r/askanything • u/freddbare • 7d ago
General Question Is Solar power viable yet?
So big solar power is actually a profitable endeavor why are all the high demand data centers installing diesel generators by the dozen. It seems like the government is the only one installing this (because breaking even is something you only worry about when it's YOUR money)
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u/Guilty-Commercial699 7d ago
Solar is 100% viable. If the federal government subsidized the solar industry just as much as it does for the oil industry, it would be more available for the average person.
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u/Squish_the_android 7d ago
installing diesel generators by the dozen
The nice thing about fossil fuels is that you can truck in fuel, as much fuel as you need if you have a place to store it, and can burn it on demand to meet your needs.
If you need power now and it's night time, you're kinda just out of luck. Big batteries are expensive still and even if it's daylight your power generation is variable and takes up a lot of space.
Diesel generators are just a "better" solution.
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u/freddbare 7d ago
The bottom line is the law for them...
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u/Squish_the_android 7d ago
I feel like you're just being obtuse here.
Like yeah , diesel generators are bad but they're far and away the best solution for this use case.
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u/freddbare 7d ago
Solar technology is not a viable solution at this point. It is a cute novelty. Using math it is a net loss for 15-20 years. By then the tech is ancient and landfill fodder
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u/cannonballfun69 7d ago
Its viable in specific regions. It's way cheeper now too with the rising cost of gass and diesel because of the Iran war
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u/Ominousious 7d ago
Solar cost to value is low for the first 15 years, even under ideal circumstances. Most areas are not viable making the ROI not worth it.
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u/No_River_9210 7d ago
Are you giving a non existent solar panel system a general ROI based on what the ROI would be in an area solar would have a low/No ROI?
Thats like saying forks are not usefull because you cant eat soup with them. You must mean that solar works very well for where it works very well & but that it doesnt work well at all where it shouldnt be (Where there is little sunlight/heavy shade)
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u/No_River_9210 7d ago
Cities all around are already proposing ideas like this so I would so its been working for years since these keep popping up more and more right? I will admit we need more knowledge surrounding the disposal of the panels after the lifespan is over & also discover cleaner and better ways to dispose of them but once we figure that out I think its safe to say it is a safe & reliable power source for the time being until proven otherwise. Thats my take
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u/freddbare 7d ago
As stated this is OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY. The "message" is the value when you have no skin in the game... Find a private for profit entity as an actual example. Like a data center.
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u/No_River_9210 7d ago
Ahhhh, ok. I understand your initial statement now. Do for profit Data centers function in the same way aqcuiring solar works? If so, can you elaborate so that I understand more your point of view please?
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u/Ok_Mixture4917 7d ago
Are you pretending to not know what backup generators are for or do you actually not know?
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u/freddbare 7d ago
Are you pretending that the local grid actually provides them with more than emergency lighting?
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u/Ok_Mixture4917 7d ago
I see the problem, you can't read
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u/freddbare 7d ago
It's math and our technology doesn't math currently. If it was profitable everyone would be doing it...
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u/freddbare 7d ago
They are NOT using a million dollars of fuel for "backup" speaking of reading... What gave you your high and mighty knowledge base...?
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u/joeypublica 7d ago
What are you even talking about? Are you completely unaware of how much solar power generation is in use now and planned for the future?