So I'm thinking about buying in Ferry county, WA--off the grid. They have a solar program through the PUD that basically lets you "buy" solar equipment with a 20 year loan at zero interest. The thing is they charge roughly $21/watt. They take care of the unit, the batteries, the inverter, etc during the 20 year period, and you pay them the going rate for the electric you use. This seems like a bad deal for several reasons 1) 21 bucks per watt is a lot of money. panels now go for roughly $4.75/watt, 2) The system is "standard." Depending on your architecture (maybe you want to be more DC, and not need an inverter) this might be a bad thing 3) you still have to pay for the electric you use, even though you are buying the solar, so it's not really a zero percent loan on solar, it is a fixed amount + usage. This is not a great deal! How expensive are batteries, how often do you have to change them? How expensive (and necessary) are large true sine inverters? are they prone to failure? See here for more info: http://www.fcpud.com/conservation.htm The reason I ask is I was planning on 24VDC running most of the house, small modified sine wave inverters for items that will tolerate them, some (free) UPS (uninterupted power source--think computer) (plugged into the DC system, the alarm disabled) for more sensitive equipment, and a generator for power tools, A.C., and other high-draw A/C loads. My question is--which system will be the lowest cost over the long haul? If close, I'd just go with the PUD system, as it is "headache free." Rick, do you have an opinion?