billvon 3,120 #1 October 7, 2009 My power bills, April to Sept of this year: May -97 kwhr Jun -62 kwhr Jul -87 kwhr Aug -42 kwhr Sept +152 kwhr As you can probably tell, September is the month we started using the A/C. Still, our net for the year is -136, so we have some buffer in case we have a rainy fall. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnDeere 0 #2 October 7, 2009 So i take it the solar panels are working well Nothing opens like a Deere! You ignorant fool! Checks are for workers! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CSpenceFLY 1 #3 October 7, 2009 That is fantastic!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Misternatural 0 #4 October 7, 2009 That's awesome!! I am still working on that gasifier generator combo, not much insolation over here and I can't put up a wind turbine without the neighbors bitchin' But I have hay to burn and just got a line on some wood chips. HAHA! the age of home based power plants is upon us! Do they send you a check or is it a credit system?Beware of the collateralizing and monetization of your desires. D S #3.1415 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jcd11235 0 #5 October 7, 2009 Out of curiosity, how much of your transportation do you power via home electricity?Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 3,120 #6 October 7, 2009 >Out of curiosity, how much of your transportation do you power via home >electricity? Most of my commuting (probably 3-4 days a week.) It's a small amount of energy overall though; a full charge is 1 kwhr and it gives me a range of 40 miles. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
squirrel 0 #7 October 7, 2009 too humid down there to use an Evap. cooler huh? I live up in the high desert, and it works great here, but we have an average humidity of 17%. i have not turned on my AC in 6 years, and it gets to 108 hear in the summer. ________________________________ Where is Darwin when you need him? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 3,120 #8 October 7, 2009 >too humid down there to use an Evap. cooler huh? No, just too much trouble. We have a window AC that we put in for a month a year; we don't really need any more than that. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warpedskydiver 0 #9 October 7, 2009 Blame it on Santa Ana or Global Warming Here we had the coldest summer I can recall Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarkM 0 #10 October 7, 2009 Very cool. Do you have a post that lays out how your home is designed? There's some cool stuff with this being done in Florida, zero energy homes. Might be more of a challenge here since AC is pretty much required in the summer months. http://www.fsec.ucf.edu/En/research/buildings/zero_energy/index.htm Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhammond 0 #11 October 7, 2009 Bill, are you strictly PV? how many KW's do you produce per month, and how much does that vary throughout the year, also how much do you consume per month and how much does that vary throughout the year, just curious, I figure you have a spread sheet on it ... dont go to any hassle for this info if you dont have it at your finger tips. Barry Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 3,120 #12 October 7, 2009 >are you strictly PV? We generate a little more than we use, but we are still grid connected. Usually we just about break even - the energy we generate during May-August makes up for the power we use Dec-Feb. We use about 6kwhr's a day, and generate between 3 and 10 kwhr's depending on season, weather etc. We have solar hot water (with gas backup) and gas heat (which we never use since we're in San Diego.) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
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