People in Ontario... free solar power installation?

[Twilight1]

http://www.pure-energies.com/solar-options.html

Found this link on my facebook and was wondering if anyone has done it? I was going to talk to my husband about installing solar panels on our house but would love to hear if anyone on here (or people you know) has done it? Pros Cons etc etc

[Aussie Willy]

Is this system one of those where you get it installed free but pay it off over time?

I have a solar hot water system with gas booster (mandatory on new buildings where I live) and my gas usage ends up being $5 per every two months in summer. So I am really happy with what I have. Eventually I would like to install a full system on my unit. In Australia about 1 millon properties throughout the country have solar roof panels and it is a growing industry.

I get very frustrated with our governments in that they do not do enough to promote and subsidise solar energy, particularly in a country like Australia we have abundant sunlight. We should not have to rely on energy sources such as brown coal. With all the roof space in cities and towns it really does seem logical that you could gather and store the energy in batteries to use to power the whole country. But no one wants to spend the money on it or it would offend and upset the coal industry.

[KatieC]

I've been thinking about solar panels for the roof this past summer, but haven't done anything about it yet. We do need a new roof sometime soon, especially with hopefully lower utility costs. Thanks for the link, it may get me started.

[KCC]

I have a solar hot water heater with electric backup, and love it. Solar heats the water all the way in the summer (often to over 130 F), and most of the way in the winter (almost always over 100F -- but realize the incoming water is so cold in the winter that I can't brush my teeth with cold water). The payback period for our solar water system was about 13 months. We looked at solar-to-electric panels, but their payback period was just over 10 years, so we just went with the water system.

[Twilight1]

KCC- Do you know approx how much money you have saved?

[KCC]

KCC- Do you know approx how much money you have saved?

Our old water tank was heated with propane and we had a very expensive supplier. We estimate the savings from the solar heater to be over $3000 per year. Our new system is solar with electric backup, and our electric bill went up about $30 for the year, and our propane use went down a lot. We think some of the propane reduction was because we had a mild winter last year, so the $3000 for the solar change alone is an educated guess. If you are considering one of these, pm me and I can offer advice and/or send you photos.