So what do you guys suggest?
600W x 10, plus the associated energy for circulation, ventilation, etc, is a pretty significant chunk of power to consume, and IMO, is WELL beyond the power consumption of any residential home.
I can see a business using that much juice, and maybe a home business, but not a residential home. That's just me. If I had that much juice running in a residential area, I would front it as a home computer server operation or something. They need a lot of juice to run, AND to cool, so that could help.
I have looked into alternative power, and for small scale non-commercial grows, it's just not practical IMO, as the initial cost won't be recouped for a long, long time, and the grid is still relatively cheap by comparison.
For larger scale commercial ops, solar and wind may be more practical, however, you'd have to look at your energy cost vs. potential savings over time with whatever system you choose. The problem with alternative energy is 1.) initial costs and 2.) inefficiency. Should your alternative energy equipment fail to last as long as you expect (ie batteries or panels go bad), then you may have to reinvest in more kit before you ever recoup your initial investment. For folks with a lot of cash, that's not an issue, however, most of us don't have that kind of cash, and are ultimately better off using the grid.
I would LOVE to be able to go "off the grid", but today's technology just doesn't make it practical. So, my goal is to compensate to the best of my ability by better managing power consumption in other areas. (No clothes dryer, dishwasher, turn off the hot water heater and use sun heated water, fans instead of central air, etc....)
Good luck man.
