Tax credits for the DIYer

And just like last years giant mega subsidies for grinding up food to make ethanol to keep the SUVs going many are just plain stupid, wasteful and ill-conceived. But I wouldn't expect anything less from the government. Our state will transfer your neighbor's and maybe even folks you don't know money to you for such ridiculous projects as building a windmill even though we are the second worst place in the US for windmills. It is about as practical and sensible as awarding grants for a pineapple farm even though we are in zone 5.

You need to look more closely to see through the hype. I investigated the claims of "30% tax credit with no limit" for small wind generators (good excuse to put up a tower here and plenty of wind), but investigating the actual IRS forms for this showed that the reality is you can enter 30% of the total project cost on the first line, however the credit is actually limited to $1,000 per 1kW of system capacity and capped at $4,000 maximum (IRS form 5695).

It is still starting to become attractive. There are usually state rebates too. It still won't pay the whole $5-8 per watt these things cost but you do get a payback from the utility bill you are not paying. I still doubt the numbers really work until you are out in year 10 with no intervening maintenance. I am thinking about starting with something like a solar powered pool pump. That is a pretty steady bill that is not really a critical application. As long as you get several hours a day you can get by. I already use a solar pool heater and that works great for virtually nothing. If running the pump was free it would be nothing.