Homeowners Break Even On Energy Bills

Interest in solar-powered homes is soaring as fast as energy prices and concerns about global warming, officials said.

Madison residents Joan Deming and Don Schultz said the main thing that attracted them to their East Side home were the solar panels on the roof, WISC-TV reported.

"It fits with our values," said Deming. "We have resources that we can use carefully to do things that we think are important. We try to give to things we think are valuable and this is one of the things we can give to the earth."

The house was built in the 1970s when solar technology was in its infancy.
"Solar panels covered most of the roof," said Deming. "They'd been up here for 15 years at that point. The seals were broken so they were clouded over. They leaked into the house."

So, the couple upgraded the panels when they remodeled.

"This is a 3,200-watt solar system, solar electric," said Steve Tweed with Wisconsin Power Control. "Two panel arrays, two eight-section arrays going down to a 3,800-watt inverter in the garage so they're making about 3,800 kilowatt hours per year."

"It's funny, the moment it went online we started going in the house and turning off switches and looking for more things that we could save with changing even more light bulbs than we had before because now we were spending our electricity that we were making," said Deming.

The pair said the energy savings has been significant, but not dramatic. Right now, they said they are breaking even.

They pay 9 cents for every kilowatt hour and that's also what they get back from MG&E, WISC-TV reported.

"There will be a payback and depending on what rate of payback we get for the electricity we feed back into the grid, it will be longer or shorter," said Schultz. "But as Joan said, that was not the primary reason. It wasn't to save money; it was to help save the Earth."

Deming and Schultz said tthat hey've saved close to 6,000 pounds of carbon dioxide since going online.

"The solar system can go on any structure that can support it, a house, shed, barn," said Tweed. "We can put it on a pole. We can put it on the ground. We can put it anywhere that can support the panel. It doesn't have to be on a home structure."

"So basically, there are no excuses," said Deming. "There are no excuses not to do it unless you live somewhere where the trees are 80 feet tall and they surround you. Shade is the enemy. Shade is the enemy."

For some, the downside is the cost. Even with rebates and tax incentives, going solar costs around $20,000.

With that in mind, MG&E has filed with the public service commission to increase the buy-back rate three times higher than what they're paying now, WISC-TV reported.

Energy experts said power companies are willing to pay the rate because solar homes produce the most power on hot, sunny afternoons when everyone else is turning up the air conditioner, which helps MG&E lower usage at peak power times.

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