Not just about power

Our environment, the world in which we live and work, is a mirror of our attitudes and expectations.

- Earl Nightingale -

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I have solar arrays installed on two of my houses; my part of Australia delivers a lot of sun for much of the year so the panels are put to good use harnessing sunlight and the converted electricity feeds the power requirements of the houses. I still import power from the grid, the sun doesn't shine all the time, (there's no sun at night folks), but one day I'll spring for a battery system to capture energy for use at night and I'll be even less grid-dependent; not yet though.

I got the systems for a few reasons and no just about power; it was also about reducing cost which has worked out nicely considering the skyrocketing cost of electricity from the grid.

I also wanted to feel like I was doing something proactive for the environment although I'm not quite sure it works out quite as well as the governments and boffins around the place promote. I'm doing my bit though and when I'm not using the power my solar arrays produce it feeds back into the grid for use by others and it earns me credit with which I offset my electricity bills with.

I have live-time tracking (via a connected app) on what my systems are doing, meaning I can see in kilowatt hours (kWh) what each panel is producing, amount of power my houses draw from the grid and how much power (in kWh) my systems send back into the grid and (importantly) the power my houses are actually using in total; it's pretty cool. I can track years, months, weeks and days right down to hourly increments and pull out reports that can be drilled down upon.

Below are two screen captures from the app which compare October 2022 and October 2023 respectively for one of my solar arrays.

Interestingly the house this report pertains to has used almost the same amount of power over the October month in both years (127.8 and 127.0 kWh respectively), but energy production is up 127.9 kWh in 2023 which means I've imported less power from the grid, and exported more to the grid meaning additional savings on usage and greater credits for the power I've fed into the grid which all contributes to lessening my bills.

October 2022

October 2023

Grid dependence

Further to the reporting I've mentioned above I can load in tariffs (costs) I pay for power which will convert kilowatt hours to a dollar-value however due to the structure here (tariffs change depending on the time of day) I don't bother. What's more relevant is my reliance upon the grid and comparing October 2022 at 34% grid dependency to the 29% grid dependency of 2023 there's a 5% gain in overall efficiency over these two months year to year; obviously lower grid dependency is better for the environment and the better the savings are for me.

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I like nature and do what I can to help look after the environment. I don't pull horrific faces and do maniacal rants like that puppet Greta Thunderberg, but I care and do what I can to have a smaller footprint. Getting my solar arrays wasn't just about cheaper power, rebates and less dependence on the grid, it was also about feeling like I was making a contribution...even if it's a small, seemingly insignificant, one. I'm happy with the performance of my systems, the financial savings I make (which are significant) and with the benefit of feeling like I'm being kinder on the environment it's an all-round win and I think many small things done over and over by many people will amount to larger benefits.

Do you actively work towards being kinder on the environment and if so in what ways? Feel free to comment below and let me know how you find ways to be kinder on our planet: Waste reduction, recycling, repurposing, consuming less and so on; how do you reduce your footprint upon the environment?