Anybody Else Frustrated By Solar Electric

[Metamorphic]

I'm seeing more and more of them so there's obviously market interest. They will obviously lower your electric bill by an amount that's not insignificant. The will obviously keep your beer cold when the power goes out. All the hybrid cars that sold before gas prices spiked and made them economical suggests that there's a segment of the market willing to pay extra to be "green" even when it costs them money out of pocket that they'll never get back. There's lots of government money out there for buying and installing them. Given the state of energy issues the financial up sides should only get better. So why, no matter how I approach the problem, can I not detect a market reaction to them? It should be there. You can see market preference between adjacent Tuscan McMansion tracts that look equally miserable to my eye, you can show the price of a pool. Why cant you see a solar system that has a build-cost equivalent to a pool.
:new_cussing:

 

[Frederick]

Same here. You would think that there would be a market reaction relative to the capitalized energy savings per period however I have never seen that. It appears to simply be a superadequacy.

 

[Bearslide]

Ditto here. I have not been able to prove any additional value for them. So far, "green" is not translating into market dollars that I can see. Same thing with geothermal heating - costs a small fortune to install, but homes that have it don't seem to command a premium.

 

[Ray Miller]

I don’t think we will see a market reaction for some time yet where people will be paying a perineum for them.

In a since we may be seeing a market reaction as they are being accepted as conventional sources of electric and heat and the buyers are not putting a penalty on them for the up keep and maintenance of having one. Or they are not willing to pay for the additional investment, but are will willing to accept them as normal home when buying.

I think it will be the same for the total “Green Home” it will be some time yet. At present they are being accepted as standard models.

 

[Michigander]

I don’t think we will see a market reaction for some time yet where people will be paying a perineum for them.

In a since we may be seeing a market reaction as they are being accepted as conventional sources of electric and heat and the buyers are not putting a penalty on them for the up keep and maintenance of having one. Or they are not willing to pay for the additional investment, but are will willing to accept them as normal home when buying.

I think it will be the same for the total “Green Home” it will be some time yet. At present they are being accepted as standard models.

Oh man Ray, this is a classic! Perineum??? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perineum

 

[Lloyd Bonafide]

How about because no one knows exactly how long the new systems will last, and when they do need to be replaced, how much is that going to cost the homeowner?

 

[Ray Miller]

Oh man Ray, this is a classic! Perineum??? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perineum

Teach me not to proof read and use spell check. But yet I still might be right. So much for short fast answers.

Now I got to go pick up my keys for the Meat N Taters building so I can give the interior a good bath and new coat of paint. Just runing a week behind in getting it open. The rest of you have fun with this. You just never no.

By the way; That is not what us ole cowboys call the area in question, but can't post it on this forum.

 

[Caterina Platt]

How about because no one knows exactly how long the new systems will last, and when they do need to be replaced, how much is that going to cost the homeowner?

I think you're onto something there. Some of us are old enough to remember the last cycle of this fun. (granted, I wasn't appraising as a freshman in college, but...) First Reagan administration, solar energy credits, solar heat and hot water systems sold like hot cakes here, and then the tax credit vaporized and so did the businesses that installed and maintained the systems.

The federal tax credits are currently set to expire soon unless congress quits arguing over where to drum up the revenue lost by the credits. I've got a few suggestions for them. Cut expenses.

 

[Randolph Kinney]

Actually, there are two problems with solar electric.

1) The pay back period is so long that the home owner will move before he realizes any return on investment.

2) Solar cells last for about 20 to 25 years if all goes well.

 

[George Hatch]

Home buyers (office buyers, too) are obviously not yet sufficiently fearful of running out of cheap electricity or parboiling our oceans.

My oldest son works in the solar field and says that new solar panel materials are coming that will greatly reduce installation and conversion costs. I think it might take a combination of reducing the costs and dialing up the fear factor to make LEEDs and solar pay off.