Our little friends boosting our electricity bills?

[smeejason]

They still sucked in a few people haha, was at a wedding awhile back and some guy was telling us about solar and how great it was, long story short it ended with you know the panels only last 10 years... That was the end of that.
10 years is **** all in my opinion especially for the price you pay.


What's the lifespan if the batteries ?

My last bill was $560 for the quarter and the last one before that was $1750.

I am a sparky and i work for the state power authority and i was SUCKED in......NOT.. i paid 5000 for 3kw system. My bills were just under $600 before solar and now are $40.. Rounding it down to $400 a quarter my $5000 investment will pay itself off in 3 and a bit years.. Now if my panels only last 10 i will make 1600 a year from them for the last 6 years.. damn they really saw me coming with this solar..
It is to late now in Qld as you only get 8cw/h a KW produced but i am signed up for 52c kw/h till 2025.
At the prices you can now get 3 or 5 kw systems you are made not to put one on even at 8c.
And trust me qlders despite what campbell says the qld system is not gold plated far from it. his sweeping "reforms" are set to save you .....wait for it ..........1cKw/h within the next 5 years...If it was gold plated i would expect a bit more saving for the millions i poored into committees and reports on the electricity industry. The problem in QLD is the generators and the distributer all pay 100's of millions of dollars in divedends to the state coffers and the goverment does not want to give that up so you get cheap power they just want a less reliable network..

 

[5potted]

Headed out to D*ck Smith the other day due to a larger than normal electricity bill and bought a Belkin Conserve Insight Energy-Use Monitor for $30. Go around and plug your appliances in and it will tell you the monthly and yearly consumption. I was blaming the cost on the reptiles but from the 7 enclosures all with globes, they are only consuming $300 worth a year. The computers however, by simply changing the settings to sleep after an hour rather than running 24/7 like we used to, will be saving over $200 a year... dont get me started about the 60" touch screen either!

 

[mikey_mike]

I cant believe no one has mentioned the possibility of insulating your enclosures. my heater was on less than 1/2 as much after I covered the melamine in insulative foam except for the ventilation holes of course. Since then Ive started to move North. No more heating for me.
the good news for southeners is that this week it was announced that the arctic permafrost is melting- massively accelerating climate change. all our models now look like underestimates. another decade or 2 and you 2 can switch off the heaters. yay!

 

[scorps]

The beauty of cairns, almost non of my animals have any heating right now

All goes off in summer and they normally become more active, eat heaps and breed every year

- - - Updated - - -

Oh but then again shouldn't be boasting, air cons are on a lot