Here’s some happy news for those of us living near San Antonio, Texas.

CPS Energy is working with Juwi Solar on a 14-megawatt project to be built near San Antonio, Texas. This project, the Blue Wing Solar Farm, promises to generate “enough energy for 1,800 homes each year.

While I am thrilled with this move to solar energy, which is clean and renewable, I doubt monthly home electric bills will decrease. Somebody’s paying for those solar panels, right?

So I still long for my own solar power generating system on my own roof! Sometimes, in my more discouraged moments, I wonder if it will every happen.

Where to Get Solar Energy Information

Do you want to use solar energy in your home? Given the current environmental conditions, most people are ready for renewable energy sources. But going solar requires more than flipping a switch.

Going solar requires correct information for your particular climate and circumstance and reliable solar installers.

One of the best ways to educate yourself and find reputable solar installers is the American Solar Energy Society (ASES).  Find a regional chapter of the ASES and join in.

Jumpstart your solar education. Join a local ASES chapter today.

Our Solar Energy Quest

Our quest to incorporate solar energy into our home progresses, however slowly. Sometimes improvements seems as slow as molasses in January. But we know the necessary preparation for integrating renewable energy options begins with energy conservation measures.

We are in the 11th month of our energy conservation journey. Since last August we have been searching, learning, and implementing all energy conservation measures feasible for our particular circumstances.

Averaging our energy use for the first ten (10) months of the process, conservation measures (rather than efficiency measures) produced a 26 percent decrease in our home energy use. That’s a 26 percent decrease in our energy bill as well!

As I write this post, well into month 11 of our test year, our South Texas heat climbs to around 104 degrees daily. Our thermostat setting stays between 83 and 85 degrees in the day and 80 degrees at night. The air conditioning still runs a lot.

I’m beginning to worry about my percentages.

We hope to end the 12-month experiment with at least a 25 percent energy decrease. We will see. All results will be published here on the blog in hopes that our learning will help others.

next phase, year two (2), of our quest involves energy efficiency (rather than conservation). The research is begun.

Stay tuned! And as always, we would love to hear your energy conservation success stories. Share your comments and/or blog links in the comment section below.

Energy Efficiency

Our plan to go solar and make our home a net ZEH variety home began nine (9) months ago with the implementation of energy conservation measures. Conservation meaning, daily choices that conserve energy and eliminate wasteful practices.

We’ve done all of the small, inexpensive, easily fixed steps to conserve energy and reduce our monthly kilowatt-hour usage.

For the past nine months, we’ve been diligently tracking our kilowatt-hour usages. Comparing our monthly energy use to the same month a year ago, we can see remarkable changes.

Over the past nine months, compared to the same nine months the year before, we’ve reduced our energy consumption by 26.8 percent. And this from energy conservation measures only that require little more that a decision to make a different choice.

Our next phase is energy efficiency.

Efficiency involves technological choices that save energy, such as energy efficient windows and energy saving appliances, just to name a few.

These things require a greater outlay of money, which makes this a more challenging step for us in these economic times.

So I’ll soon begin researching and documenting here in these pages our energy efficiency struggles and choices.

Learning About Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs

We are still trying to reduce our monthly kilowatt-hour consumption before we bite the bullet and install solar electric energy.

Installing Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs) reduces the amount of energy your home uses so most people make the switch to CFLs.

Here’s what the EnergyStar site says about CFLs:

If every American home replaced just one light bulb with an ENERGY STAR qualified bulb, we would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes for a year, more than $600 million in annual energy costs, and prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions of more than 800,000 cars.

Currently, we are living with a mix of incandescent and CFLs because it just doesn’t make sense to me to throw out a perfectly working incandescent light bulb. As our incandescents die out, we replace them with CFLs.

Our first CFL came from our energy provider, who gives one CFL (not an entire box) to each customer who asks. We used that one to replace the light over the stove as that light stays on more than any other in the house.

Last weekend we purchased our first boxes of CFLs from our local Walmart Store. As I recall now, Walmart offered a GE brand of CFL and the Walmart store brand of CFL.

Since we are currently working our way up the CFL learning curve, we purchased the lesser expensive Walmart brand. We installed the new 100-Watt equivalent CFLs in the walk-in closet to make that dark spot brighter for those of us who must choose clothing early in the morning, before the caffeine kicks in.

When we flipped the switch on, I learned there’s a reason CFLs are labeled either “warm white,” “cool white,” or“daylight.”

The “warm white” CFLs give off a light that is more yellow. I really don’t like the yellow light although it’s fine for the closet, being less harsh than the other two choices.

Noli Control Systems describes “cool white” this way:

Cool White bulbs are preferred in many applications because the light they output makes items illuminated appear crisper.  Cool White is often preferred in bathrooms and other task areas.  They are also great for reading.

About “Daylight” Noli says:

Daylight bulbs are often preferred for photography, painting,  or other tasks that require a true color representation of the objects being illuminated. They are also great for helping reduce the effects of Seasonal Disorder disease since they give the effect of summer time sun light.

I think I’m going with the “daylight” version in the rest of my house.

Cool white and daylight bulbs cost a teensy bit more than warm white CFLs. But after seeing the difference, I think they are worth the extra few pennies.

Do you use CFLs? Why or why not?

Solar Power – Is It Right For You?

