Alternative energy in residential suburbs - Part 1

Part 1 - Household electrical wiring
In residential suburbs using alternative energy where houses are already connected to the grid is difficult. This is because solar and wind energy produced are stored in batteries is DC while grid energy is AC. The whole house is wired for AC.
To integrate DC into the household wiring we invented the "Green Plug" This unit switches between battery power and grid power when the batteries are low. DC is converted to AC via the inverter and connected directly into the household switch board after the meter.
In New Zealand power company such as Contact energy and Mercury energy allows customers to install prepaid meters. Customers pay for power only when they use it. This means they can avoid paying for daily line charges when they don't use grid power.
Customers get units credited on their meter and this amount reduces as power used. One advantage of this system is that consumers become more aware of their energy usage and will make a consious effort to reduce energy consumption by changing to energy saving light bulbs and turning lights off.
In our first installation of an alternative energy system in a residential area we have the prepaid meter installed by contact energy. This cost $140 and we got 50 units of energy free. Energy cost 27 cents a kilowatt. This compares to 22 cents a kilowatt and 83 cents a day line charges on the normal meter.
This home has gas for water heating and cooking and so uses 12 kilowatts a day. At 27 cents a kilowatt it amounts to 60 cents a day line charges ( 12 X 5 cents ) which is lower than the 83 cents normal charge.
More about the equipment can be seen at our website www.thebatteryclinic.co.nz
Part 2 on energy pole installation soon.