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11 Tips for Keeping Your Electricity Usage Low During Quarantine

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11 Tips for Keeping Your Electric Usage Low During Quarantine

And just like that, everything changed. The Coronavirus pandemic has caused significant upheaval in people’s lives and now that people are home, they are consuming much more energy than normal.

Whether you have a solar system or not, we want to help ease the financial strain that increased energy consumption and higher electric bills can put on your already strained finances.

Here are our top tips for keeping your electricity usage low during quarantine:

  • Unplug Appliances You Aren't Using

    The crock-pot on the counter… the hair dryer… the TV in the guest room… It’s shocking how much plugged-in appliances still draw! You can save $100-$200 a year by unplugging any appliances and devices you don’t use constantly. This also protects them from power surges.

  • Install a Programmable Thermostat

    Your home’s biggest energy use comes from heating and cooling and now that summer’s ramping up in Texas, you may be facing a hefty cooling bill in the coming months. Instead of manually turning the thermostat down, install a programmable thermostat. Set it to a comfortable yet cost-effective temperature, and let the thermostat make the changes automatically.  

  • Add Insulation to Help Maintain a Consistent Indoor Temperature

    If you’ve ever been inside a traditional adobe home, you know how deliciously comfortable it is even in 100-degree temperatures. Unfortunately, most “stick-built” modern homes don’t have nearly enough insulation to be truly energy-efficient. Even though it’s a big project, consider adding insulation, particularly on the south and west sides of your home, that heat up the most.

  • Replace Filters Regularly to Reduce the Strain on Your Heating and Cooling Systems.

    Dust, lint, pollen, and pet hair can clog the filter which will cause the system to run longer than it needs to. 

  • Use Shade Effectively

    Install sun-blocking drapes, screens, or blinds on the east, south, and west sides of the home to minimize passive solar heat gain.

  • Lower the Temperature on Your Water Heater

    Unless you have an on-demand (tankless) hot water heater, a hot water tank has to run pretty consistently to heat and maintain hot water for your shower, sinks, dishwasher, and washing machine. The ideal temperature for a hot water heater is 120 degrees F; anything hotter than that requires significantly more energy to maintain.

  • Wash Clothes in Cold Water

    ...and consider drying clothes outside just like grandma used to do. Your clothes will still be clean, and you’ll put a big dent in your energy consumption.

  • Use Appliances Strategically

    For example, instead of doing one load of laundry every couple of days, do several large loads of laundry in one day; and fully load the dishwasher before turning it on.  

  • Seal Your Windows

    Whether you’re trying to keep your house warm in winter or cool in summer, a lot of air moves in and out of windows. Caulk, weatherstrip, and seal windows and doors to maintain a more consistent indoor temperature.

  • Plant Trees

    If you have a single-family home and you have the space, consider planting trees on the south side of the home to provide shade and lower your cooling bills (and help the environment at the same time).

  • Use Energy-Efficient Light Bulbs

    LED bulbs use less energy than halogen or incandescent bulbs. If you’re worried about blue light interfering with your sleep since LEDs do give off more blue light, opt for energy-efficient blue-light-free bulbs (available online).

We all hope that life can go back to normal soon; but in the meantime, taking stock of your energy consumption and making a few adjustments can help you save money now, as well as in the future.  

Interested in lowering your energy bills even more by going solar? Get started below! Enter your zip code and take our 60 second solar roof survey to receive a free custom solar proposal for your home!

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How to Choose a Solar Backup Battery for Your Home

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Everything You Need to Know About Batteries for Your Solar System

Solar systems help take a lot of the strain off the grid, especially now that many people are working from home. But are you prepared for a power outage on days your system isn’t producing electricity? A good back-up battery can mean the difference between being in the dark and being the only home in the neighborhood with wifi and a coffee maker! Here’s everything you need to know about batteries for your solar system.

Adding a backup battery to your solar system means your battery gets charged by the power your system generates, and you don’t have to rely on the grid to charge the battery. Whether you already have a solar system in place or are considering one, be sure to factor in the benefits of a backup battery, especially now that technological advances are making them more efficient and more cost-effective. 

How Does a Backup Battery Work?

The power from your solar panels powers your household’s energy needs, and any excess is diverted to the grid. At night or on cloudy days, when your system isn’t generating power, you draw power from the grid just like everyone else. If your excess energy is part of a net metering program, this can mean paying next to nothing for electricity, especially if your consumption is outweighed by your production.

