Re: The Involved vs. The Apathetic -- odds anyone?

For 20 homes, the average system would be in the 40kW range. It's not like over-subscribing bandwidth... fuses blow when power systems are overloaded.

The problem is that if the system is isolated it's way over sized, and most of the energy just goes down the tubes... It's gotta be grid tied.

You're right about downtown businesses too. Unless the store has 2500 sq ft or more the fixed costs get harder to swallow. I'm not saying it can't work, but the massive advantage over PV starts to diminish, because the the fixed BOS (switchgear, breaker box, electrical hookup, metering, licensing) costs for both PV & Solar Thermal are about the same.