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“Customers will still be able to purchase rooftop systems that don’t export to the grid but still offset a substantial part of their electric bill,” said Ian Morikawa, director of distributed energy resources programs for Hawaiian Electric.
http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/...solar.html
Is this still an option? I'd like to know what equipment they are using to not send power back to the grid. I suppose, you'd still need to get contractors to install it and apply for permits. Just curious, if anyone has any details about this. I suppose you could get a small battery from Tesla company (power wall), that could be used to fill in for cloudy days, night time use and a bit of backup power when the grid goes down. Better to store some power rather than just waste it all when not in use. Maybe you could plug in a neighbor's house... haha Right, j/k!
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Eric, I suspect they're isolating a portion of their customers' circuits and putting them on a battery-based system. So, for example, the kitchen and washer/dryer would be powered by off-grid solar while the rest of the house was on grid power.
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They have PV powered water heater systems.
I'm not sure what the advantage or disadvantages are over a traditional solar hot water system. I guess it would have advantages if its costly to re-route some of the plumbing for a traditional system but the up-front cost of the PV panels seems like it would be more expensive.
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may be off topic , but interesting power situation looming in Honolulu . The rail system that was forecast to cost 5.8 BILLION $ is now up to roughly 10 BILLION $ admitted by Mayor Caldwell , and this does not include the cost for energy infrastructure increase to run the system when completed . 20 miles of electric trains will take alot of "juice "
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You would think the governors train set would be solar powered, all train car roofs would be panels, but hey, that would be cheating them out of tax money!
Community begins with Aloha
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roughly 10 BILLION $ admitted by Mayor Caldwell
Media is already using the figure "$11B".
20 miles of electric trains
Assuming they build the full 20 miles. Caldwell wants to shorten to 15, but somehow it will still cost $11B (today's estimate).
and this does not include the cost for energy infrastructure
No problem, they'll just run a giant extension cord over to PGV. That way the trains will be "green".
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There's a great DIY book put out by long time Big Island resident Jonathan Cole called "LIght on Earth:The Solar Option" about home solar installation where he breaks it down to wire size for different size home power systems, how much electricity you need to run specific household sizes, how to modify your needs etc...
https://www.amazon.com/Light-Earth-Optio...1439258554
5 stars reviews, here is the first one:
"This book is not puffy theory but a hands-on, practical, understandable manual on all aspects of solar power, including installation. Every page benefits from the author's long experience creating and living with his own systems. Although it's aim is to help anyone and everyone to convert to renewable energy, even if you cannot make the leap to solar, the book can show you how to monitor your current electrical usage and make your home as efficient as possible. Beyond that, it's well illustrated and diagrammed, with an appendix full of web references as well as cost analyses and maintenance tips for solar systems."
He built a solar car with highschool kids in Ka'u in the 90's. Cool guy
Anyone with a high school diploma could understand how to interact with a solar power system with this book on hand.