A battery lets you “keep” the power you generate by storing it for use when your solar system isn’t generating power: evenings, stormy days, or in the case of power outages or rolling blackouts due to overwhelming demand. Even when your solar panels are generating electricity, if you’re tied to the grid and don’t have a backup battery, you will still lose power. 

The trade-off with a battery that is tied to your solar system is that you won’t send as much energy back to the grid (to take advantage of net metering) but you will be guaranteed electricity in any situation. 

How to Choose a Backup Battery 

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution to home backup batteries. Here’s what to look for, so that you get the best backup for your needs.

Charging Options

The first choice to make is whether you want a battery that’s tied exclusively to your solar system, or one that can also be charged on the grid. If your system generates a lot more power than you actually need during the day, you may want to install a backup that relies exclusively on your solar system; but be aware that if the system isn’t generating power and your backup is running low, you won’t be able to charge it.

Battery Capacity and Power

The next consideration is the capacity and power output of your battery. The total amount of electricity a battery can store is measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh). In most cases, you can “stack” two or more batteries to increase your storage capacity. However, capacity doesn’t always correlate to how much electricity a battery is capable of providing. For example, a high-capacity battery with a low power rating will let you run a few key appliances for a long time, but it won’t power the whole house. A low-capacity battery with a high power rating gives you enough power to run the entire household, but only for a very limited time. 

Depth of Discharge

Current technology limits the actual usable energy that you can access from a backup battery. Batteries need to retain some percentage of their charge; completely discharging them significantly shortens their lifespans. The depth of discharge (DoD) refers to the maximum amount of a battery’s power that you can use to keep it running optimally. A higher DoD means you can access more of your battery’s capacity: for example, a 10 kWh battery with a 90 percent DoD means you shouldn’t use more than 9 kWh of its capacity before charging it.

Technology

The third consideration is choosing the type of battery: lithium-ion or lead-acid batteries. A few developing technologies are also in the mix (zinc-air and flow); but currently, the best-rated batteries are lithium-ion.

Lithium-ion batteries are recommended because they last a long time, and a high DoD. This makes lithium-ion batteries the best choice if you’re not sure when you’ll be able to charge your battery next, such as emergencies.

Lead-acid batteries are the type that power vehicles. They are often less expensive upfront, but come with significant drawbacks including a shorter lifespan, lower DoD, and more maintenance requirements. 

The Best Residential Solar Backup Batteries

When purchasing a backup battery, make sure it’s compatible with your solar system. Many of today’s best batteries are “smart” in that you can view their status on an app, and some are controllable via a smartphone.

Here are two great systems to consider:

RESU10H by LG Chem

A 9.8 kWh battery that can be piggybacked with another battery for up to 19.6 kWh of storage. This battery comes with a 10 year warranty, gives you installation options for various parts of the home, and it is readily available. The cost does not include installation, and you may also need to purchase a dedicated battery inverter.

Powerwall by Tesla

Synonymous with cutting-edge technology, Tesla has developed a 13.5 kWh battery which can be stacked up to 10 deep, which is perfect for larger or higher-consumption homes. This battery must be installed by a Tesla-certified installer or directly by Tesla technicians. It also features a 10-year warranty, as well as a built-in inverter. 

Installation Tips

We recommend having your backup battery professionally installed so that it integrates flawlessly into your solar system and that the installation meets local codes. 

Disaster preparedness is always a good idea, especially if you work from home. A backup battery gives you the peace of mind knowing you’ll always have electricity! Through the end of April, we are offering a 10% discount on battery backup systems, and you may also be able to take advantage of loans and tax incentives. Give our experts a call and discover how you can tie a backup battery to your solar system!

Already have solar installed and just want to find out more about batter backup systems? Get a battery back up quote here.

Need more info on installing a solar system combined with a battery back up? Get started below!

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Hybrid Renewable Energy

The Power of Hybrid Renewable Energy: Wind and Solar

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The energy consumption of the world is rising at a rapid rate. As more countries like China and India experience steady economic growth, the need for energy will skyrocket.

Renewable energy is the only hope to keep up with the rising demands while maintaining a livable planet. In 2017, renewable energy sources accounted for only 11% of the total US energy consumption. So there is still a lot of room for energy consumption improvements.

The most prominent renewable energy sources like solar and wind are still facing challenges in terms of adoption. However, combining the two sources can provide better results in terms of both efficiency and cost savings.

