Is solar water heating too
expensive?
This article is not
designed to change your mind, but is intended to show you a different way of
thinking about expenses and energy usage.
A Solar Water Heating
System is one of the only home improvement that will save you money.
Most other home
improvement expenses will cost you money –
Eg DSTV – R570 per
month this year, 10% increase next year…. = R18.70 per day
If you do not watch
it, you do not get any refund.
Underfloor heating
Electric fencing
Paving
Flooring
Water Heating Expenses
-
Let us look at the cost
of using coal fired electricity compared with the cost of solar water heating.
If you have a 200
litre electric geyser, and use 200 litres of water at 55 deg per day, you will
typically spend R7.50 to R10.00 per day or R225 to R300 per month. R2700 to
R3600 per year. * Cape
Town high usage @ 73.3 c per kWh 2009
If you used solar
water heating you would be able to save most of this in summer and a good part
of it in winter.
On average we would
expect to save about R2600 + per year AT CURRENT RATES.
Next year this could
be 30% higher at R3400 + and the following year 20% higher at R 4100 +.
The amount of money we
spend today on a renewable system will reduce the amount we will spend tomorrow
on electricity.
Depending on your
financing choice, you could save from month 1!
*Calculations done
courtesy of Standard Bank Bond Calculator – 10.5% over 5,10 and 15 years for
R13000
https://www.homeloans.standardbank.co.za/servlet/com.sbsa.sbhl.bondcalc.business.MainCalcServletInternet?page=Main_MonthlyRepayEntry