Photo credit: Orin Optiglot
Utilities are now positioned to take on a much greater role in the production, sale, and delivery of new forms of grid energy, especially solar power. The feds may still be debating but many states have already implemented energy standards to speed up the transition from fossil-fueled energy, a transition for which utilities are largely responsible. Furthermore, under the revised, federal solar tax credits, utilities are now directly eligible for financial incentives.

Today the nation’s top 10 utilities hold 882 megawatts of solar capacity, with installations increasing by 25 percent in 2008. Still this is a miniscule sum when stacked next to a million-watt-capacity national electric grid, although utilities are ramping up production.

Southern California Edison, with enviable access to California’s Mojave Desert, tops the list for total capacity with over 441 megawatts — nearly doubling that of second-placer and northern California serving Pacific Gas & Electric. In total watts per customer, however, two small Bay Area utilities have a commanding lead: the San Francisco PUC with 4,739 watts and the Port of Oakland with over 3,414 watts.

After the two California frontrunners, both lists drop dramatically number-wise and jump around the nation a bit, although sticking fairly close to California, our nation’s solar energy hub. And that is a revealing statistic; evidence of our recent, state-reliant national energy plan (in other words, no national energy plan) and, to be fair, one of the most solar-friendly climates in the world. (more…)

Conserving energy at home is in many ways a nuts-and-bolts activity, meaning that every little step counts. As a result, being informed about your many electronic devices, from stereos to computers to electric cooktops, is vital to informed energy efficiency. Determining roughly how much electricity is actually fairly easy.

The amount of watts that an electronic device uses is typically printed on the device itself, either stamped on the back or bottom, or printed on a nameplate. If you cannot find the wattage of a specific device you can figure it by multiplying the drawn current (amperes) by the voltage. Most U.S. appliances use 120 volts, although dryers, stoves, and other large appliances often use 240 volt outlets. The amount of amps should be stamped on the device as well. Otherwise an ammeter, a common electrician’s tool that can read the current running through a wire, must be used.

The Department of Energy offers an extensive list of typical wattages for home appliances. You’ll notice that nearly all of them have a range of wattages rather than one set number. That is because the amount of watts being drawn often depends on the device’s setting (i.e., volume controls on a stereo). Note that the nameplate wattage listed on the device is a maximum, so your stereo will actually use less watts unless you have it turned up all the way.

Here are some of the highest electricity users among home appliances:

• Water heater (40 gallon): 4500-5500 Watts
• Clothes dryer: 1800-5000
• Dishwasher: 1200-2400 (heated drying greatly increases energy consumption)
• Vacuum cleaner: 1000-1440
• Hair dryer: 1200-1875
• Toaster oven: 1225
• Coffee maker: 900-1200
• Portable heater: 750-1500
• Clothes iron: 1000-1800
• Microwave: 750-1100
• Computer/laptop: 50
• Personal computer/monitor: 120/150 (asleep – 30)
• Radio: 70-400
• Refrigerator (frost-free, 16 cubic feet): 725
• TV (19″): 65-110
• TV (61″ projection): 170
• Toaster: 800-1400
• VCR/DVD player: 21/25

The water heater pretty much blows all others out of the water, hence the popularity and cost-effectiveness of solar water heaters. Others you might expect — the dishwasher, clothes dryer, and vacuum cleaner — all sap good amounts of electricity. There are some surprises, too. Take the hair dryer or the toaster oven, both using well over 1000 watts and nearly 2000 for the hair dryer. That is an awful lot of energy for such small devices. (more…)

Numbers in regard to solar panels, such as monthly savings, payback period, and others, depend on several factors. These include system size, placement in relation to the sun, location of your home, your energy lifestyle and local electricity costs, among others. The only true way to determine your specific monthly savings is to have a site analysis performed by a solar installer.

To get pricing on a solar system in your area, click here.

There are also several online calculators that can give you a ballpark idea of monthly and long-term savings. However, using some national averages, calculating the general difference in monthly electric bills incurred by an installed and functional solar PV system is actually quite easy.

Let’s say you live on the temperate Pacific Coast, which includes Washington, Oregon, and California. According to the Department of Energy, the average household in this area pays about $63 per month for electricity. These numbers are for 2002, however, so, assuming a 7% increase in costs per year, that would put the average electricity bill in this region at roughly $108 per month in 2008.

So, assuming a 3 kW system is installed and there are roughly 6 hours of sunlight per day, we can then calculate the system output at 18 kilowatt-hours per day. That translates into roughly 540 kWh per month. After adjusting that number for cloudy or rainy days (decreasing it by 20 percent), we get a more realistic output of 432 kWh per month for the PV system. (more…)