What’s Stopping Solar and Wind from Taking Over

As a renewable energy source, solar and wind have their own limitations.

Solar requires the presence of the sun. However, sunlight isn’t available during the night or cloud-covered days. Furthermore, the length of sunlight time can significantly differ from location to location.

On the other hand, wind power has a similar source problem. Generally, the wind is stronger during the night. But there’s no guarantee that there will be enough wind at any given time to support power-generation tasks.

So, it means that users have to find ways to circumvent the wind and solar problems.

Solar Energy Has Been Making Progress

Even with the limitations of the sun as the source, solar energy technology has been steadily improving.

The competitive marketplace has inspired manufacturers to improve their solar panels dramatically while decreasing costs. Photovoltaic (PV) cells are becoming more efficient.

Nanomaterials are helping confine more power into smaller areas. It is raising the production capabilities of solar panels

Furthermore, new solar panels are becoming more aesthetically pleasing by offering environmental camouflage. These panels can blend into the environment, so they don’t stand out and destroy the look and feel of a particular area.

Also, scientists are looking for ways to make PV cells more eco-friendly through the use of materials that are abundant in nature. It will further bring the cost down of solar energy cells while increasing product quality.

Wind Power Has Been Making Waves Too

Wind power gets much less attention compared to solar. But it also has been making great strides. Researchers are using the power of bigger and taller turbines to produce more.

The larger turbine and taller stature are allowing wind power systems to use bigger blades which are resulting in more energy production.

Benefits of Combining Wind and Solar

Today entrepreneurs are trying to figure out how they can combine wind and solar energy to create more robust systems. It can increase reliability while decreasing risks.

Here are some benefits of combining the two:

More Energy Production

Solar and wind produce peak power at different times. Solar is most effective when the sun is out. Wind works well during the night. So any solution that combines both solar and wind essentially increases the amount of energy we can produce.

Businesses and homes can store extra energy on batteries. More energy creates a safety net for everyone involved.

Efficient Battery Use

Batteries used to store energy are quite expensive. When wind or solar energy is not being produced, users draw energy from the batteries.

However, if wind and solar are combined, it decreases the amount of time that energy production is at a standstill. So there is less need for power storage on batteries.

Effective Use of Resources

Setting up solar and wind requires physical real-estate. You need a rooftop or land to install PV panels and turbines.

As real estate is expensive, the use of both solar and wind in the same space means less wastage. By combining solar and wind, you are using the space more effectively.

Lower Costs

The solar and wind hybrid systems increase power production, decrease battery and real estate use. All these together effectively decrease the price of operating your renewable energy installation.

Real-World Large-Scale Examples of Hybrid Wind and Solar Energy

There are already lots of large scale hybrid installations of solar and wind.

Here are a few examples:

Gullen Farm: In Australia, Gullen Solar Farm and Gullen Wind Farm are colocated. The location has 42,000 solar panels and 73 wind turbines. The solar panels produce around 22,000 megawatt-hours of energy that can support 31,000 homes while the wind turbines can produce 165.5MW  energy to support 70,000 homes.

India’s First Large-Scale Solar and Wind Energy Project: India’s energy firm Hero Future Energies have completed their first hybrid system. It can produce 28.8MW from PV and 50MW from the wind farm. The site is located in a rural area of Karnataka where there is a lot of land available.

Concerns about Combining Wind and Solar

A big concern with putting wind and solar technology together was that the shades from the wind turbines would interfere with the efficiency of the solar panels.

However, according to a study by the Reiner Lemoine Institut and Solarpraxis AG, combining the wind and solar doubles power production while the shading losses from wind turbines are only 1% to 2%.

Should Home Owners Consider Wind and Solar Hybrid?

For homeowners, a hybrid wind and solar solution can provide reliability and stability. Especially, if your system is off the grid, you don’t have the luxury of getting power from an energy company.

Hybrid wind and solar solutions mean the probability of total powerlessness is less. You can sustain longer bouts of no power source scenarios.

In terms of expenses, solar and turbine technologies differ significantly between manufacturers and brands. So you’ll have to do some calculations on your own.

Look at the costs of the panels, turbines, and installations. Then, figure out how much power the installation will produce. Also, remember that you might be eligible for Federal Tax Credit.

Once you have all of the numbers, use them to find out your return on investment (ROI). Make your decision based on the ROI.

Wind and solar energy complement each other. They help you save money while helping the environment. If you are interested to find out more, contact us today!

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