Comments on: Busting 7 Solar Power Myths

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 11:35:00 +0000

Yeah, it confuses the heck out of me.

It’s like we can get from A to B, but not from B to C.

By: Kevin L

Kevin L — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:41:00 +0000

Did that stop you from buying your computer? At that rate you will never own any type of technology, car, etc. Funny thing about people – we spend tons of money on things that consistently lose value…but when a technology is proven to pay you back over a certain amount of time…we want to wait. Anyone else catching this???

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 22:01:00 +0000

All great additional points. Mostly stuff I noted on our solar page. However, I think I need to add a TOD pricing section in there.

By: alf

alf — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 21:55:00 +0000

The article is about “home” solar power, which is “retail” power (i.e. it replaces power for which you would be paying a retail price), but then #7 is comparing it to the cost of coal and nuclear plants which is “wholesale” power. That seems like a key difference to me.
Also panels on your roof are providing the energy very close to where it is used (your house), but wholesale power from coal and nuclear plants has to be transmitted and distributed to you, which incurs significant losses.
And while I’m on the subject, in the future when your utility switches to time-of-day electricity pricing, you will notice that the power produced by your solar panels will be replacing some of the more expensive power from your utility.
And I suppose I should mention something about the cost of “externalities” in regards to coal and nuclear which causes it to be much more expensive than just the cost we pay to the utilities.
I could go on, but I really just wanted to mention the wholesale/retail power thing..

By: Cleve716

Cleve716 — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 19:21:00 +0000

If I wait ten years, new technologies will be better, and I will be stuck with this old stuff