The Solar Year

Yesterday marked the first anniversary of our solar panel installation. 

Our 2.7kW array produced 4024 kW of electricity in one year.  In that time, we drew 3060 kW from the grid.  We produced at least 57% of our electrical needs.  A bit more than the solar installer predicted.

We can make the most of that production by tweaking:

• Go after phantom electrical loads.  We did some of this, but there are little electronic devices around the house that still slurp electricity.
• Finish changing out CFL lightbulbs.  We’re about 70% there.  The hard-to-reach ones in ceiling & hall fixtures are waiting their turn.   
• Put the fax machine on a timer. We run a biz from our home, and leave that machine on 24/7.  I used to turn the fax off at night, but usually forgot to turn it on in the morning…
• Use our “Kill-A-Watt” meter to learn how much power things use, like the obnoxious central vacuum.  

 We could get real serious about this, too:

• Empty the chest freezer that stores forgotten food. 
• Dry clothes without the dryer.  We enclosed part of our west-facing deck.  It has a slate tile floor, perfect for drying…if I remember to get clothes out there during the day.  If I remember to do laundry during the day. 
• Update our 1995 fridge.  Which I still love.
• The hot water heater is due for replacement.  Tankless?  Standard high-efficiency?  Solar thermal?  (There’s some southwest roof just waiting for flat-plate collectors….)
• I’ve been dreaming of an automated smart-house system that could program outlets throughout the house from my computer.  I could set time ranges on outlets we only use during day hours, and zap more phantom load.  Technology is available, but expensive –- intended for high-end home theater and security systems.   
• Finish installing window coverings that insulate.  We installed plantation shutters upstairs to block out cold and heat, but I’m stumped about what to do with the oversized living/dining room windows, which came with useless mini-blinds.  At nighttime during the coldest months, we close the decorative velvet curtains that came with the house. 
• Have our insulation levels checked & increased.  I also dream of an infrared photo of my house, taken on a bitter January night, which shows me where the heat leakage is.  I would frame it, and put it on the mantle. 
• Hook a couple old bicycles to a generator and make the kids pedal if they want to watch TV.  Well, ok, that should probably be for me. 

 The quilt, called “Sun Dance” is by Catherine Kleeman.