Living In A Solar System Of Our Own

Green Thursday

Hi there, you fabulous people, and welcome to Thursday!  In Denver, we are in the tantalizing and frustrating time of year where the weather is snowy one day and it’s nearly 80 degrees the next day.  This is the hardest – and I’d argue – most beautiful time of year here because of those weather fluctuations. 

My family and I are now living in our own solar system and that’s the subject of today’s post.  If you’re envious, interested, or skeptical, read on and learn more about getting your own solar system. 

Jordan Singh | Pixabay

Today’s Inspiration:  We all need to see the good that is constantly happening in our world, so we have a round-up of inspiring stories from the KarunaNews website. KarunaNews | Responding with Compassion. The links take you to a short summary and offer the option to read the entire story.  (They aren’t all new, but they are inspiring.)

Miami Aquarium To Release Orca Who Spent 50 Years In Captivity (karunanews.org)

A Historic Win For Animal Rights: Spain Passes Law Against Domestic Animal Abuse (karunanews.org)

Don't Demolish That House -- 'Deconstruct' It! (karunanews.org)

Uganda's First Wildlife VetoOn Conserving Mountain Gorillas (karunanews.org)

Jordan Wozniak | Unsplash

Today’s Probing Question:  Want to live in your own solar system? 

You might think today’s post is about wanting your own space to be apart from all the zaniness of our world.   While I don’t doubt that some people want that, that’s not what I’m talking about today. 

What I am talking about is getting solar panels installed on our house.  This journey began almost a year ago when I got curious about getting solar panels installed.  This was partly driven by a desire to “go green” with our energy and partly by a desire to have more self-sufficiency for energy as our climate becomes more unstable. 

So, sometime last May, we met with a company to get an estimate on solar energy and decided to go for it.  They warned us that they were scheduling installations about six months out.  Our panels were installed late last October.  That all went pretty much as expected. 

What didn’t go as expected was how long it took to get our solar system inspected and approved by our local utility provider.  It took almost 5 months for our utility company, Xcel Energy, to inspect and approve our system.  I have to say it took a very lot of self-discipline to not get very upset about this.  (Instead, I used my go-to solution for when I’m choosing not to fret about something – I sprinkled fairy dust, mentally, on our solar panels in the hopes that might speed thing up.  Honestly, it’s hard to say if that helped, but it was certainly better than fuming about the delay.) 

After Xcel finally approved the system, it took about another week to have our solar system communicating with the system of the company from which we purchased it.  We are now generating power, which is super exciting.

One thing I learned in the process is that without a battery system, we can’t store and use our own power, say if the electricity through our utility company goes out.  The company from which we bought the solar system didn’t recommend buying a battery system now.  Apparently, they are expensive and maybe not as well developed as they could be.  So, we don’t have one of the things I was hoping for – guaranteed energy if the sun is shining, regardless of what is going on with our utility company. We may wait a few years and look into this again.

On thing you may be wondering about, if you haven’t already taken the plunge into your own solar system, is the cost.  We financed the system and the credit from our utility for the energy we’re generating is expected to be about what our monthly payment will be.  We are still waiting for a bill that shows the credit for our solar production so I can’t verify this yet.  We did not have to put any money into the system in order to get it installed. 

So far, since the system became operational on March 24, 2023, we have generated 768 kilowatt hours.  That is the approximate equivalent to 598 pounds of coal burned.   

Take Action:

• Take a few minutes now to consider what contribution, even a tiny one, you could make to reduce your impact on our stunning Earth.  It might be setting your thermostat a few degrees lower in winter or higher in the summer, turning lights off as you leave a room, or unplugging appliances when they are not in use.  Even if it seems small, every contribution makes a difference.

• If you’re stumped for ideas, you could take 5 minutes and do a little internet research on ways to reduce your carbon footprint. 

I’d love to hear from anyone about what you’re doing in this regard, or about your experience with going solar.  This planet is too precious to keep disrespecting with our carbon emissions and other forms of pollution! 

Original Art Banner by Ves Huerta. See Ves’ Etsy Shop HERE.

With support from Big Fish Virtual Administration.