My Take: Benefits of going green are real, save you money
A few weeks ago, I wrote a column attempting to dispel the “range anxiety” myth pertaining to electric vehicles. In addition to the EVs, we have also done myriad other things to attempt to lower our carbon footprints. Super insulation of our attic, new dual pane argon-filled windows, a heat pump, etc. One of the larger expenses has been the addition of solar panels on our home. Please allow me to give some “numbers” that we have gleaned after our third year of solar panel utilization.
Our total system was around $12,500, installed. We had just had a new asphalt shingle roof installed due to the condition of our previous roof, so I don’t include that. Was due for renewal anyway. We did need to spend roughly $1,200 to update our now 65-year-old home’s electrical system. For both, the panels and our EV charging station.
We have 12 solar panels mounted on the back, south side, of our ranch home. They are not visible from the street. My wife preferred that. At that time, not now, we got a 30% tax credit, not write off, for the system. That was very, very nice. So far, we have produced over 13mw of electricity with our system. The BPW is a very low cost producer and supplier of juice. We are very fortunate in Holland to have them.
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The figure I use to figure out the amount produced is probably very conservative. My rough calculation is that we will have produced $1,500 of juice in the three years that we have had our panels. Roughly $500 a year, mostly summer, of course. Our system is supposed to last for 25 years. Five hundred dollars a year for 25 years should be around $12,500, which is what we basically paid.
So apparently my system, on a microeconomic level, will pay for itself. Quite honestly, that never really mattered to us. We did it for ideological reasons firstly. If it makes sense financially all the better. We have three EV cars. Totally electric. They are about four times more efficient that comparable gas cars. We primarily charge at home with much of that power coming from the panels. Our home charger app says that we have spent $25 charging our three cars at home during the month of August.
We also have an electric bike, and electric lawnmower, blower, string trimmer, etc. We have two gas yard tools that we use very sparingly. A blower and a four-stroke sidewalk edger. My old Studebaker is for sale and is driven exceedingly infrequently. So gasoline usage at our homestead is quite limited. A rough estimate would be now around $200 a year, tops! When we do buy gas we get a 10% discount with our AAA credit card and Quality’s gas club! The silly electric bike has basically made me use the EVs very infrequently, too! It has a 45-mile range. Once again, I opted for the economy model.
Our last electric bill from the BPW was a whopping $12 for the month. Much of that the “readiness to serve” charge, sales tax and for the luxury of being connected to the grid. That was the electricity charge, not counting water, trash, yard waste, etc. This was, however, a summer bill. With our increasingly warm summers we run our AC, much to my chagrin, 24/7! This does include, however the aforementioned vehicles and yard tools!
These are our numbers. Of course we are aware that with supply chain issues, hyper inflation, etc. that these numbers have undoubtedly changed. We are also a family of three, and a frugal family at that. We love our green lifestyle! Your numbers will undoubtedly be different from ours. Maybe even better. Who knows? Being green can make a whole lot of sense financially. It also helps insure that our kids and theirs will inherit a world at least as good as the one we received ecologically. Please don’t believe the fake news prophets. Look into this yourself. The coming generations will thank you!
— Jeff Raywood is a resident of Holland.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: My Take: Benefits of going green are real, save you money
