i just took a trip to florida, they are cutting down anything that doesnt float and putting up buildings. Most of these cost a bundle, bill gates may pay cash for them, but most people will have many payments. Since pools, satellite dishes, and docks if near the water seem to be standard issue, why not a couple solar panels and water heater. It is florida after all, and if you are allready paying a half million or so for a house, what is another 0k gonna mean to you. Why dont they make it mandatory to include these on all new housing and condos and businesses. With that many the price would come down quickly and pay for itself long before the house is payed off and/or florida is flooded due to global warming.
Solar Panels in housing developments is not being used because it would add $25,000 to $40,000 to the price of the home. Most people in the USA don't understand that after a few years the solar electric panels will start paying them back. It is not just the upfront cost. People would rather spend that 40K on somthing smart like a new corvette. Which has no pay back at all then something stupid like solar electric and helping themselfs or the rest of the world. So if the builders were to add them to the house people would just buy from another builder and the one adding the solar roof tops would just go broke. The State would have to find a way to credit the buyer or buider enough to make it worth it. Is it not more fun to spend millions on finding out where Anna Smith is going to be barried? Or maybe billions on top of billions on War? If we had spend the money on solar that we have spend on Iraq alone we could have put solar on every roof top in the whole USA and had few billion left over. Think about it.. 200 million people in the USA with three to a home would be 66 million homes. It would have only cost 528 billions dollars to put a kWh Solar Electric system on each house in America. But that would be stupid. War makes more money. We don't want Exxon to go broke do we?
Because not only does that just make TOO much sense, it comes down a cost factor, even though, as you say, what's another couple K for saving the environment. Sad thing is, even though they *JUST* figured out that global warming (loved that news story a couple weeks ago) is caused by humans abusing the earth, Americans especially just don't care enough. Our culture is so spoiled now that we refuse to be told what we need if it's not what we want or if it will cost us $5 extra.
Wow that is a great idea! We have so many old houses around here that no one lives in and they are building houses on 2 /2 acre lots. That seems like a waste of land. There is this construction company that is building town houses with solar panel roofs and the upstairs is the bedrooms and the down stairs is the living area so that it takes a very small lot. 40 x 60 even has room for a car port and small backyard. My friend has one and he made it low cost so everyone has a chance at home ownership. They are being build where he is buying the land and tearing down old houses and puting up these town houses. Makes the town look better and cleans up otherwise bad looking neighborhoods. If they can do that here why not all over? By building up she was telling us it cost less for foundation and roofing which is the most expensive. It is 900' sq ft. 2 bdrm bath. Let's go back to the time when people didn't have to have these 6000 sq.ft houses with 5 acre lots.
