The board approved 4 to 1 a scheme to buy a Solar System to supply electricity to the Water Board Building. They could save more money by putting awnings on the windows to block the heat from the sun and put a tarp over the roof. The savings on air conditioning cost, based on the electricity to run the air conditioning would be would be about $4,000 each year. The cost would be for some PVC pipe and some tarps to shade the roof. About $400 the first year. The tarp could be rolled up in winter to get the sun to heat the place. How simple is this?
The Solar System estimate came in around $193,000. the so called saving in electricity was estimated at $1,300 a year. That takes about 150 years to break even but of course the Solar Panels will degrade and becone useless in far less time than that. Using a tarp would save far more, $4,ooo the first year with a cost of $400 means the Tarp Project breaks even in a little more than one month. Compare that to the 1,781 months for the Solar Panel system to break even. That’s about 1,700 to one in favor of the tarps.
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