rubberdinghy Posted May 13, 2008 Report Share Posted May 13, 2008 (edited) Has anybody switched to this?Is it worth it? Edited May 13, 2008 by Guest wicked english dumbass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phishtaper Posted May 13, 2008 Report Share Posted May 13, 2008 we have not but a number of our neighbours have. my understanding is that it essentially adds about 10% to 15% more onto your bill for your kilowatt usage. all of the fixed fees remain unchanged, but you pay a little bit more for what you use. last year during the election, i visited with a neighbour who's on bullfrog and had the green candidate over for the evening. he explained that it would cost the average homeowner about $300 to $400 more per year, but that you somehow are able to claim back about half of that. I didnt quite understand it. (i think i really had to pee and just wanted to leave.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattm Posted May 13, 2008 Report Share Posted May 13, 2008 I'd love to do it, I think it's a great idea and am considering it strongly once I start my new job and get more comfortable financially. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gr8FuL Posted May 13, 2008 Report Share Posted May 13, 2008 Not sure what it is, but if it involves paying more, i dont care to know about it. I'm all about paying less, for everything Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattm Posted May 13, 2008 Report Share Posted May 13, 2008 http://www.bullfrogpower.com/It's green, carbon free power. It hits the pocket book a little harder but lets the conscience off the hook a little bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AD Posted May 13, 2008 Report Share Posted May 13, 2008 seems to me the smart thing to do would be to stay on your current provider, take the 3 or 4 hundred dollars of extra expense for the first couple years and make your home as efficient as possible. then when you make the move to bullfrog you'll be paying hopefully the same as you were, but with a cleaner conscience and a better home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattm Posted May 13, 2008 Report Share Posted May 13, 2008 Great plan. We rent so it's harder (it sucks to sink money into a rental raising the value of it for the guy that actually owns it without much, if any, of a kickback). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skelter Posted May 13, 2008 Report Share Posted May 13, 2008 We're on bullfrog. I don't think we pay a tonne more, but we switched over and did a lot around the house at the same time, so I think it balanced itself out. I sure feel better about my consumption with all the driving I do these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaimoe Posted May 13, 2008 Report Share Posted May 13, 2008 If you can do it, solar is the way to go. You will pay a lot up-front for intallation, but eventually you'll be even able to generate enough that yoy can actually sell some of your extra power back to whatever municipality's region you live in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rabidmonkey Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 So I don't think I get it...If it only costs $1 more per day for all of your personal electricity usage to be green, clean energy, why don't we make things like this mandatory and just charge for it?Is it really for the money savings that we use other sources or would it be impossible for them to produce enough if everyone signed up for this concept?Maybe I'm slow, but can someone explain why this is an option and not just 'the way it is'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timouse Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 So I don't think I get it...If it only costs $1 more per day for all of your personal electricity usage to be green, clean energy, why don't we make things like this mandatory and just charge for it?Is it really for the money savings that we use other sources or would it be impossible for them to produce enough if everyone signed up for this concept?Maybe I'm slow, but can someone explain why this is an option and not just 'the way it is'. i think that there's not enough green energy to go around. the more people that signh up with bullfrog, the more capital they have to invest in clean energy, the more capacity they have...and so on.i'm with AD on this one. i have bought an old house that i am making as energy efficient as possible, then make the switch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rabidmonkey Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 We are doing the same with our 'new to us' old house, new furnace, windows, insulation etc. and trying our best to decrease our usage. I think we will be going with the bullfrog concept sooner than later.I don't think the cost/efficiency of solar is there yet to be a feasible alternative for us yet, but I would love to go that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AD Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 ... If it only costs $1 more per day for all of your personal electricity usage to be green, clean energy...i think this is how it works - if i switch my provider from hydro ottawa to bullfrog, the power still comes from hydro ottawa, but bullfrog gets some money to invest in cleaner technology. bullfrog is a re-seller from what i understand. they don't have any production or distribution capacity.is that right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rabidmonkey Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 This is how it is described by their site:"When you switch to Bullfrog Power, you continue to draw your power from the Ontario grid in the same way that you always have. You don’t need any special equipment or wiring and there is no change in the reliability of your service. We inject green power onto the Ontario grid to match the amount of power your home uses. You have the comfort of knowing that your electricity dollars are supporting clean, renewable power instead of polluting and carbon-intensive sources like coal."I assumed that they were "injecting" the power and therefore producing it, or at least purchasing it from green sources. