Mayor4Unley

Recently I had a solar system installed. The cost of electricity just keeps on going up; so it was time. I did the sums and payback will be 4-5 years; maybe less with future higher electricity cost (especially in SA). Choosing the vendor and installer was pursued over 2 weeks. I listened to the lies and fantasy forecasts and then made a decision on who I felt was best; and then negotiated a bit of a discount. I had my heart set on also installing a battery system eg. the Tesla 6.4kWh battery. No matter the brand, a battery just does not make financial sense; not yet. In the case of the Tesla, it would have cost ~ $10k with a warranty and effective life of 10 years and only provided $6k savings ie. over 10 years I would have lost $4k and the batteries would need to be replaced to give another 10 years life. The cost of batteries is reducing by 14% pa so by my reckoning, adding a battery (with more capacity) will be a better financial proposition in about 3 years. If you want...

Here's a great photo from the bush. Just love it! A clash of old and new power saving technologies, The windmill is iconic Australia. Solar panels are delivering extra power, especially to the rural areas. At Unley, in the Village Green, there is an old windmill; a relic from a bygone era when the area was primarily agricultural. One of my pet projects and desires is to restore the windmill and install an underground tank to be used to simulate pumping water. There needs to be a bit of controlled leakage just like with real windmills in the bush. Solar panels on the nearby Council building would power the pump and help to turn the windmill blades.At night, soft LED lights would highlight the feature. It would be a magnificent working art feature. Before I leave Council, I want to see this happen. I had better start working on it soon ;))

Good news about Origin Energy partnering with solar power company Natural Solar and reselling Tesla Energy’s Powerwall to the Australian market. This is a state-of-the-art Li-Ion battery system that will provide electricity off the grid and be available in case of a mains power outage. It's time I started thinking about a solar system. Read the story