Your Questions About Solar Energy Generators For Sale

Linda asks…

Did anybody see the list of extras added to the $700 billion Wall Street bail out?

Remember when that bail out plan kept going back and forth, back and forth and THEN got signed? Hmmmm……. did anybody see all the “extra” stuff attached to it? You know the old saying “scratch my back ….”? Isn’t it amazing how much other stuff gets tacked on to a bill that we only know the title of — granted some of this is necessary and helpful, but come on: Children’s wooden arrows, rum excise tax revenues to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands; and does THIS sound fair: Accelerated depreciation for property used mostly on an Indian reservation?

More on the Bill

Apart from the Troubled Assets Relief Program, the bill before the Senate includes:

* Extensions of the AMT patch, tax deductions on state and local sales taxes, tuition, teacher expenses and real property taxes and tax credits for business research and new market investors
* Energy tax credits and incentives to encourage wind and refined coal production, new biomass facilities, wave and tide electricity generators, solar energy property improvements, CO2 capturing, plug-in electric drive vehicles, idling reduction units on truck engines, cellulosic biofuels ethanol production, energy efficient houses, offices, dishwashers, clothes washers and refrigerators, and fringe benefits for employees commuting by bicycle.
* A requirement for private insurance plans to offer mental health benefits on par with medical-surgical benefits
* Tax relief provisions for victims of this summer’s Midwestern floods, and Hurricane Ike
* Freezing of deductions for sale and exchange of oil and natural gas, mandatory basis reporting by brokers for transactions involving publicly traded securities and an extension of the oil spill tax

But it also extends the following tax provisions:

* Economic development credit to American Samoan businesses
* $10,000 tax credit for training of mine rescue team members
* 50% immediate expensing for extra underground mine safety equipment
* Tax credit for businesses with employees from an Indian reservation
* Accelerated depreciation for property used mostly on an Indian reservation
* 50% tax credit for some expenditures on maintaining railroad tracks
* 7-year recovery period for motorsports racetrack property
* Expensing of cleaning up “brownfield” contaminated sites
* Enhanced deductions for businesses donating computers and books to schools, and for food donations
* Deduction for income from domestic production in Puerto Rico
* Tax credit for employees in Hurricane Katrina disaster area
* Tax incentives for investments in poor neighborhoods in D.C.
* Increased rehabilitation credit for buildings in Gulf area
* Reduction of import duties on some imported wool fabrics, transfers other duties to Wool Trust Fund to promote competitiveness of American wool
* Special expensing rules for film and TV productions

And there’s more:

* Increasing cover of rum excise tax revenues to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
* Making it easier for film and TV companies to use deduction for domestic production
* Exempting children’s wooden arrows from excise tax
* Income averaging for Exxon Valdez litigants for tax purposes

admin answers:

What a bunch of crap. It really shows how corrupt our legislators are when they’ll only support the bailout bill if there are some goodies for their own causes. I wonder how many of them actually thought it was a bad idea but decided it was a good way to get what they wanted.

Susan asks…

HOW IS SOLAR ENERGY PRODUCED AND USED?

admin answers:

Solar energy can be produced from solar radiation. Sunlight travels through the upper parts of the earth’s atmosphere. Once this sunlight reaches the surface of the earth, it must be captured so it can be turned into an usable energy source. At the earth’s surface, it is called infrared radiation where it is captured through the aid of photovoltaic or solar cells.Once captured, the sunlight is absorbed into these photovoltaic/solar cells. These photovoltaic/solar cells are then used to convert the sun’s energy into electrical energy. These cells are non-mechanical devices that are made from silicon alloys. Most of the solar collectors resemble black, flat boxes that sit on building rooftops. In the most common design, pipes in the box carry liquids that transfer the heat from the box into the building. This heated liquid then heats the water in a tank or is passed through radiators to heat the air. Below are the common usage of Solar Energy:

Residential

The number of PV installations on buildings connected to the electricity grid has grown in recent years. Government subsidy programs (particularly in Germany and Japan) and green pricing policies of utilities or electricity service providers have stimulated demand. Demand is also driven by the desire of individuals or companies to obtain their electricity from a clean, non-polluting, renewable source. These consumers are usually willing to pay only a small premium for renewable energy. Increasingly, the incentive is an attractive financial return on the investment through the sale of solar electricity at premium feed-in tariff rates.

In solar systems connected to the electricity grid, the PV system supplies electricity to the building, and any daytime excess may be exported to the grid. Batteries are not required because the grid supplies any extra demand. However, to be independent of the grid supply, battery storage is needed to provide power at night.

Holiday or vacation homes without access to the electricity grid can use solar systems more cost-effectively than if the grid was extended to reach the location. Remote homes in sunny locations can obtain reliable electricity to meet basic needs with a simple system comprising of a PV panel, a rechargeable battery to store the energy captured during daylight hours, a regulator (or charge controller), and the necessary wiring and switches. Such systems are often called solar home systems (SHS).

Commercial

On an office building, roof areas can be covered with glass PV modules, which can be semi-transparent to provide shaded light. On a factory or warehouse, large roof areas are the best location for solar modules. If the roof is flat, then arrays can be mounted using techniques that do not breach the weatherproofed roof membrane. Also, skylights can be partially covered with PV.

The vertical walls of office buildings provide several opportunities for PV incorporation, as well as sunshades or balconies incorporating a PV system. Sunshades may have the PV system mounted externally to the building, or have PV cells specially mounted between glass sheets comprising the window.

Industrial

For many years, solar energy has been the power supply choice for industrial applications, especially where power is required at remote locations. Because solar systems are highly reliable and require little maintenance, they are ideal in distant or isolated places.

Solar energy is also frequently used for transportation signaling, such as offshore navigation buoys, lighthouses, aircraft warning light structures, and increasingly in road traffic warning signals. Solar is used to power environmental monitoring equipment and corrosion protection systems for pipelines, well-heads, bridges, and other structures. For larger electrical loads, it can be cost-effective to configure a hybrid power system that links the PV with a small diesel generator.

Remote Applications

Remote buildings, such as schools, community halls, and clinics, can benefit from solar energy. In developing regions, central power plants can provide electricity to homes via a local wired network, or act as a battery charging station where members of the community can bring batteries to be recharged.

PV systems can be used to pump water in remote areas as part of a portable water supply system. Specialized solar water pumps are designed for submersible use or to float on open water. Large-scale desalination plants can also be PV powered using an array of PV modules with battery storage.

PV systems are sometimes best configured with a small diesel generator in order to meet heavy power requirements in off-grid locations. With a small diesel generator, the PV system does not have to be sized to cope with the worst sunlight conditions during the year. The diesel generator can provide back-up power that is minimized during the sunniest part of the year by the PV system. This keeps fuel and maintenance costs low.

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