Plant | Grow | Enjoy
Monday’s blue skies and cool temperatures resulted in our best energy production yet for 2023! Total solar energy production for the day was 42.7 kWh Out of that amount, nearly half (20 kWh) was sent to the grid. With net metering, those excess kilowatt… Continue Reading “First Day of Spring Delivers Highest Solar Production of 2023”
March has brought a continuation of February’s mild weather in western Pennsylvania, along with more daylight hours, where the sun is ‘riding higher’ in the sky. These factors have all contributed to increased rooftop solar energy production, as we exit the ‘dark days’ of… Continue Reading “Sunnier Days are here Again!”
Monthly savings of over $67 The latest GM monthly report on our 2019 Chevy Bolt indicates a 98 miles-per-gallon-equivalent over 741 miles of winter driving in February. Winter driving consumes more energy in the Bolt due to its use of resistance electricity to maintain… Continue Reading “Bolt Report – March 2023”
Those of us in Pennsylvania are fortunate to have the ability to sell the energy credits (SRECs) created by our solar panels. A Solar Renewable Energy Credit (SREC) adds value beyond the electricity savings you get from a solar system. You automatically earn them when… Continue Reading “30 Puts Us Over 1 Thousand Dollars”
‘Community solar is about to explode’ in Illinois Nara Schoenberg wrote a story in the Chicago Tribune on October 31, 2022, “A way to get solar energy — no rooftop panels required — is making headway in Illinois: ‘Community solar is about to explode’… Continue Reading “No Room on your Roof? Try Community Solar!”
While that sounds good, especially with heavy air conditioning use during humid 90-degree weather, it’s even better than that! We were finally able to do a full 12-month “look back” at our cost savings with solar energy, since upping our game to 29 solar… Continue Reading “Five Dollar Electric Bill”
When we added the first eleven solar panels to our roof three years ago, we also added a Tesla Powerwall 2 (lithium- ion) backup battery (rated at 14 kWh) to the mix. The greatest advantage to me, is the ability of our house to… Continue Reading “Household Battery Backup”
It’s hard to believe that you can get a sunburn on a cloudy day, even though it’s true. Even harder to believe, is that you can produce solar energy on a rainy morning, but that’s also true! That’s right, even though it rained all… Continue Reading “Solar Energy In The Rain”
When we first landscaped our house, nearly 40 years ago, we made sure to plant a large growing Maple on the west side. That planting location came very close to the concept of planting a large deciduous tree on the southwest side of a… Continue Reading “Going Solar With Large Trees”
After two terrible months for rooftop solar energy production, it was great to see a $7.29 electric bill for March. On top of frequent and persistent snowfalls keeping our front 18 solar panels covered with snow for the first two months of 2021, solar… Continue Reading “March Gladness”