We don't, but there is a house on our street with a solar panel roof. Thing with that, you can't directly use the power you generate. You have to sell it back to the power company and they in turn credit your next bill. Minus regulatory and administrative fees, of course. However, you can bypass the grid for the purpose of charging generator batteries. That was done so folks could keep the lights on in the event of a power outage.
So some are using that loophole to build carports with solar roofs to charge their EV's! As EV's become more popular however, I'm sure that loophole will be closed and the government will be taking their cut. Already happening in some states where there's a surcharge being added to EV registration to help recover lost gasoline taxes.
Oh...that's a rip off! imo
Our next door neighbour has had an 'entry-size' Solar-Voltaic system fitted a few months ago (£7000), about 8 large panels charging three 40amp 50volt lithium-ion batteries connected to a regulator-inverter which gives direct and immediate 240v power to her home, and as long as the batteries are fully charged it then diverts any extra to the national grid. We are allowed to have such systems here because our government seriously wants as many of us to be self-sufficient as possible.
If I walk to the cliff edge (100oyds) on a clear day I can see more giant wind generators than anywhere else in the World. 30 miles to the North I can see a huge windfarm on the Galloper sands (?) off Clacton, there is a 40 unit windfarm 5 miles directly offshore, I can see the vast Estuary windfarm to the North East (2nd largest in World, I think) and a Massive windfarm off the North Foreland.......... I don't believe there's anything quite as vast as that lot. And for all these (and other) UK windfarms, we are still not self sufficient....power cuts are expected at peak times in very cold weather.
We bought a small gasoline generator several years ago after an extended power outage. Told the wife if we get one, the power will never go out again and it hasn't! lol
There you go........ but if you hadn't........
We've really tried to reduce electricity usage because the cost is massive, now and will be rising again in October. I have boarded out our roof space to help the insulation layer further and increase storage space, we've taken out the large hot water tank and fitted a half-sized one (which is fine and saves loads), I have added a third glazing layer to our doubled glazed windows, isolater switches to groups of gear for fast cut-offs, and my wife's best idea was to buy new warm slippers and dressing gowns to wear when watching telly on cold nights, so warm that doze off all the time.
There's mnore but I must go............
