Biden’s Plan for Solar Power: What Could Go Wrong? October 20, 2009
Posted by geoff in News.trackback
Our Vice President pitched his plan for getting us all using solar power. He’s going to government-finance the installation of the panels to remove the upfront costs, and you’ll just pay it off over 20 years via your property taxes:
The solar financing plan that originated in Berkeley in 2007 will become a national model, Vice President Joe Biden said Monday.Biden’s program, known as Recovery Through Retrofit, creates a framework for cities, counties and states to set up tax districts that allow residential and business property owners to install solar panels and make other energy improvements, repaying the investment over a 20-year property tax assessment.
Doesn’t sound too bad – I mean, he’s just expanding a proven program, isn’t he?
Errrr….not so much:
Berkeley launched its plan last year with 40 homeowners. Of those, two dropped out and 38 have completed or nearly completed solar panel installation, according to the city’s energy department.
That’s nice. We’re going to launch a national initiative based on only one year’s experience gained with only 38 homes.
Oh dear.
We’re going to launch a national initiative based on only one year’s experience gained with only 38 homes….in BERKELY!!!11onezy!!
Wayda bury the lede, graph-boy.
Yeah, Berkeley. But I think another missed point is this one:
Nearly break even? After all the rebates, tax breaks, and now gov’t-financing?
I’m a fan of solar energy, and think it’s going to be the key player in meeting our future energy needs. But the economic case has always been very weak, and will remain that way until solar panel costs drop by ~3X. Pushing for widespread solar installation before the market is ready is inefficient, and will probably inhibit the introduction of newer technologies.
“We’re going to launch a national initiative based on only one year’s experience gained with only 38 homes”
Sadly, that would be a record for this administration.
My old townhouse had those solar panels and they were supposed to heat the water. They were crap. I had them disconnected and bought a gas water heater and then, ahhh, hot showers.
We know several people with disconnected, unused solar panels uglying up their roofs.
Doesn’t seem to work so well, around here at least.
These didn’t work is southern California!
Rather, “in” southern California.
I think you have to have sunlight.
If there is sunlight, solar energy can cook a pie.
No pie if it’s cloudy.
*trying to help Dave understand*
we can put solar panels IN SPACE and then this administration can call it CZAR TREK
^Now that right there is funny!
There are a few websites that list the usable hours of sunlight for each US city. Cincinnati’s off grid number is 3.5 hours. So if you want a 10kWatt system, you take (10/(3.5/24))/% overcast days and you get something like I would need an extra 3 or 4 roofs.
And you got to get up on the roof like 6 times a year to wash the things since the wife isn’t going to do it.
Well if there is no sun its always good to have a back up plan. The houses I see on extreme home make over, where they use other alternative energy sources always just use these to “help” out on the energy bill not be the soul source for energy. Also you can’t just use blanket technology. Everyone knows in some places say Seattle, WA where it rains 350 days out of the year will not benefit from solar panels. I think this is a state issue and the fed government needs to step aside. I don’t understand why they can hand out suggestions and then step back. I mean that’s the way the real world works. Minds get together and brainstorm ideas. It would be awesome if the politicians started acting like real people instead of dictators.
i thought if we generated more power than we used, it went back to the power grid (run the meter backwards) and we could get paid for it. thought that alone would create a market for homeowner solar and wind generators? what happened?
I hear coal works fine for electricity generation.
And it’s cheap.
And it’s cheap.
And plentiful. Almost like God put fossil fuels here on purpose.
Dang, it sure would be a shame if all those dinosaurs died for nothing.