Solar generates more energy than coal in US for 1st time: Report

Now let's see it work when the sun doesn't shine.

Tuur said:

Now let's see it work when the sun doesn't shine.

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Gosh, like at night? That's just when you need power for lighting. Maybe no-one has taken that into account.

Bradskii said:

Gosh, like at night? That's just when you need power for lighting. Maybe no-one has taken that into account.

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No. In the winter you also need it for heating. A good bit actually. In my career I've seen the utility where I work go from summer peaking to winter peaking. And no, they haven't taken it into account. If they had, they would be concentrating on power storage, which lets you do a whole lot more stuff that solar panels. The methods we have of power storage now isn't all they're cracked up to be, as we learned trying to find a place where we could safely put one.

Now, this isn't going to agree with the narrative, so it won't be believed. That's one reason I keep looking at home generation. Might be a good idea if others did, too. Or they can sit in the dark. Their call. I no longer care.

Bradskii said:

Gosh, like at night? That's just when you need power for lighting. Maybe no-one has taken that into account.

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Simple, you switch the lights on and aim them on the solar panel. It will generate the power you need.

I don't particularly feel like joking about it. The lack of energy storage is the Achilles' Heel of any intermittent source of electricity. There always seems to be a breakthrough "on the horizon," like it's claimed about nuclear fusion. Maybe there is; maybe there isn't. All I know is it's been a long time coming.

The lithium ion batteries in great big battery banks are fine when nothing goes wrong, but you have to plan for things going wrong. Just how much you have to plan is eye-opening. They would really help our utility if we could put them were we need them, and that's just with the normal cycles of electricity use, but we can't because houses are too close if something goes wrong. Dual reservoir systems relying on water to store energy are better than nothing, but require the right terrain, and droughts play havoc with them. The molten sulfur batteries that were so promising some decades ago apparently weren't. There's a new chemical system that looks promising and with a higher energy density, but I've lost my notes about it and right now it's only a potential.

And no, the inherent instability in wind and solar isn't being considered like it should because the ones who make the decisions aren't. I've seen this before, first with load deferment that was supposed to prevent the need to build new generation but didn't take into account increasing load due to growth; then with load deferment and the idea that we could always get electricity from areas without a high demand. And then came the day when there was nowhere we could get enough electricity and load deferment wasn't going to cut it. We got through that day and a few others not as close by the skin of our teeth, then ran great big diesel generators the size of semi-truck trailers until peaking stations came online. And now the hot thing is solar, with the conceit that there will be sufficient backup for when the sun doesn't shine, all while load increases due to growth and coal plants are decommissioned. This is worse than what I saw forty years ago, and not funny at all, not one little bit.

Energy storage is where the emphasis should be, but isn't. It's not glamourous.

I really do need to see about home backup power before I retire. What I'm seeing now is just a different verse of the same old song.

Since I live in a place with plenty of sun all year long. I would love to have solar panels.

Tuur said:

And no, they haven't taken it into account. If they had, they would be concentrating on power storage...

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If by 'they' you mean the current administration then I can't really disagree. Trump seems to be doing everything he can to wind back renewable energy.

Just as a heads up, South Australia is looking to go 100% renewables sometime next year: South Australia fast-tracks 100 pct renewables target to 2027

'The South Australia state government says it has fast tracked its target of “net 100 per cent” renewables to 2027 – rather than 2030 – as a result of the state’s new wind and solar developments and its ambitious hydrogen plans.

South Australia already leads the world with more 71 per cent (or 74 per cent according to government data) of its annual demand being met by wind and solar only over the last 12 months.'

Our 6.0kW solar panel installation cost around U$3500 and we've just been quoted about U$2000 for a battery. If you have a government that is very keen to push for renewables, then the price comes down and more people get involved.

And from here: Household solar electricity generation in the Australian national accounts

'Since 2010, supported by government incentives and improving technology, rooftop solar installations have surged. Australia now leads the world in per capita household solar, with more than 4 million homes - approximately one in three – equipped with solar panels.'

Perpetual Student said:

Simple, you switch the lights on and aim them on the solar panel. It will generate the power you need.

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We had a very clear night last week and a full moon. I actually checked the solar panel app to see if it was generating anything. I thought maybe a couple of Watts? But...nada. Cloudy and raining at the moment and I'm not getting a half kiloWatt.

CRAZY_CAT_WOMAN said:

Since I live in a place with plenty of sun all year long. I would love to have solar panels.

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They had a long pay-back time; maybe still do. Those that stay connected to the grid are cheaper than those with storage batteries. Keep in mind that batteries degrade. The panels, too, but much slower than the batteries and not by as much.

Tuur said:

They had a long pay-back time; maybe still do. Those that stay connected to the grid are cheaper than those with storage batteries. Keep in mind that batteries degrade. The panels, too, but much slower than the batteries and not by as much.

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Actually I prefer the battery. My aunt had a choice to get batteries. But she didn't. And she doesn't loose power, since got them. It snows and rains where she lives, during the winter.It sunny in the winter, where I live.