I'm so glad companies have enough excessive funds to use that money against me.
this post was submitted on 12 Mar 2026
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In Florida I'm calling out FPL the local power company.
You would think in Florida having solar panels is a no brainer, but FPL fought it for years.
FPL successfully lobbied to have insurance companies deny coverage if panels are installed on a roof. You can't get windstorm insurance with panels unless you paythrought the nose.
FPL successfully lobbied to force homeowners with powerwalls and panels to take out a 1 million dollar insurance policy payable to FPL in case there's an accident that damages the grid....an accident that has never happened, ever.
FPL then has the gall to advertise solar energy and all the benefits, you can sign up for solar power provided by FPL for a slight increase in your bill to help the environment.
Mother fucking FPL
Capitalism. Anyone who tries not to buy my shit is my enemy.
Wait, solar panels are hard to use? When did they fuck that up?
Misleading name. These are basically all-in-one solar panels. It is much better to separate out inverters since they are scarce and expensive.
plug a solar panel into a large battery backup, plug the major appliances into that.
Utility companies don't need to know shit.
That's what I have. Basically a small-ish parallel electrical system that runs critical loads like a mini split, refrigerator, water heater, etc. And a small UPS for modem/server.
These can output 1800W, 1100Wh, Starts at CAD$700 then you just pay more for more storage for bigger systems.
Those are neat for camping or if the power goes out for the afternoon. I use mine mostly for my telescope.
That's a very small system that won't power much at all. Additionally I don't recommend these "all in one" systems, as they're typically more expensive, not as good, nor are they modular or repairable. Those are really if you need a "mobile" system.
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I mean, it makes sense to me that consumers can't be pumping energy into the grid with no way to cut it off, but I'm not a lineman or some sort of civil engineer or whatever.
But if I were a lawmaker, I'd be on the phone with the Germans, who have 1.2M of these connected, and figuring out if and how they're doing it safely. But lawmakers seem to be somehow incapable of reaching out to people who know fuck all about anything.
The microinverters stop feeding in if grid goes down. So it's safe.
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They are commonly used in many parts of Europe.
If you drop some Tariff percentages, we might be willing to advise.
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Why don't we just change the revenue model for power companies. I understand they need money to maintain the infrastructure and pay employees. If power generation becomes so cheap that it can't sustain the company then don't rely on that for revenue. I'd rather pay a flat rate for the infrastructure and operating costs than a fluctuating generation charge. And public utilities should not be for profit.
Many places already do charge a “line charge” if you have solar power and use little or no utility company power. You pay for being hooked up to the grid even if you barely use it.
This is how it works in my area. I pay about $12/mo in fees, the rest is handled by solar. They don't pay me for excess solar, instead I get credit (in kWh, not dollars, thankfully) for it and any electricity I use at night or in the winter comes from that pool. Essentially, it makes the power company a big battery for me.
This. This is the way. It solves this problem completely, but utilities somehow refuse it. It's almost like their argument is not in good faith ...
When I got solar panels on my previous home there was a $5 a month line charge. That when went up to $8 the next year, then $10, then closer to $20. The power company (Duke Energy in case anyway wants to the shitty company's name) was determined to make it as painful as possible for people to use Solar. They were also apparently responsible for pushing to get it illegal in that area to go "off grid" and to have a cap on the amount of solar power a home could generate. At now point did these line changes stop them from raising the normal power usage rates mind you, this was just an extra "fuck you" from them.
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If your business is critical for modern human living, it should be non-profit. It should be guided by the best management plan of the time, debated and approved by the majority of shareholders. It should open its books and stay open.
Really, it should be government.
May I introduce you to the concept of 'natural monopoly'.
Basically most natural monopolies (power, phone lines, roads etc) in most places were historically run by governments (because it's bloody sensible) until the neoliberal movement in the 80s privatized them because 'private enterprise is more efficient' (at extracting tax dollars as it turned out) and to balance a few budgets.
Should definitely be ruled a failed experiment and rolled back.
Hold on! You're telling me every common utility is run by corpos in America? I thought it was limited to only telecom.
It varies by state, but a large majority are.
So you have a government organization that regulates a private company in most cases. Usually there is a layer of government in there, but profits are private.
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My power company is a co-op. They have long term contracts with various providers, so my power bill doesn't fluctuate much on short term news.
At the end of every year, we get a dividend check in the mail for any excess profit.
Pretty sure all utilities should work that way.
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