Lou, the local utility boards make the investment decisions for their companies. They aren’t investing in coal and they know their business better than us. That’s why I say coal is obsolete. You can run for a spot on the utilities commission. Otherwise this is a discussion among us who know more about tractors than utility companies.
You have to factor in two important things:
That's the most confusing since $4,360/year=$363.33/month. I've never had a $363/month electric bill in my life. I've never had a $200 electric bill. The highest we've ever had was a few months ago having six heaters, dehumidifiers and fans running 24/7 and my bill was $150 which my insurance company paid from a water leak. Our electric bill averages around $100/month. Even if it was $150/month that's $45,000 in 25 years. In 25 years I'll be 95.
My electric bill averages $260/month which includes charging my EV. Also they are assuming a 3% electric rate increase each year.You have to factor in two important things:
"$28k cost after credit."
That $28,000 would either be a loan which you pay interest on or cash which you lose investment interest on.
"Estimated solar savings over 25 yrs = $109K or $4360/yr."That's the most confusing since $4,360/year=$363.33/month. I've never had a $363/month electric bill in my life. I've never had a $200 electric bill. The highest we've ever had was a few months ago having six heaters, dehumidifiers and fans running 24/7 and my bill was $150 which my insurance company paid from a water leak. Our electric bill averages around $100/month. Even if it was $150/month that's $45,000 in 25 years. In 25 years I'll be 95.
$28,000 invested in the S&P 500 if it follows the last 25 years at 7.98% would be $190,690.12. And I wouldn't have unsightly panels, maintenance or damage. As it is now the power company is responsible for everything up to my meter base.
Living here 43 years our total loss of power has been a few days total, most of that loss was a major ice storm and we were in Florida and missed it. Ten years ago I bought a 9kW generator which has less than 3 hours of run time.
That’s why personal solar systems are not for everybody. I’ve also done the math and it doesn’t pencil out for me. On the other hand, our neighbor down the road has a McMansion with AC and lots of power use. The economics works out for his situation. My bill varies between $150-170, with most of the cost being a deep well pump, and it isn’t worth it to me.You have to factor in two important things:
"$28k cost after credit."
That $28,000 would either be a loan which you pay interest on or cash which you lose investment interest on.
"Estimated solar savings over 25 yrs = $109K or $4360/yr."
$28,000 invested in the S&P 500 if it follows the last 25 years at 7.98% would be $190,690.12. And I wouldn't have unsightly panels, maintenance or damage. As it is now the power company is responsible for everything up to my meter base.
Living here 43 years our total loss of power has been a few days total, most of that loss was a major ice storm and we were in Florida and missed it. Ten years ago I bought a 9kW generator which has less than 3 hours of run time.
That seems to be about average.
The panels should last 40+ years, but there is a 0.5% decrease each year. So 95% at 10 years, 90% at 20 years, 82% at 40years. It's the inverters that are about 20 years. So it'll be a few grand to replace that. I decided to "lease" my panels. 20 years with guaranteed production and just a single upfront cost of about $5K. It was a no brainer investment for me. Thank you taxpayers as you paid for most of the cost for my panels. At the end of 20 years, I'll need a new roof put on, so I'll let the owner of the panels take the system out. If they refuse, then I'm stuck with owning the system, which is fine. I'm told it will cost me a little of $1K extra to have the panels removed, and put back after the new roof is done.
It CAN be turned around if we do what needs to be done. The train needs a new engineer and crew.
