The Solar Power House Blog

Hawaii has one of the highest costs of living in the entire United States. Middle class families typically pay $300/month for a single family residence electric bill. So, when Hawaii’s largest solar farm was recently completed on Lanai, one would expect the residents to breathe a sigh of relief expecting some electricity bill relief themselves.

No cigar. At least not yet. The 10 acre solar farm provides enough power to meet 30% of the island’s electricity demand, and is also the site of a proposed 400 MW wind farm. However, high capital investment requirements of these projects mean that the residents will continue to pay same electricity rates for the short to medium term. However, innovation in Solar Power House technologies and increasing economies of scale means that the cost of solar power is falling at the rate of 10% per year. This translates to roughly less than half of today’s prices in 6 years. This means that very soon and certainly over their life times the residents can expect to realistically see meaningful reductions in their electricity bills. Show me the money indeed

Meanwhile in the immediate future they are spared from the pollution caused by fossil fuels, independence from fuel price volatilities. Additionally, national security implications are not to be forgotten as we stop funding countries whose values and way of life are different from ours.

This Hawaiian paradise just became even more attractive!

Image Courtesy Allianz

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There is no question that the years from 2001-2007 have been boom years for all solar equipment manufacturers globally. The demand rose exponentially, existing players invested in building new plants, and several new players sensing a new growing market entered the playing field.

Now that we are in a full blown global recession however, the supply of not only solar panels has far exceeded demand, but also those of raw materials needed to build solar panels.

See the drop in price for Polysilicon used in solar panels.

Businessweek ran a great article on this story here.

Due to overinvestment in capacities ala airline and automobile industries, supply has far far exceeded demand.Several solar manufacturers will become unviable in the coming year or two, and there will be big industry consolidation.

The prices of solar panels have shrunk dramatically to $3/Watt. This means that the price of solar power electricity is getting very close to that produced by conventional means, especially in high priced states like California and Hawaii.

Wow! This can only mean that the price barrier to Solar Power Homes is rapidly tumbling down. And the Return on Investment equation just got even better in favor of a Solar Power House. If you are interested in knowing more about how to build fully functional and practical Solar Power Homes without sacrificing daily comforts, then please check out this Solar Power Homes guide. It really is the best and most complete book on this subject that I have come across.

May the solar winds be with you

Images: Courtesy Businessweek

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Sacramento based alternative rock band CAKE has gone one step ahead of Solar Power Homes. The roof of their music studio is covered with a roof-top solar array which makes them completely independent from the city electricity grid. They estimate that the band uses only 10% of the solar power, and the rest is sent back to the grid.

This is not the only step they have taken to go green however. The band is heavily involved in the green movement and is known to give away trees to their fans. They also operate a ridesharing website as part of their main website.

This is one instance of not only getting to have your CAKE but eat it too

Technorati Tags: home solar panel, residential solar power, solar diy, solar energy home, solar kits, solar panel, solar panels for home, solar pannel, solar power for home, solar power home, solar power house, solar power lights, solar power residential, solar powered home, solar roof panels

Who knew rainy weather could actually be good for Solar Power Homes? I have always thought that solar panels produced more power during summer when sun shines brightest and were so-so during the winters. Imagine then to my surprise when I came across this article at CBS website explaining otherwise.

It seems that the solar panels commonly in use by individual households get coated by dust and are relatively dirtier during summers thus reducing their efficiency and capacity to fully utilize the bright summer sun. On the other hand, during winters while the sun may not be shining at its brightest, the solar panels are relatively dust free and cleaner. This in turn allows them to more efficiently convert what little sunlight they do get into electricity.

Moral of the story? Cleanliness is next to Godliness Keep your solar panels clean and wash them regularly during summers to keep them at their fittest!

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This week in review

We have found some great posts on Solar Power Homes that readers might want to check out.

• Solar Power for 1300 Homes in California – California’s Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the head of Edison International, Ted Craver, “flipped the switch” on a project that will provide solar power to as many as 1300 homes in the Southern California region. …

• Shea Homes Provides Free Solar Power – Homebuyers at Shea Homes’ Victoria Gardens, in Rancho Cucamonga, California, will receive free solar power systems through August 31. The nationwide homebuilder is working with BP Solar, a global leader in solar energy, as part of their …

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I recently came across this article in New York Times which got me thinking about the politics of Solar Power. Let’s face it. No matter how much people like you and me love Solar Power Homes, this is not going to take off without some federal government backing.
 
A survey by the Nuclear Power Industry discovered that people’s top choice for generating energy was solar. Not nuclear, coal or natural gas. However, at the same time solar just provided for less than 0.01 percent of America’s electric supply. Solar energy is popular, but alas, no money!

In Washington DC where the energy policies are made, the lobbyists for solar energy companies typically work with a budget of tens of thousands of dollars. Compare that with the tens of millions of dollars that the lobbyists for nuclear, coal, oil and gas industries have at their disposal, and you can make a pretty good guess as to what kind of energy policies will be made by our beloved politicians.

One only has to take a look at how government policies in Germany and Japan have helped boost solar power adoption into stratosphere. This government support has also helped lower manufacturing costs due to economies of scale, and also advance the solar technologies.

John McCain’s vision of future energy.

Image courtesy: http://redgreenandblue.org/2008/06/21/mean-joe-green-14-mccains-vision-for-renewable-energy/

I know this idea of government intervention is very unpopular in USA, where most people believe that markets should be left alone to fend for themselves. But take a look at what that leading proponent of capitalism and free markets, a venture capitalist, has to say about this. Vinod Khosla is a partner at one of the world’s most prestigious VC firm, and a major investor in green technologies. According to him, “market-driven improvements are not happening fast enough to put solar technology beyond much more than a boutique investment”. Amen brother!

Despite all this cause for gloom, there are 3 dynamics in place which give me hope, no, even confidence that Solar Power Homes ’ time has come and that they will prevail.

1) Our president-elect Obama and his new administration is decidedly unfriendly to big oil and coal, and has made green technologies a priority. Additionally, the way our law makers work will also hopefully change for the better with new laws limiting the power and influence of lobbyists in the capital.

2) States like California and Hawaii are not waiting for Washington DC and have decided to take matters in their own hands. Governator Schwarzenegger’s “Million Roof” initiative is being promoted as not only creating a home-grown industry, but also creating thousands of jobs and at the same time reducing global warming.

3) Finally the individual Solar Power Homes dweller. All this would come to naught if people were not interested in solar power. As mentioned above, this is far from the case. People are not only interested, but they are also putting money where their mouth is. Even though it takes years to pay off initial investments in solar equipment, people still do it. Sometimes, even in cases when there is no pay off. Hats off to these pioneers. Let’s keep going solar, and keep supporting organizations and politicians who support green technologies!

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