Spare 13 trillion yen for a cup of sake, guv?

[yanpa]

Japan's high-spending legacy

Twenty years ago Japan suffered a huge banking collapse almost identical to the one that Europe and America are trying to drag themselves out of now. But unlike in Europe, Japan did not suffer the pain of austerity.

There were no angry demonstrators taking to the streets. Unemployment stayed low, and the economy continued to grow, albeit slowly. How did Japan do it?

Put simply: the Japanese government decided to spend its way out of trouble.

On a narrow back street in southern Tokyo, a group of young men are unloading shiny new solar panels from a van and hauling them up on to a roof.

The roof belongs to Mrs Motoyoshi, a young housewife with a one-year-old baby, Ko Chan. The panels should be costing Mrs Motoyoshi $25,000 (£16,000). But in Tokyo up to half that cost is covered by government subsidies.

"I wanted to get solar power, so when I heard the government subsidies may be coming to an end I decided I must get the panels now," she says.

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[Coligny]

Somebody got infos aboot these subsidies ?

I'm pretty sure solar panels could also reduce my roof leaks problems...

[kagemusha]

Somebody got infos aboot these subsidies ?

I'm pretty sure solar panels could also reduce my roof leaks problems...

We got around 10 percent of the total cost covered by the government but the rate is different in each prefecture.

[Russell]

I'm pretty sure solar panels could also reduce my roof leaks problems...

I followed a lecture about solar panels, and learned that one of the most occurring problems after installation is roof leak problems. Be careful with selecting the installation company. If they come to your home unasked to promote solar panels, then in the majority of cases they are not up to the job.

Oh, here is a cool web page by which you can calculate how much money you will save by installing solar panels. It uses Google Earth to find your roof, and then you have to outline the part of your roof on which you want to install panels. Then input roof type and angle. The rest is done automatically, even calculation of the subsidies you receive from the country and your prefecture (I seem to recall).

http://solar.rakuten.co.jp/

Just click the button 発電シミュレーション at the top right.

[Coligny]

The calculator is for fixed slope roofs it seems. Nothing for flat square... tall buildings... here I could put the roof mounted panels on heliotropic table and have some fixed ones on the exterior walls to catch more in wintertimes...