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81 Comments
- marklad2020, on 06/05/2008, -0/+27Solar panels and home wind turbines are just such good gadgets..
- Surferess, on 06/05/2008, -0/+23Hard to believe anybody still needs convincing.
- tbhurst, on 06/05/2008, -2/+21Could it actually be that two of the big Western democracies are finally beginning to endorse renewable energy? Now, if only the policymakers in the U.S. and Britain could put some money where there mouths are, then we'd really be talking.
- GidsR, on 06/05/2008, -0/+15The government cut the subsidies to people fitting eco power solutions at the same time as making the process prohibitively complex.
All they need to do is make all green power solutions VAT free and give another 17.5% rebate on council tax or corporation tax and the UK would get greener in a heartbeat.
Brown is only interested in the green stuff; not being green. - bstory, on 06/05/2008, -1/+13I wonder if placing some solar panels on top of street lights would be able to collect enough energy during the day to power the street light for the night. If it is not then wouldn't the few hours of energy it collected each day be worth putting into the grid?
- inactive, on 06/05/2008, -0/+10I just moved to San Francisco and I'm amazed that this city isn't covered in small wind turbines.
- borez, on 06/06/2008, -0/+9It's already being done
http://www.brightlightsolar.com/acatalog/Street_Li ... - crazyeye, on 06/05/2008, -0/+7Hard to see the downside
- Pyroteknik, on 06/06/2008, -1/+6Should read:
Five (very vague) Reasons For Home Made Renewable Energy - inactive, on 06/06/2008, -0/+5Remember that DEMAND PLAYS a very important role in the price of ANYTHING
- gavinhudson, on 06/06/2008, -0/+5You can start by contacting your utility supplier or a local Home Depot, yeah. They'll give you all the info you need.
- openpaledot, on 06/06/2008, -0/+5Cities who have them also need to remove residential zoning restrictions on wind turbines.
If anyone is interested in wind, PacWind makes great units for the home. http://www.pacwind.net/ - squidgravy, on 06/06/2008, -1/+6Where can I buy solar panels? Does one simply drive over to the local Home Depot grab a couple solar sheets and walk out?
- krnldmp, on 06/06/2008, -0/+5Anyone that tries to slow you down from becoming resource independent should be shot or have their necks broken with a sledge hammer.
- samotage, on 06/06/2008, -0/+3Our esteemed government here in Australia - recently elected after running a campaign promising action on climate change has just fired their first shots almost 6 months after being elected. Anyone guess?
Drop the rebate on Solar installations AND lets also cut the price paid for solar generation into the network... What a remarkable early renege on promises. To say it’s killed the local solar market is an understatement. - borez, on 06/06/2008, -0/+3True, but oil generate far more revenue for the government.
- haydesigner, on 06/06/2008, -0/+3He also forgot to include a sense of funny.
- bincoder, on 06/06/2008, -0/+3Forget global warming. Being independent of the grid is plenty enough reason to go solar on an individual basis. Remember Enron? The grid power was turned into a 'commodity', power flowed from the grid to whoever paid the most money and california went dark although california has enough power to supply itself several times over, just like oil speculation is doing now. Being offline with your own power makes such shady deals and scams impossible to carry out. People (or states) that create enough power for themselves deserve to keep it all for themselves. As for Obama, no thanks to your nationwide 'digital grid'. Here the electricity is plentiful and cheap using 3 nukes, hydropower and solar. I don't want to end up paying 3 times the bill and have blackouts to supply it to some state that still burns coal and refuses to build more powerplants of their own.
- thcobbs, on 06/06/2008, -0/+3OK, so you want them tax FREE and the government to foot 17% of the bill? Hell, I'd throw solar panels up on my roof in a heart beat. I might even consider solar shingles.
- nydwarf, on 06/07/2008, -0/+3This kind of stuff needs to be done now!
- Haoie, on 06/06/2008, -0/+3I take it you're doing us a favour and not having children of your own.
- elnerdo, on 06/06/2008, -0/+2(It bounces for firefox, too. It sucks. Somehow, digg's programmers manage to be absolutely awful. I don't know why I keep coming to this site. )
You're correct. Things are always more efficient when they're gathered together in bulk. - elnerdo, on 06/06/2008, -3/+5I would've dugg you up if you also included something useful to say, like:
"I think that we should wait for more efficient alternatives to current solar panel and wind turbine technology. Solar panels right now are simply too expensive, use too many resources, and are not energy efficient enough to be worth buying. "
But instead, you were simply useless. - inactive, on 06/06/2008, -0/+2I wonder if Britain will make the same rule as they have for water. even if you collect rain that falls from the sky you still have to pay the water bill.
You can be sure of one thing, you will have to fill out 100 forms just to put up a tiny solar panel. - bstory, on 06/05/2008, -1/+3No disrespect intended but how much ice has to melt before people will admit that there is change happening? If the change has been brought on or accelerated by man who can say for certain however, climate change happens on a global scale from time to time. I sincerely doubt that any scientist would deny that there was an ice age in our recent past unless of course the so called scientist was also a creationist.
- roodammy44, on 06/06/2008, -0/+2Efficiency won't matter if everyone's roof is made of solar panels.
What's the point of having roof tiles inefficiently reflecting all the light off them when it can be put to good use?
