---- Original Message -----
From: "Peter Murray" <peterwmurray@gmail.com>
To: <dirtbeard@pacbell.net>
Cc: "Shop-Talk List" <shop-talk@autox.team.net>
Sent: Sunday, March 22, 2009 3:03 PM
Subject: Re: [Shop-talk] tube fluorescent wattage
Doug (Shook)-
Were your fluorescent tubes of the older T12 variety, or of the
smaller T8 type? I have read (not measured) that the T8 tubes are more
efficient than the T12. It almost sounds like you had a single 40W
tube in a T12 fixture, and dual 32W tubes in a T8 fixture. I installed
a dual T8 fixture (with 32W tubes) in the laundry about a year ago,
and have been very happy with it (and, with the proper color
temperature, the quality of the light output).
Dear Peter,
No, it is all the old T12 stuff -- some of the ballasts are less than three
years old, but the old single 40w is at least 14 years old. No low watage
(32w) bulbs, just old stuff in the garage.
I also have a photovolaic generation system at our house.
I installed 30 Kyocera KC200GT (200W) panels and a SMA SB6000U (6kW)
inverter two years ago. As of two weeks ago, we had generated 19,360 kWh in
24 months.
We are located near the coast in Southern California. I am very pleased with
the system.
The first summer we had problems with the system dropping off-line when the
grid voltage momentarily dropped below 210VAC when our 5 ton HVAC unit
kicked in (190 LR amps). I asked Edison to install an additional transformer
on our utility pole, which they did. Since then we have had no problems.
We have generated surpluses both years and could not be happier with
the system. I often see 4.5-5.5 kW output during cool bright days. With some
cloud edge effect, I have seen over 6kW output on the inverter. During the
midday hours, we can make five homes or more "disappear" from the grid.
As of today, we have generaed 500kWh surplus for the year.
Because we were running 200% over baseline on Edison's tiered billing
structure, we should break even on the purchase price of the system in five
more years (seven years from date of install).
If someone is only running at a 12 cent per kWh baseline, then it probably
would take 18 years or more to break even in CA without large incentives (we
also were fortunate to purchase when some very significant California
incentives were in place).
This is one of the best interventions I have done to our home. I would do it
again in a heartbeat.
best,
doug
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