Solar panels anyone?

We actually do have some solar panels on the roof. The Senior Cat had them installed some years ago now. 

At the time his late godson worked in the business. I don't know what the arrangement was. It would have been legal because the Senior Cat was always absolutely adamant that everything he did had to be according to the law. I suspect his godson simply didn't make any sort of profit on the transaction and perhaps thought it might bring in some business in return. 

I still doubt we have seen any sort of profit in return. Our electricity bills were still high, although not as high as those of many other people. Ours related to trying to keep the Senior Cat comfortable. He loathed the heat and, despite multiple woolly layers, felt the cold. Spring and autumn were his favourite times of the year. The temperatures were likely to be more to his liking. 

I am happy with these too. The last few electricity bills have been lower because it has to be excessively hot or excessively cold before I can bring myself to turn heating or cooling on.  

That said, those bills are still high in my view. I see almost no return for the "investment" in solar panels. It was $7.84 for the last quarter. Soon there will be no return at all.  

Other people are saying similar things. They have done what they believed was the right thing. They installed the panels believing they would at least pay for themselves and help the environment at the same time. In reality the cost has not been covered and there are now serious questions about just how environmentally friendly the panels actually are. 

Our very left wing local government is now telling people they can get "free" solar panels if they do not already have them. What this really means of course is that we pay for these through our council rates. Not everyone who wants them is going to get them because there simply isn't enough money to do it - and those of us who have already done it are subsidising those who have not. 

I expected all this sort of thing. What I did not expect was yet more phone calls from companies who supply solar panels. They seem to call at least once a day. The "do not call register" apparently does not apply to them. They are "environmentally responsible" and "environmentally friendly". If we already have solar panels they need to be "checked" and "cleaned" and "maintained". 

My BIL, an electrical engineer, will check theirs and ours in the coming weeks. I am fortunate he can because, without that, these solar panels would cost even more than they have.   We won't make a profit. That was not the point of installing them. It would however be nice to think we had broken even rather than paid even more for our electricity.