Carroll County Times Articles
Simple Tasks Can Help Save Money On Electric Bills (Part II)
by Mark Kaidy - August 12 2007
In part one of this series we covered low cost ways of saving on your electricity bill. These included replacing incandescent light bulbs and installing a Power Factor Correction device on motor type loads. Now in this final part, we shall examine higher-cost investments and what those investments might return.
To reduce heating and A/C consumption, install insulation, properly seal windows, and use fans, which cool very nicely. Of course these ideas are not very new or original but they are valued and I strongly recommend them. For heating, there are wood/pellet stoves, and solar water heating units you can install. For cooling, solar chimney ventilation is very efficient. For a $3000-$5000 investment you could save 50% of your heating OR cooling bill.
On the electricity production side you can purchase a wind mill for $5000-$10000 but you must live in a place (note: most of Carroll County is not the place) where the wind blows enough to generate electricity. If you do, then you could be close to getting even with your power company; i.e. zero electric bill! Wind is currently the best investment for those who want to reduce their electricity bill significantly while getting a positive return on the investment in their lifetime.
In Carroll County the sun shines more than the wind blows so solar panels may be an option but they require a very large investment. How large? For a house with a $275 electric bill that consumes 2500 Kwhr per month, a solar panel system investment of $100,000 to $200,000 would be required to produce that much power per month.
There are a few thousand in grants and tax credits for some of the items I mentioned above but not a great deal. There are also special home loan programs available so instead of paying the power company every month, you'll pay a bank and receive a tax deduction. For businesses, the energy game is slightly different and perhaps more attractive from a tax advantage side, due to the economies of scale.
A final word about "net metering" which we have in Maryland: It works like this, you pay for electricity at $0.11 a Kwhr and the power company credits you $0.08 a Kwhr for the electricity it has to "buy back". You lose $0.03 a Kwhr (roughly 30%) because part of the $0.11 per Kwhr we pay is itemized as a "distribution" charge. But after the shock, after the frustration, don't get mad, get even. Look for ways to get even by reducing your electricity bill for the long term and let some other guy pay the rates the power companies are charging.
About the Author
Mark Kaidy is founder and president of US Power International and a member of the Carroll Technology Council. He is an expert in the field of alternative energy products and solutions. Questions are welcome and may be addressed in future articles. Email mail@carrolltechcouncil.org or go to www.carrolltechcouncil.org to learn more.
