Aug
26
People who know about Solar Power and Wind Turbines?
ByI am looking at my bill and I use on average about 50 KWH per day…..I dont know if thats high but I want to know what size of an solar power panel should I get or wind turbine to at least cut this in half or more….I would rather want the system to be grid tied.
By the way I live in middle Tennessee we are in zone 4 so we get 4.5 hours of direct sun and I dont now about average wind speeds.
6 Comments
August 26th, 2010 at 4:03 am
If you are doing this to save money, forget it. Use less energy by being conscious of your usage and/or using energy efficient appliances and lights. just by having the TV and other devices on a switch can save energy. And being care full when, and how efficiently you use you washer/dryer etc. can save electricity and it all adds up if you really pay attention.
August 26th, 2010 at 4:12 am
You are asking all the right questions. I’ve got a 5 KW solar system; it’s enough for a regular house, without the A/C. I don’t know if 50KWH is a lot or not. I would suggest a combination between solar and wind power. Grid tied is the way to go, but think about batteries in the long term, just in case u want to go off the grid.
The other guy is right though, u can do a lot by being very careful with you usage now. Power strips, as suggested, are a great start. Low wattage lights can be a big help, insulation, timers on hot water heaters make a huge difference. i set my water heater for one hour a day and it’s still hot all day. indoor clothes lines are a great help when drying; then just fluff for 5 min.s. I changed to a propane dryer and that made a huge difference in my elec. bill, $50 a month. Solar and wind power is a fantastic long term investment, don’t just think about what your bill is today, u have to think about what your bill will be when they raise the rate, again and again and again. Also, what a lot of people forget is that when u save money on bills like that, u can invest that money in things that save and make u money, so now you are saving, and saving, and making money on all the money u saved by investing in yourself and your system in the first place.
Please write me directly if i can help at all.
Be nice to people. respect
August 26th, 2010 at 5:03 am
that is right up my alley.contact us at http://www.blueviewsolar.com for your answers.sounds like you have a good start.thanks tommy
August 26th, 2010 at 5:30 am
Just FYI, I am in Middle TN also, and my last electric bill averaged 43 KWH/day. That was during the heat wave, and I like it cool inside. So 50 KWH is probably an average reading right now for a small family.
August 26th, 2010 at 6:30 am
in an awesomely successful attempt to take advantage of various government rebate programs, i completely redid my appliances and HVAC system.
energy star dishwasher, clothes washer, and refrigerator
new stove and clothes dryer. while they are not energy star, they are more efficient than the old ones.
HVAC system has energy star heat pump running on Puron attached to 95% efficient gas furnace.
new water heater. boy, have they learned how to insulate water heaters.
comparing ’09 and ’10 electric bills and cooling degree days, i figure my savings are in the 20% range. this winter i am expecting an even greater savings, as i had an old heat pump with resistance heat backup.
going beyond that, installing wind or solar is a good idea, if you already have the low useage appliances/systems. even 1 KW is a KW to the good. otherwise do the appliances first.
August 26th, 2010 at 7:20 am
So basically to get 50 KWH in 4.5 hours, you would need 12 KW of panels. At about $10 a watt installed, that would cost you $120,000. I think a wind turbine would be less expensive but you’ll have to check to see if your neighbours will let you have one.
You should work on insulating your home first to try and get your power usage down. If you have airconditioning, you may want to consider running an absorption chiller off hot water from some evacuated tube solar collectors. Running absorption based air conditioners directly off solar heat is a bit of a toss up since small scale chillers are expensive but the solar thermal collectors are cheap compared to photo-voltaics.