[Phil №❶]

Sorry to stuff everyone around, but it looks like I will not proceed with lifting the panels. I got the opportunity to look under the panels yesterday from an angle I've not seen before. There is an air gap between the rails, only about 10mm, but enough for convective air flow to exist.

Also, the bolts for fastening the panels slide inside the channels and are then locked down with a nut i.e. the head is in the channel & the thread pokes out, to change this, I'd have to slide all the bolts out and replace with longer ones which would mean dismantling all the panels at the same time, this sounds like potential chaos for me, so not going there. 

Posted by: surferdude
« on: Yesterday at 07:02:56 »

And we paid more than Dazz - $10,500. But that was for solar panels AND replacing the electric hot water with a solar hot water unit. And we went for a more expensive brand of panels, inverter and HW system.
But ours, too will have paid for itself in about 5 years.

Posted by: Dazzler
« on: May 24, 2012, 21:40:12

I managed to get our 2kw system for only A$3,100 after rebates (I could have paid more than twice that if I wanted the best German Inverter and someoe with a more expensive vehicle to install it...)

See, I said they were more affluent 

[Surferdude]

See, I said they were more affluent 

Gotta spend money to make money.

And live in Queensland.

[Phil №❶]

See, I said they were more affluent 

Gotta spend money to make money.

And live in Queensland.

 

[rustynutz]

Sure you didn't mean to say effluent, Phil? 

[Phil №❶]

 

[Dazzler]

Well I said to Trish anything under A$400 for this power bill and I would be happy (without the solar it would be around $650 going on last year) Well it came today via my email and it was (Drum Roll please...) $302 

Considering the last month has been pretty ordinary weather wise and we missed the best of the Summer and we only have a 2Kw System ... Got to be happy with that   

I pay money off the every week or two (in advance via Bpay) We started off with $78 in credit from the last bill. I paid about $304 off in bits and pieces, so still $80 in credit...

[rustynutz]

My last power bill was $221.......so I'm happy to be in my little 2 bedroom palace...

Btw, glad you've at least halved your bill, Daz.... 

[Phil №❶]

Excellent result Dazz, this year will only be better. I have been purchasing through ebay LED light bulbs. They are replacing the already efficient spiral flouros. Our lounge is currently lit by 2 standard lamps each with 5w bulbs, so that's 10w in total while we watch tv & attend to the forum. This can be from 17:00 to 23:00 hrs each evening. previously our consumption in the room was 25w flouro. We have 2 x 75 w flouro overheads but I frown on anyone turning them on. I don't think I have any Scottish ancestry, but sometimes, I wonder. 

[Doggie 1]

That's an excellent result Dazz. I might have to investigate this.
I really haven't kept up with developments in this area but I'm sure that PM Gillard would have something to offer me if I became a greener Australian and helped save the environment, being so concerned as she is.

[Phil №❶]

db08

Hop in for your chop while you can, basically systems start @ 1.5 kw and go up from there.
The govt will pay some of the cost, so a 1.5 represents the greatest govt contribution %, but like surferdude says, you have to spend money to make money. His system generates excess of his consumption so some $ return just about all weather & seasons. Things to consider are,

- The rebate paid by your supplier will gradually be reduced to parity and then less than due to the expected increase of electricity in this country. But remember, better to get a little of something than a lot of nothing.

- ROI needs to be <10 years IMO

 

[Dazzler]

Thanks Guys .. We are quite reckless by comparison Phil (I've told Trish to be thankful  ) the Room we spend most evenings in is quite large (about 60 square metres) and we burn 1 x 18w Spiral Fluro in the Kitchen part and 2 x 14w spiral fluro's in the remainder making a grand total of 46watts 

There are another 4 x 14watts globes,  6 x 11 watts and 7 x 7 watts in the room as well but no one is authorised to use those 

[Phil №❶]

Thanks Guys .. We are quite reckless by comparison Phil (I've told Trish to be thankful  ) the Room we spend most evenings in is quite large (about 60 square metres) and we burn 1 x 18w Spiral Fluro in the Kitchen part and 2 x 14w spiral fluro's in the remainder making a grand total of 46watts 

There are another 4 x 14watts globes,  6 x 11 watts and 7 x 7 watts in the room as well but no one is authorised to use those 

- That's not a room, that's a gallery.
- The unauthorised lights are just there for effect  I don't feel so bad about ours now. 

We also have 3 water beds. I have mine on a time switch, not allowed to heat during daylight hours. Seems to work ok, so the kids beds are next. 

[Doggie 1]

Thanks Guys .. We are quite reckless by comparison Phil (I've told Trish to be thankful  ) the Room we spend most evenings in is quite large (about 60 square metres)

Bloody hell, Dazz. 
My games room is 54 square metres and I thought that was big. 
What room do you sit in that's 60 square metres? Is it the WC? 

