Three Years of Solar, No Sacrifices!

Yesterday marked our third "true-up" period with PG&E. That's three years of solar power, and it's time to pay PG&E for the last year of power consumption. We owe $68.00!! That's for the year, even less than the year before or before that. A long way from the $2600 per year we used to pay before solar! We don't do anything out of the ordinary except not use our clothes dryer or dishwasher during peak times in the summer. We do try to turn off lights that aren't needed. No real sacrificing to speak of, no maintenance of any kind, no having to think about it. Just clean, silent, pure power coming from our roof daily.

Last month we ordered our Nissan Leaf electric car and look forward to having our solar power system provide power for it next year. Normal driving patterns will require no sacrifice either with an electric car with 100 mile range. Solar power for the home and car isn't a far fetched concept or dream, it will soon be our reality. After rebates and incentives, both a residential solar power system and an electric car like the Nissan Leaf cost somewhere in the low $20,000 range each. Leasing can be an affordable option as well with both. These aren't technologies meant for the rich, they are well within the grasp of normal families.

The sun CAN power our transportation and living needs! We aim to keep proving it next year.

Driving with the Sun

Today we reserved a Nissan Leaf electric car for delivery by the end of the year, hopefully. Owning an electric car is one of the reasons we went solar in the first place. We hope to power our electric car like we do our electric boat, with the help of solar!

Solar power and electric vehicles(EV's) are truly a sustainable way to guarantee freedom of mobility without worrying about polluting, high fuel prices or high maintenance costs. Being green and self-sufficient is a good feeling--and that feeling will only get better when our solar system helps to provide up to 100 miles of clean driving pleasure in our Leaf.

Even if most of the EV charging is done at night during non-peak times, the solar system is still making an impact by keeping the electric consumption costs way down. Last year we only paid $159 for our power consumption. Adding an EV should cost no more than $2.75 for a full charge. If charged during daylight hours, it could be free with our PV array providing the charging power, assuming a sunny day.

Imagine, no need to send money to the middle east for dirty, depleting fossil fuel. No more gas stations, oil changes, tune ups, smog checks, oil leaks, no tailpipe! Solar power proves that the cost of freedom doesn't require wars over oil or unhealthy air from coal or oil--lives saved, a good feeling indeed.