Do you want a solar powered home? I sure do. Although technology improves and solar panel prices fall, going solar can still be a daunting process.

Have you ever wondered if solar power is right for you?

Well, Mother Earth News has a great article to help you with this question.

The article helps guide you through the three (3) main question:
1.    Do you have a south-facing space (not necessarily a south facing roof!)
2.    How much will your solar-electric system cost for your needs
3.    Will solar power save you money in the long-term.

Personally, we are working on question two (2). Reducing our electric needs – that is how much electricity we use – will reduce the cost of our solar-electric system.

If you want to work on that with us, join our Home Energy Conservation Challenge.

Here’s a quote from the Mother Earth News article:

if you’re considering solar power, it’s a good idea to start thinking about your own daily habits. “It’s very important to understand how your electricity is being billed and what your electric usage is. There might be ways to minimize your charges (are you running appliances during peak hours?) and minimize your usage (are you already using energy-efficient light bulbs?) so that you don’t need as big of a system.”

Want to reduce the initial cost of your solar-electric system? We invite you to join our energy challenge!

Solar Energy on a Limited Budget

How do you afford the purchase and installation of a solar energy system in these economic times? I certainly want to but I am limited by financial constraints.

To make solar more affordable, we are limiting our current home energy consumption. The thinking goes like this: the less energy we use, the fewer solar panels we will need to install, the less expensive solar panels will be. Once installed, our reliance on fossil fuel greatly diminishes.

All this has got me thinking about limits. Actually, this article by Wendell Berry encouraged these “limit” conversations I keep having with myself.

Mr. Berry reminds us what we in our arrogance tend to forget, that the very nature of life on this planet is defined by limits. “Any definition is a limit” which suggests ecosystems, geographies, and fossil fuels have boundaries, have ending points, are limited.

Solar energy makes sense for two reasons:
1.    Reduced reliance on a limited fossil fuel supply (coal and oil)
2.    Solar energy is not diminished by using it

This seeming unlimited supply of solar energy could be fanciful delusion. Just because solar energy seems inexhaustible is not permission to use it without limits. The materials from which solar panels are made come from a limited source.

As with every resource at our disposal, solar energy should be used thoughtfully, reverently, with restraint.

So when you do use solar energy primarily, how much is enough?

That’s the question.

How much energy is enough?
How much do you really need?

We have been on a home energy diet, of sorts for the last five (5) months. Our goal is to reduce our energy consumption through conservation (first) and efficiency (second), to determine just how much we really need for physical (and fiscal) comfort without being wasteful.

Join us here at Simple Home Solar Energy for the Energy Conservation Challenge. We begin with the Challenge details on Wednesday, February 4.

Potential Stumbling Blocks on a Solar Journey

While on this journey to a solar powered home, I read a lot.

I am a data gatherer by nature. I read books, papers, magazines, blogs, etc. Anything that may provide information regarding practical applications of stewardship of the earth makes its way to my reading list.

Lately I sense certain hysteria in this “green revolution.”

This article makes the case that city living is often more environmentally friendly.

But those who maintain forest land in our nation argue that city folk are living off his oxygen (since his trees produce oxygen).

Then there is the cry to eat local, organic, grass-fed beef. This is the better choice because no long transport is involved.

But then someone else did the math that seems to prove if everyone switched to grass-fed beef, we would leave a greater carbon footprint than eating the grain-fed variety.

Actually, there’s enough data out there, which if chosen selectively, could prove anything a person wants to prove.

The real truth is the best way to reduce your carbon footprint is to make small, personal lifestyle changes. Whether you live in the city or in a rural area, there are ways to be better caretakers of the earth where you are.

What simple steps are you taking? Please leave a comment to share your ideas with us.

Energy Conservation vs. Energy Efficiency

Joining the solar energy revolution requires a new vocabulary. It means research, investigation, and a learning curve. Switching to solar energy requires, well…energy.

Going solar is a process. The steps of the process are:
•    Conservation
•    Efficiency
•    Solar

Initially, you may wonder about the difference in conservation and efficiency when it comes to reducing home energy consumption.

Simply stated, energy conservation involves conscious action; energy efficiency involves technological improvements. Conservation calls to mind sacrifice. Efficiency is about working smarter.

You need both conservation and efficiency on this solar journey.

The Alliance to Save Energy (ASE) has written an excellent article distinguishing between energy conservation and energy efficiency.

Also read this article for more information on the conservation vs efficiency discussion.

Reducing Home Energy at Christmas

Basically, this blog is a journal about our quest for energy independence. We want to go solar but there’s a long and winding road to get there. We set our eyes on the goal and have made small but meaningful changes that greatly reduced our home energy bill.

However, I’m find that our home energy reduction plan falls by the wayside during the holiday season.

Since August my incentive for energy conservation remained on the front burner, so to speak. But with cold weather and holiday company arriving at our house, less focus goes to energy conservation.

I find myself more concerned with the people in my house being warm and having plenty of hot water available. So our thermostat got nudged up and the hot water heater timer switch turned off for a few weeks.

Keeping the thermostat at 68 degrees might work better on sunny days. And the timer on the water heater works well enough when we live by a more rigid schedule.

This month, houseguest comfort trumps energy conservation.

But I’ve decided not to feel badly about it since I did conserve lots of energy during the hot summer months. Today I choose to use the biggest portion of my “energy budget” for holiday times.