With another hot summer upon us - here's some useful energy saving tips to keep your cool -

  In an article by Anthony Keane, published in Sydney's Daily Telegraph,
  Solar Shop's General Manager Daniel Edgecombe, and others 
  from the energy industry, give you ten tips on reducing your power bill
  in the face of rising electricity prices.

The ten tips, which we've listed below, are easy to implement in your home:

1. Turn off unnecessary lights
2. Upgrade your laundry appliances (or just air dry)
3. Switch off appliances on standby
4. Replace old whitegoods with new ones that rate at least three or four stars
5. Insulate your home better, with door seals and "door snakes" for example
6. Turn off your second fridge
7. Invest in a quailty solar system (from Solar Shop Australia of course!)
8. Switch your hot water system to solar
9. Set your heating thermostat to a comfortable 20°C, and no higher
10. Set your cooler no lower than 24°C, and use a fan.

To read more see the full article here: Plug into power savings

To find out more about saving money with a well designed solar installation attend one of Solar Shop's Free Solar Info Sessions or book a Free Home Solar Consultation.

What have you done to reduce your home power bill? Let us know by leaving a comment!

MEDIA RELEASE

Global event Earth Hour is this Saturday and Solar Shop Australia is once again supporting this initiative and encouraging Australians to think more broadly about the environmental impact of their daily lifestyle choices. Permanently adopting intelligent energy habits will make households more energy efficient and deliver benefits not only to the environment, but also the hip pocket.

Daniel Edgecombe, General Manager of Retail for Solar Shop Australia, said initiatives, such as Earth Hour, are a great way to raise awareness about energy efficiency long term, what must happen is a shift in thinking to renewable energy.

“Domestic energy use and our dependence on cars, account for almost one fifth of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions. There are a number of ways homeowners can reduce their carbon footprint,” Mr Edgecombe said.

Are you a typical Aussie? A recent report has found Australians are some of the most concerned people in the world about climate change, but are the least likely to do anything about it.

Come on Australia, take the power into your own hands!
Click here to read the full article

One of the nation's leading solar power providers believes solar has been made the ‘scapegoat' for the power industry, following the AIG report that revealed increasing electricity prices are not the result of solar rebates and incentives.

Energy and water efficient whitegoods and appliances, including lighting, can make a big difference to your household bills. When buying products, look for their energy and/or water rating.

Founder Adrian Ferraretto keeping his hand in

Solar Shop Founder Adrian Ferraretto keeping his hand in helping us to enable the web feed on our system on the Head office in Adelaide (6kW Solar Frontier CIGS + x2 SMA 4000 inverters) to show energy generation from the installation.

Hi, I'm Chris Toms and am a HIA GreenSmart Professional.

As a Renewable Energy Advisor with Solar Shop Australia, I've studied passive design for new homes and extensions to existing houses, and can offer in-house advice on layouts, building materials, appliances and (of course) the best type of solar system.

Solar shop offers free advice on most aspects of building an environmentally responsible and sustainable home.

Contact me if you want to chat about your sustainable design options.

Western Australians who own a solar power system now have another reason to smile, with the commencement of the net feed-in tariff yesterday.  For those who don't have a system, now is the time to explore buying one!

The feed-in tariff  gives system owners 40 cents for every unit of electricity that is exported, and when combined with the Renewable Energy Buyback scheme, currently at 7 cents, owners get a total of 47 cents.

In a net scheme like WA’s, the home first uses the power that is generated from the solar panels on the roof. This is used to power TVs, fridges, any appliance that requires electricity to operate. If there is any left over, the system exports this to the electricity grid to be used by someone else. And the feed-in tariff pays you for this electricity exported.

The good thing about a net feed-in tariff is that it encourages energy efficiency. The less power the home uses the more it exports. This means more smaller, or in some cases a zero dollar electricity bills and more money for you! 

So not only are you creating your very own green power, you are rewarded for using less traditional 'dirty' electricity. So having a solar power system is good for the environment and good for the family budget!

Feed-in Tariff Summary:

Model: Net (information on Net feed-in tariffs can be found here)
Tariff Rate: $0.40 + Renewable Energy Buyback Scheme tariff $0.07 = $0.47/kWh
Length: customers to receive payments for 10 years
Eligible Systems: Up to 5kW for Synergy grid, up to 10kW/phase for Horizon Grid (30kW for 3 phase grid connection)
Start date: 1 August 2010
End date: 20 years from commencement

For more information on the feed-in tariff visit the WA Office of Energy’s website.