Parade of Homes

Visit our Display Homes: 14 East Plains Drive in Sage Creek Linda Frenz-Cove 204.228.0447 31 Chaikoski Court in RidgeWood West Liam Milne 204.802.3400 5 South Down Lane in Taylor Farm Linda Frenz-Cove 204.228.0447 www.hearth-homes.com Cont'd on page 30 Mark Pauls, an engineer at Sunprint, says solar-powered homes are very popular in markets with higher energy costs, such as Europe. The enthusiasm is starting to trickle down to cities such as Winnipeg. "It's in the early-adopter stage now. We still have pretty cheap electricity rates," Pauls says. "But electricity rates are going up and the costs of the panels are going down. There are hundreds of manufacturers fighting to make the lowest-price panel. These two trends are combining to make it a lot more attractive for homeowners." Depending on your house and solar set-up, Pauls estimates it can take between eight to 12 years to get your money back, but everything after that is pure savings. The Taylor Farm house has a two-way meter so surplus power that's generated but not used is sold back to Hydro at the same rate the owner normally pays to purchase power. You can see the meter clicking backwards on a really sunny day. Of course, monthly savings vary from season to season. In the winter, when days are short and the sun is low in the sky, there's less time to generate solar power. (And don't worry if the panels get covered with snow. It'll melt off.) In the summer, however, with 16-hour days and the sun high in the sky, the energy generated is much greater. If Winnipeg is hit with a lengthy stretch of cloudy weather and you're using more power, don't worry, your house won't slowly go dark. "If you have a party and the furnace is on and you're cooking on the stove, you still have a connection to the Hydro grid," Pauls says. THE TAYLOR FARM HOUSE HAS A TWO- WAY METER SO SURPLUS POWER THAT'S GENERATED BUT NOT USED IS SOLD BACK TO HYDRO AT THE SAME RATE THE OWNER NORMALLY PAYS TO PURCHASE POWER. YOU CAN SEE THE METER CLICKING BACKWARDS ON A REALLY SUNNY DAY. The more than $13,000 price tag for the entire set-up is undoubtedly part of the reason why solar- powered homes are much more popular in theory than in reality. But when you consider the rising costs of running a house and the growing desire for more environmentally friendly, well, everything, it's only a matter of time until such homes become the norm rather than the exception. Parade of Homes Spring 2018 29

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