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamilton Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 I was hoping this thread was going to be about a bunch of bullfrogs on treadmills. :confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattm Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 (edited) So I don't think I get it...If it only costs $1 more per day for all of your personal electricity usage to be green, clean energy, why don't we make things like this mandatory and just charge for it?Is it really for the money savings that we use other sources or would it be impossible for them to produce enough if everyone signed up for this concept?Maybe I'm slow, but can someone explain why this is an option and not just 'the way it is'.if it's possible to make hybrid cars that don't even have to be plugged in but get 80 km/litre***** and 70% less emissions, why aren't all cars hybrids such as these? Who knows, probably costs too much to switch over to newer technology. That and most people just don't care.http://www.toyota.ca/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WWW.woa/10/wo/Home.Vehicles.Prius-8eaOzbKywNHbsFqeWgbVT0/5.11?fmg%2fprius%2fintro.html***** See below, got the number wrong by quite a bit but who cares, my point is still quite valid Edited May 14, 2008 by Guest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rabidmonkey Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 Valid point. I don't have a hybrid and I guess I could have one. I was just thinking that if the ability to produce the electricity for such a small amount more then it would be easier to introduce as we have less of a choice than we do with cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattm Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 (edited) It's all about what consumers want. Right now it's very expensive to make green energy. If enough people want it, the demand is high enough, then power companies will figure out how to make energy green (i.e. windmills on the coasts or the plains or something like that, who knows) but since not many people care, there's no point in making the investment. Same with cars. The prius is $34000 standard which isn't all that bad for the fact that you get the second least co2 emitting car in the world (the least co2 emitter is a 1.4 liter vw) and will save 50% on gas but no one really cares. If they did, they would invest the money to switch the factories over. Once all cars used the hybrid technology, it would be dirt cheap to produce. Same as power. They'd figure out some way to say put giant turbines deep in the ocean to use ocean currents to create immense amounts of power or something like that (damn the guy/gal that figures that one out and makes a tonne of money off it, it's my idea though I could never get it to work...).It's all about what the consumer wants and that consumer is north america cause we have the most money but, well, we're lazy and like I said, we don't care.On those lines, I don't mind in the least shelling out a couple hundred more to help clean up some air and I won't purchase a car until I can get at least a hybrid. Edited May 14, 2008 by Guest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AD Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 mattm - what is that toyota link you posted? it's not working. is there a car that gets 80 km/litre with 70% less emissions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattm Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 (edited) toyota prius as I mentioned in my last post and it's not all that expensive, 5 door hatchback, it's a pretty sweet deal, actually, and you can add such fine features as rear camera so you don't even have to put effort into parking anymore.Toyota.ca and choose to price out a car and then choose the prius.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Priuslol, I got the km/l wrong, it's 71mpg or 25km/l but either way, it's way better and my point is still valid, it's cleaner and if mass produced would get much cheaper and the mpg or km/l would also improve. Steph (slavetothegroove) just made a great comment. She goes to baby parties and talks with the other moms and the general consensus is that hybrids are ugly. OK, lets destroy the environment 'cause they're ugly, that's a perfectly valid reason not to want to do something (ps, toyota also offers camry's and highlanders as hybrids which look the same as their gas guzzling couterparts). Edited May 14, 2008 by Guest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubberdinghy Posted May 14, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 Right, but then you have to take into consideration all the nickel mining that goes into creating these vehicles.Sorta the same way we are now using all the corn for damn Bio-Diesel....It's a lose lose situation.Screw it, I ain't paying more for my hydro...it's already too expensive.High 26 today...better go crank up my A/C! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phishtaper Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 sigh ... seems the only way to reduce your carbon footprint is to cut off your feet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaimoe Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 Car companies could mass produce hybrid cars and make them affordable, but they don't want to because there's not an oil shortage yet. And there's tons of politics involved; see the electric car. Even when auto makers come out with a "green" prototype, it's really a ruse isn't it? These cars never roll off the assembly line and onto a dealer's lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phishtaper Posted May 14, 2008 Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 Even when auto makers come out with a "green" prototype, it's really a ruse isn't it? tad cynical, Jaimoe? i'm seeing a lot of those little smart cars whipping around town. and im noticing more and more hybrids in the parkng lots at work. incremental steps, no doubt, but I think we are generally moving in the right direction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubberdinghy Posted May 14, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2008 I find it interesting that the Canadian Govt uses hydrogen buses, but automakers aren't making this type of car available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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