With all this chat about green babies, I have neglected to mention the green aspects of our home!
Why do I think it’s important to write about it in this forum? I think it’s important to model desirable behaviour to children, so that hopefully they may want to emulate us one day. And modelling green behaviour helps shape their opinions about what’s normal – it’s normal to have a solar power system on your roof – why don’t you have one? I do also want to mention that there are a lot of more cost-effective ways to green your energy-use (energy efficiency, green power, etc), which we have also implemented in our home, so you don’t have to spend all that money on a solar power system to do something positive about your energy use.
Our apartment, in a suburb of a large Australian city, has been solar powered for over 6 years now. We bought a 1kW solar power system, and connected it to the grid, thanks to our great friends at BP Solar (link following) and Solar Technology (link following). Sorry about the shameless plug, but we do love these guys!
The system itself comprises of 6 solar panels mounted on the awning of the shop below us – meaning we can see and access the panels from our balcony. It has a grid interactive inverter, which also came with a communications device so we could see what it was doing day by day. We have been thinking about getting a device to be able to download the information to the web, so watch this space! Because of strata rules, we had to mount it relatively flat so it wasn’t visible from the road, which has limited its output a little, and meant that it collects a bit of dust. But because it’s easy to access, we get out with a broom occasionally and sweep it down!
When we first bought the system, it covered about two thirds of our household electricity usage. This was achieved by ensuring our electricity consumption was low to start with. We use gas for hot water and heating, and most of our cooking. We installed compact fluorescent lighbulbs (CFLs) in every room – before everyone was giving them away! And whenever we bought an appliance, we considered its energy star rating (that is, it’s ongoing cost) when considering the upfront price. We also make sure we turn things off when we don’t need them. And we make sensible use of windows, blinds and breezes so that we don’t require air-conditioning in the hot Australian summer.
Of course, now it covers about half our load, as I have spent time at home with children while on maternity leave. Also, we do more clothes and dishes washing (not just because of cloth nappies, but also just more dirty clothes and dishes!). But its still going strong. It’s also a visible badge of our commitment to the environment – it’s great to do something positive for something you believe in.