason for deforestation in the Amazon.

I don't think many will find it as funny as I will when we realize how fucked we really are.

 

Buy an oxygen tank......<grin>

 

It's true Leases are lame. Better to get a loan to pay for the install. The loan payment should be less than the money you save on your electric bill. If it isn't going to be, work on getting your home to work more efficiently first so you need less panels.

 

Bottom line is this--solar panels DO NOT work well enough yet.
Wait for another 10 years...maybe
Wait another 20 years.....more likely.
In the meantime--don't waste money. Use money to fix up house for better energy use.

 

So you've got a guy that's lived in a Santa Barbara stucco rancher for almost his entire life.

Even if he's lived there for 20 years (a conservative number), he stands to make between $100K - $200K profit on the sale.

and he won't pay off the remaining $27K?

eff that clown, look for another house

 

Barry, in the right situation, with the various govt incentives (30% tax credit, SREC kickbacks, etc.), a solar installation can pay for itself in ~7 years. I just facilitated the installation at my MILs home, and in her case, having an all electric house and moritorium on new gas installs, as well as her home faces perfectly south, it was an ideal scenario. She was also able to take advantage of a state loan program that paid down 10%.

But I think you will be proven correct that the technology is going to get better and cheaper. She had an old passive solar water heating system that was installed in the early 80s (the house was designed for energy efficiency), however this system was falling apart, original installers no longer in that business, and nobody wanted repair it. So, the solar install worked out well thus far.

I did steer her away from any leasing arrangements because I didn't want any encumbrances in the event the house needs to be sold in the future. The article confirmed all my suspicions.

And Kid, the guy was dead and his estate was trying to sell the property. The author coarsed them legally to deal with it or the the contract could be voided.. at least that's my reading. But I agree with you, they should have paid the $27k without dispute, and they still walk away with "found money".

 

"Tax credits" make me very leery of buying anything with that because it is not the same as a tax reduction. Depending on how much one is slated to receive, it does not get used all in one fiscal ctax year, it needs to be spread out, which essentially makes it useless, as the new automatic tax deductions for this year, for example, are $20K. So when can one apply the "credits". You can't because they will make no difference.

 

True. My MIL is elderly, fixed income and has a small tax burden. It will take a few years to recoup the "credit". BTW, it is a credit, not a deduction, so it is applied directly to the tax burden, not to reduce taxible income. I had a nephew who is an account and numbers guy double check all the figures and analysis. It is definately something to keep in mind. She is a "grey green" type, has been for decades before it became in vogue, so I honored her wishes and sought to optimize the project for her.

Personally, it would not be prudent at the current time for my home because of many factors, which would lead to a much lengthier payoff time.

 

Oh, geez, cape dog...don't misinterpret my assessment as negative criticism of your efforts, especially for your Mom-IL!! You should be congratulated for that!! Truth be told, I do the same in different areas of concern.
As much as I am a solar and a wind energy guy, our technology to harvest them, is not quite up to what is being promoted--opinion only. The reason is imho our knowledge still lacks that defining knowledge point to make it all come together.
In medicine, it is the same thing. When we get referred to surgery, it is because human minds have no yet figured out how to cure something medically without the surgery--our knowledge is not there yet.

 

Barry, no worries .. I did not interpret your assessment as negative criticism. Your points and priorities are important to consider, and thus why I don't have solar. So I think your comments will cause a more circumspective approach.. people jump into things and later have "buyers remorse".

Being scientific/analytically minded myself, I put things under scrutiny, even when touted by "experts", and 100% agree with your comment regarding the medical scene. Sometimes specialists are so focused in their area of expertise that they don't fully consider the full ramifications of the prescribed approach, and how it may affect the "holistic" (or total) health and life of the individual.

Went down this road with a loved one.. Dr's prescription, as a "safeguard" based on stats to marginally reduce the odds of reoccurrence, and had miserable, near debilitating side effects. Quality of life and total overall health trumps marginal gains in prevention, at least in my humble estimation.

So right on man!