Bashing solar panel owners again for higher electricity prices

[David - coona]

Gas is the same. Aussies are paying more for gas than the Japanese pay for our gas. That is including liquidation and transportation. ***, sorry for the language, gets the blood boiling, considering that for our gas exports we are getting about 800 mill, whereas Qatar is getting about 25 Bill for the same qty exported. Thanks govts of all colours!

 

[Ash]

And we can't get energy smart enough to outdo the energy companies who are always one step ahead. With all the LED lighting, solar hot water and battery technology we can barely bring down the overall cost of electricity use since prices go up whilst returns for solar energy go down. As much as it's foreseeable, I'd be surprised if the government backs down on its past agreements with those who invested into it early on.

 

[Mark]

That's right! Appliances etc are now power friendly eg TVs cost 1/4 to run than what they used to yet our electricity bills are going up and up!

I have a gut feeling something is going to break soon (like the economy) if we don't get the rising cost of living under control...

 

[Berkeloid]

I think interesting times are certainly coming as far as generating your own power goes. There have recently been developments in printable solar cells, the Japanese have developed the world's most efficient solar cell at 26% efficiency, and some progress is being made with solar hydrogen production, where the sun splits water into hydrogen which you can then burn for heat, put through a fuel cell to generate electricity, or put in your hydrogen-powered car.

Granted these are all still a few years off but I'm sure it will only become cheaper and easier to go off grid entirely and become self-sufficient in yet another area. I can't wait for that one!

Which reminds me. A few years ago I heard about solar panel developments where they were using mirrors to focus more of the sun's energy onto existing solar panels, and they were getting more power out of them as the result was brighter sunlight hitting each panel. Has anyone with solar panels ever tried setting up some mirrors to focus more sunlight onto their panels to see whether it makes them produce any more power?

 

[Ash]

I believe solar farms are already using mirrors to direct light towards the panels to maximise efficiency. Technology continues to improve, and it is continually inspiring, though I'm not convinced it will be to benefit the end customer, probably just the environment and power companies. Well, two out of three aint bad...

 

[Berkeloid]

Here's one I found amusing in the US: To save money, Kentucky Coal Museum turns to solar panels. There is some irony when even a place dedicated to coal decides to go solar!