[Dazzler]

It's our Kitchen, Dining, Family room in the centre of the house...About 7.5 x 8 metres 

[Doggie 1]

I've seen pics of your place Dazz - it looks great.
As I've said before, I've never been to Tassie but there would be some beautiful properties down there.
My older sister loves Tasmania and it is where she would live if she was able to (probably after the north of England). 

[Surferdude]

Our second power bill came today. I was a bit worried about how this one would pan out given the amount of virtually sunless (and rainy) days we've had in the last quarter, combined with lower generation due to less daylight hours as we moved into winter.

So, this bill is $116.59 .............................. Credit.

 

Gotta be happy with that. This quarter last year was $406, so a $522 turn around.

[Doggie 1]

 

[Phil №❶]

 

Just saw on the news our juice is going up 18% coz of the carbon tax, same increase as NSW, the highest in the land 

[Surferdude]

And the Qld government has reduced the feed in tariff on new connections to 8c k/w/h.
Tough times ahead for the solar power industry.
Lucky we got in when we did.

[Phil №❶]

The industry will be wiped out overnight. the govt says it has helped the industry enough, and they have to stand on their own 2 feet. Anyone who can multiply can see that there is no possible way to get any ROI over 20 years, at those rates. 

[Dazzler]

Well done Trev.. 

The way governments are backing away from Solar incentives is shameful 

[rustynutz]

The industry will be wiped out overnight. the govt says it has helped the industry enough, and they have to stand on their own 2 feet. Anyone who can multiply can see that there is no possible way to get any ROI over 20 years, at those rates. 

But at least you'll be left with that warm fuzzy feeling knowing you're doing your bit for the environment......

[eye30]

And the Qld government has reduced the feed in tariff on new connections to 8c k/w/h.
Tough times ahead for the solar power industry.
Lucky we got in when we did.

Did the same here in UK for new installations since April, I thimk.

[Surferdude]

I think pretty much every state government has reduced feed in tariffs. Qld was the last. NSW did it after a change from Labor (last of the big spenders) to Liberal but had to back away from making it retrospective. So only new installs cop the reduction.
When the Qld Labor party got turfed out in the recent election (bit over 3 months ago) there was always going to be major cost cutting as the state debt is projected to be $100 Billion within a couple of years.

But the problem of governments not supporting solar power in Australia has been around forever.

I may have mentioned it before but when my son was at uni his uni (UNSW) was in a joint venture with Pacific Power the largest electricity supplier in NSW and "supported" by the NSW and (I think) federal governments. The technology they were developing was acknowledged as among the best in the world. The NSW gov't undertook to set up solar arrays on all its gov't buildings but of course that never happened.

So eventually they pulled the funding and UNSW sold (or maybe leased) their patents to one of their engineers, Dr Shi Zhengrong who, with support from the Chinese gov't set up "Suntech', now the world's largest producer of solar panels and still a world leader in developing technology.

Yet another massive loss to Australian industry.

This is a little bit about Dr Shi  from Wiki. My son worked alongside him both before he finished uni and for nearly 2 years afterwards and has tremendous respect for him.

  Biography

Shi was born in Yangzhong, Jiangsu province, China. He finished his undergraduate study at Changchun University of Science and Technology in Changchun, and obtained his Master's degree from Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, the Chinese Academy of Sciences.[3] Afterward, Shi went to the University of NSW's School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering where he obtained his doctorate degree on solar power technology.[4]

He acquired Australian citizenship[5] and returned to China in 2001 to set up his solar power company - Suntech Power. According to Forbes Magazine, he is now one of the wealthiest people living in China, with a personal net worth of US$2.9 billion as of March 2008.[5]

Shi was elected Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering in 2009.

Personal life
Philanthropy

He has donated funds for renewable energy research to the University of NSW, Australia "because he felt it was not getting an appropriate level of government support", according to Australian Greens Senator Christine Milne.[6]   

[Dazzler]

Happens all too often Trev (thanks for that - interesting)

Great how he donated some to his old stamping ground 

[Phil №❶]

That's a shameful performance from the respective governments. Could they not see there was a possible buck in the concept, very shortsighted. 

[Surferdude]

That's a shameful performance from the respective governments. Could they not see there was a possible buck in the concept, very shortsighted. 

But unfortunately, pretty typical of Oz.

[Phil №❶]

Yes, same story for aircraft black boxes, which aren't black BTW. 

[Surferdude]

Our second power bill came today. I was a bit worried about how this one would pan out given the amount of virtually sunless (and rainy) days we've had in the last quarter, combined with lower generation due to less daylight hours as we moved into winter.

So, this bill is $116.59 .............................. Credit.

 

Gotta be happy with that. This quarter last year was $406, so a $522 turn around.

Latest power bill today. Now a total of $266 in credit. This latest gave us about $150.

Gotta love solar panels.

[Phil №❶]

Well, you are still paying them off, but that's certainly in the right direction. Don't forget, that days are getting longer and summer is coming, yay