Plus, since there is such a lack of political will to get this done, it will need to be done at the local level, like the first electricity generators were 70 years ago. - chemrat, on 06/09/2008, -0/+2So, centralized, sustainable power is fine with me, but we are clearly going to see a mix, in part because only some areas are putting in solar and/or wind power in large installations (in the US). There are plenty of large installations in Europe.
- kd1s, on 06/06/2008, -0/+2I live in a place that has oil heating. With oil over $4 a gallon there is no way in hell I'm going to go that route. I've talked to the building owner and he's seriously considering solar. I hope the hell so.
- monoa, on 06/06/2008, -0/+2...and, as usual, you're getting Dugg down for providing reasoned argument, backed up by evidence.
There's some mass psychosis going on, driven by entitlement and greed - if anthropogenic climate change is real, people would need to change their consumption habits. They don't want to do that, so they deny the reality.
P.S. At different times the, the Oregon Petition '31,000 scientists' has included 'Geri Halliwell' (Spice Girls), 'Perry Mason' (fictitious detective), 'Michael J. Fox' (Back To The Future!) and a bunch of others that show the list up for what it is - unverified *****. Anyone can sign the list with any name and qualification they choose - it will get added to the list of 'scientists'. - roodammy44, on 06/06/2008, -0/+2I'll buy all the old innefficient solar panels that you'll want to throw away.
Buy old solar panels + buy cheap desert land = profit. - byerspc, on 06/06/2008, -1/+3yeah great idea we should all have shingles with solar technology built in...someone sure isn't behind it ...if a company did start to produce something like that and make it mainstream they would be worth a fortune....
If we all go to electric (rechargeable) cars we are just moving the problem to the grid. - chemrat, on 06/09/2008, -0/+2The reason for distributed power sources is not just efficiency losses due to transmission, it is because the present day power generation stations (like coal plants) run flat out and can't be regulated (without serious efficiency losses), so a lot of power gets wasted. Distributed power can lead to a lot more control and greatly-reduced waste.
- haydesigner, on 06/06/2008, -1/+3Faulty logic. Why are you assuming that people (and businesses) will automatically replace the panels when better ones come out? Do we all run out and buy new cars when the MPG on our model goes up by 2 gallons? No.
- xexx, on 06/06/2008, -0/+2When the sun explodes we won't be worrying about renewable energy.
- haydesigner, on 06/06/2008, -1/+3reply button... it is a good thing.
- gavinhudson, on 06/06/2008, -0/+2I'm amazed it isn't called the windy city. The place is constantly windy!
- monoa, on 06/06/2008, -0/+1http://digg.com/environment/5_Ways_to_Fix_Global_W ...
...and that's just the tip of the iceberg. - chemrat, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Thanks for the supportive comment. It is weird the way DIGGers don't like facts. Thanks also for the additional info about the notorious Oregon Petition (and I have nothing against Oregon!).
- theRIAA, on 06/07/2008, -0/+1if it's not the best, then in an economic sense, you are damaging the environment yes.
- chemrat, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Not if you want more people to see your comment and feel it has a broader context that deserves to be seen at the top level. Of course, if facts cause a comment to be buried, it is hard to see the point of participating here.
- bincoder, on 06/06/2008, -0/+1Amazing. So if you can generate excess electricity you are not allowed to sell it at a price you want? Cutting the price for energy back into the grid should apply boths ways, the power company should also be forced to cut the price they get when it flows into your home. Maybe its time for several households to pool their power and charge each other what they want, taking the power companies (and law) out of the equation.
- chemrat, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1I have some posts on how to install, or have installed, solar and wind power at home. They are at
http://greenchemistry.wordpress.com/ - Hodor, on 06/06/2008, -0/+1that doesn't mean we should do nothing.
solar and wind are safe, imo.. - donna1234, on 11/08/2008, -0/+1A British Government reports provides a series of compelling reasons to put a wind-turbine in your garden
http://www.bestipodtips.info
http://www.e-uuu.com
http://www.webthe.info
http://www.mad4.info
http://www.vindictivebastard.net/
http://www.alobre.info - roodammy44, on 06/06/2008, -0/+1*slow hand claps*
- xexx, on 06/06/2008, -0/+1They do give returns or people wouldn't be putting them up. Simple huh?
- gettarat, on 11/24/2008, -0/+1Hard to see the downside
http://homedepothours.com/ - skiddles, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Solar panels are not consumers of energy. I know that is stating the obvious but your logic is based of the efficiency of a consumption of electricity, not the production.
The only way upgrading to a new more efficient solar panel will save you money is if you make some pretty broad assumptions:
> The existing panels are working and in peak condition.
> You could sell your existing solar panels for close to their depreciated cost.
> You have no additional space to install the newer more efficient panels.
This last point is the critical factor.
Lets say you want to double your capacity and the efficiency of the new panels has doubled. You only need to expand your solar collection area by 50% to double your capacity. If you have the space, then there is no benefit to removing the older panels if they are in good working condition because it is a sunk cost. The only reason you would remove them is that they are damaged or you can sell them to someone else. Either way, you are improving the efficiency of the your installation and potentially someone else's. - nydwarf, on 06/07/2008, -0/+1Bang on Digger!
- elnerdo, on 06/06/2008, -0/+1You're not.
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