Touching on a comment I made in another thread, this may be a way of generating cheap power.

First you need solar on your roof, with a feed in to the grid.

At present, in QLD we are being paid higher prices for the power we sell, than what we pay to buy. Typically, 44cents in and 29cents out (I think)

Now there is talk about the QLD government squashing this arrangement, which would see us being paid more like 8 cents in and 29 cents out.

So, if you have the system in place, and the sell price drops below the buy price, you can look at this alternative.

You install a battery bank, quality batteries, like used in stand alone systems now, you also need an inverter and a large capacity battery charger.

So what you do during the day is use the solar power (FREE) to charge your battery bank, then, you switch to batteries at night, which, provided your bank is large enough, will provide free power.

Now if you have those dreaded rainy days, you then charge your batteries on the 'off peak rate', at night, then switch your batteries on for day use, which won't mean free power, but it will be better than the 29 cents you would normally pay.

Of cause it all has to be costed, but one thing is for certain in my view, and that is that power costs are goimg to continue to rise and paying as much as $1 per KW is very possible in the not too distant future.

I have looked at several Solar setups & some are really impressive. You wouldn't want one though in a hail risk area or be aound trees because those panels ain't made for any impact whatsoever. perhaps if Lexan could be used it would work.
My argument about these things like windpower & solar is that the manufacturing of it its 5 times more polluting than burning coal or so it appears.
I suppose people go for solar & wind because of cost with environmental impact being a second or third consideration when it really should be #1. What people should do is to curb their demand & that would turn the tables properly.

Individual>> What people should do is to curb their demand & that would turn the tables properly.<<

Global de population would work just as well Indy.

So do we nuke em, sterilize them, or take their means of paying for the power away.

sonofgloin,
You'll find my opinion to that dilemma on the other thread. No nuking, none of that radical nonsense, Birth control is all that's needed.
Going back to power, wastage is the greatest use of power. Airconditioning is next, that's on the domestic side. On the commercial side you have waste on 747's flying 10000km with 30 people on board. Too much transport with hardly a thought for service efficiency is a huge waste of resources & cause of pollution. Just look at the trucking industry, huge trucks running backwards & forwards instead of using rail. look at the insane plastics industry, they'r probably the worst wasters of petroleum & for what ? To produce ridiculously idiotic products that are discarded two minutes after purchase. That, my dear young feller is where the wastage is most prominent. How does it happen ? Stupid consumers being exploited by callous manufacturers who have to produce to keep up with Government charges to handsomely reward the masses of bureaucrats for nothing.

Rechtub many out back and near towns homes are isolated from the power grid.
So use this form of power as stand alone.
Modern battery's.
Not old fashioned work quite well, costs are if you take in maintenance about the same, some times cheaper.
I am unsure of what QLD is paying, but know they are proposing 8 cents, [for excess power made by solar owners, windmills for that matter]
I think , firmly your stated system will find more use in the future as both battery's and panels become more effective.
Here, well able to be on the grid a local runs a system like that it cost 25 thousand dollars.
He will need a lot of years to pay for it if his reason was cost..

For those that get a higher price for their solar generated power
I have a money making scheme.
You get a DC power supply and feed its output into the solar cell
circuit and provided the losses do not exceed the difference between
buy and sell prices you are in front.

I wonder if there is anyone in gaol that has tried that, but then
perhaps the law has not caught up with that.