What are the drawbacks to using wind turbines or solar panels for providing all power to a home?
A. The wind and sun are not constant, so there would be times when no electricity would be generated.
B. The wind and sun are constant, so there would be plenty of electricity for the home.
C. Wind and solar power are inefficient and too expensive to use and maintain.
D. Wind and solar power are efficient, but they are not able to produce enough electricity for a single home.
A is the best of your four, for your question, but since individual wind and solar power generate power to a battery, which is the direct source of power to your house, you can store up enough power to maintain your electrical usage, through the winter, power outages, and you can sell some access back to the Community Power Company.
If enough households demand an individual windmill and solar panel, the initial costs will come down to reasonable expense!!
the initial cost is extremely high, that is probably the biggest draw back.. and nothing is constant…sun goes away and wind is always there…aside from that you have maintenance..other than that you are good.. if you build up your supply you can actually sell electricity back to the electric company
References :
Comment by jargonjasson — August 12, 2009 @ 5:57 pm
A is the best of your four, for your question, but since individual wind and solar power generate power to a battery, which is the direct source of power to your house, you can store up enough power to maintain your electrical usage, through the winter, power outages, and you can sell some access back to the Community Power Company.
If enough households demand an individual windmill and solar panel, the initial costs will come down to reasonable expense!!
References :
Barack Obama’s Smart Grid Plan.
Comment by the "eggster" — August 12, 2009 @ 6:17 pm
I think A is the answer they’re looking for.
B is not a drawback, so it can’t be that.
C is not a bad answer, both could be inefficient in terms of cost. And a windmill does take maintenance.
D is not a horrible answer, considering some homes may be in places that don’t get enough sun and/or wind. Like if you lived in the boreal forest in Canada, or on the forest floor in the Amazon jungle.
References :
Comment by roderick_young — August 12, 2009 @ 6:32 pm
The answer is A. This is the largest drawback!
References :
Source: My personal experience with alternative energy at home, my girlfriend wrote a little blurb about it here: http://www.nature4power.org/earth4energy.html
Comment by Zac L — August 12, 2009 @ 7:21 pm