I didn't hit the nail on the head. I learned speed reading a long time ago, and like to consider things. THEY hit the nail on the head.

For nuclear, solar, geothermal (including geo-exchange), and wind, capital costs, (amortized) are the major costs to be considered. In the case of nuclear, more attention needs to be paid to safety!

My family is doing this: we use old technology to save present costs (garden, wood heat, cooling with fans, pantry, etc.) and then invest the savings into more modern items where sensible (intensive gardening, geo-exchange, cash investing, etc.) Note that the old methods are low capital, which makes them good for starting out. New methods are sometimes more convenient or efficient, but often need more capital.

Example: heating with a fire pit (the Roman empire used this, the chimney is a Middle Ages invention); heating with efficient fireplaces (the Rumsford fireplace, 1700s); heating with offshoots of the Franklin enclosed stove (including coal, oil, and NG, 1800s & 1900s); heating with solar and seasonal heat storage (including geo-exchange, starting now). Not to mention insulation, heat conserving ventilation, and weather tightness, for conservation. Often the conservation pays the best ROI.

We are in the information age, and should use it.