Greetings from Vermont on New Year’s Day 2020 (at time of writing). Looking back into my archived articles here on CleanTechnica, it appears I have not had anything published since November 20, 2018. My first article regarding our rooftop solar + Tesla Powerwall 2 system was published on April 21, 2018.
An article was published in the New York Times recently about the growth of clean energy production and usage around the world. It focused on the International Energy Agency’s 2018 World Energy Outlook (WEO) report.
We went “live” with our solar installation on April 9, 2018. To recap, we’ve got 8.125 kW of generation capacity from our roof-mounted array of 25 panels, each capable of 320 watt gross output with a Powerwall 2 and a 240V Tesla car charging station.
What if you had the option to directly pick and choose exactly where the power you are using in your house came from? Would it matter to you? What would the criteria be that you would use to choose that option? Price? Reliability? “Green” sources? The people of San Diego California are working towards answering those questions.
For those of you who have read my other articles, you know we had a Powerwall 2 installed with our solar generation system back in April this year. I was asked to provide my take on how things are going. What was expected, what was unexpected, how it’s been operating overall?
When you review your monthly electric bill from the utility, do you ever wonder how the electrical usage all breaks down to individual loads? Sure, you know that conventional air conditioners and kitchen appliances are the largest offenders in gobbling up kWh, but what if you could tell what various electrical devices in your house were up to? How much power is being used by the smart TV you just turned off? Do you really need 150w bulbs in the basement fixtures? How about knowing when the garage door opens or when the dehumidifier is running, what is the usage is there?
