My Solar Experience

We installed 5kw 10 years ago, we received $20k rebate from state of Florida and the max IRS credit was $2.5 k( if my 82 year old brain remembers correctly). We have thin film photocells so were slightly more expensive, but are much more robust in a hurricane. Our total outlay was only $25k since I did most of the labor. The system makes about $70 per month so has been paid off for years. Our retirement home is only 2000 ft sq and everything is electric including our water. No other utilities.
Bought a Clarity in July and our electric went up about $50 per month. If I were doing a solar system today, it would not be thin film. Cost of thin film has not reduced significantly while major reduction in convention glass enclosed has occurred.

 

We put our panels in service on the same day that we brought home the Clarity last year, 12/20. So about the same time as the OP. After watching our bill go almost ballistic (and me with it) the previous year ($7744), we knew we had to do something. We put up 20 panels in a 7kW system. There is room on the roof and the inverter for more production, but for now, we're OK. As of today - almost one year - we've produced 10.23 MWh and consumed 14.95. Two years ago, our daily average use was 54kWh/day, last year it went up to 58.39 kWh/day. This year it's currently running at 26.7 kWh/day - December's use will likely drop that a little.

Considering we lost about 3 weeks of production in May due to an inverter failure, the reduction in imported electricity this year was still dramatic. Our net consumption drop was about 60%. At our astronomic So Cal rates (even on NM 2.0, all new systems after 11/1 were forced into a Solar TOU, and summer on-peak rates are almost 53¢/kWh between 4 and 9PM) the payback time won't take as long as we thought. This year, we'll likely save over $3700 over last year - and this comes after the addition of the Clarity. With the 30% tax credit for the solar installation (which included running new 240v lines to the garage and one EVSE) and the $7500 tax credit for the Clarity, we paid back more than half of the funds we took out of HELOC for the solar experience. The savings on electricity this year alone knocks off another 30% of what's left to pay off that loan. We expect to pay off the system in about another year. Note that we had to buy a Clarity to make a big dent in the solar, but I'm still counting it. And the Clarity loan is 0.9%, so that's almost free loan money.

We're still awaiting a 10kWh battery (first quarter of 2019 is the expected data of installation) which should boost savings even more during the expensive summer months. We expect to see about a 5-6% decrease for imported energy as a result (some of the summer energy goes back into the grid; we don't get paid much for it) - but it will save more actual money because the energy we replace will be the expensive summer on-peak juice. In the winter, our rates for all levels are right around 23¢/kWh so the loss in production isn't as critical as it is in the summer when on-peak pricing is the highest.

Where we live, and how our house is situated made solar a good decision. Why it took so long for us to make this decision is a good question, but it wasn't until the last two to three years that the electricity rates started going through the ceiling. What broke the bank, so to speak, was when a "high user charge" was instituted on our tiered rate. That put the rates for an entire day's use - not just a few peak hours - at over 55¢/kWh. That was enough.

Happy with all of it so far, the Clarity AND our Solar Array. And according to SolarEdge, we've saved over 8 TONS of CO2 and 409 equivalent trees planted.

 

That is correct, no restrictions allowed on rooftop solar in California.

 

Another important consideration for a solar system is having a micro-inverter on each panel instead of a single inverter for the whole system. With individual micro-inverters, if something goes amiss with one panel, it doesn't bring the whole system down.

 

Love the savings, hate the hype. Before going solar, I researched what it meant to go solar and spoke with various solar companies. I learned two things. 1. Solar companies really range in terms of their knowledge and 2. The promise of solar is overhyped! The full benefits of going solar can't be achieved without a battery option....isn't the idea of solar to automatically charge my home when my power goes out?

 

I'd be happy to just save on my electric bill. The promise of power during an outage is nice if you have that, but usually not an issue for me. i.e. if outage during winter I have an alternate heating and cooking source (living in Oregon). The one case where I really miss power is if we get smoke from fires and I cannot run AC. Anyway, one can check their solar hours using a website here: https://sunroof.withgoogle.com/

It shows you a picture of your roof (satellite view) and estimates 'solar hours.'

I live inside a natural oak forest so my roof doesn't have much sun exposure. Anyway, reason I don't bite. I like the idea so much that if we move, I'd look for something with more sun exposure.

 

I’m pretty satisfied with the money saving aspect of solar. I’ve had solar for about a year and saved $4k in electricity with 1:1 net metering. My electric rate is pretty high up here in MA, so that certainly helps with payback. Looking to install an inverter on my car to power up my refrigerator, gas heating system and a few lights. With my clarity I have a home battery backup of 17 kw with a handy engine to power up that battery if need be!

 

Actually, no, providing power to your home when the power is out is not the main idea of solar at all. The point is to generate your own clean power and not have to buy it from the utility. How solar best works varies a lot by state and the rules for utilities on how they credit you when your solar is generating more power than your house is using. In CT, you get credits basically equal to the power you are giving to the utility. In that case there is no need to store your own with a battery system since they "store" it for you.

So, battery storage only makes sense for certain situations. Some states/utilities credit systems are not consumer friendly, making battery storage more beneficial.

 

“Charge my home”? What research led you to that conclusion? Do you live in a battery?

What does it mean to go solar? Do you believe it’s the same for everyone?

For an owner of an all electric home with a heat pump, air conditioning, electric range, electric water heater, well pump, jacuzzi and possibly the need for charging a car, it could be cost prohibitive to install a solar array and battery backup for such a home. It may be more appropriate to install solar panels to offset some or all of the electricity consumed, and install a generator for occasional power outages.

Electricity rates, TOU plans, alternative fuels and region are also factors.

 

Home batteries are overhyped and overpriced, unless you have a need to go off the grid completely. Note for emergency backup power, if you have natural gas, there are now a number of portable natural gas generators available for under $1000 that can keep your essentials going. The hassle of keeping a gasoline fired generator going during a long outage is awful, especially when all the local gas stations are also lacking power. These portable generators make a lot more economic sense than the whole house type generators that cost $15k and up. OTOH a vehicle based battery that can be used to run your house does make sense, like the new Ramcharger might be.

 

I live in MA and when I got solar the company that did the installation was quite firm that batteries made no sense here and they felt I would be dissatisfied with them if they installed it for me. In some states with TOU rates and garbage net metering it might make sense to install batteries. CA sounds like there could be a financial case made, but not in MA with 1:1 net metering for both generation and delivery costs. We’ve lost power an inordinate number of times over the past few months, so I’m looking into a bypass panel combined with an inverter for the car. I should be able to power my refrigerator and gas heating system, along with a few lights, to get me over the hump for a few days. I’m too old (and absolutely too lazy) to be dragging a generator out when I lose power.

 

Portable generators and extension cords through windows and across the floor can get the job done. I’ve been there before. For us, the cost savings isn’t worth the inconvenience.

A few nights ago, in Michigan, the power went out at 1:45am. Outside temperatures were in the single digits Fahrenheit. The natural gas generator started while we slept and provided power until 11:00am. Priceless. There have been outages that lasted a week, almost always in winter, during a blizzard.

In Oregon, we have solar and battery backup. The batteries are FLA’s, which are much lower cost than lithium and, more than suitable for a grid-tied application. They’ve gotten us through numerous outages of less than 24 hours and one outage that lasted 8 days.

May these short stories enlighten those who believe they have the most suitable solution for others.

 

Welcome (again) to Michigan! If you come for the snow, we finally have some for you. I have a small Honda generator I drag out to keep the furnace, water heater, TV, phones, and 'net going. It can't charge our cars, however. We've needed it only twice in the last dozen years, but an outage makes for an adventure that helps us appreciate our relatively advanced civilization.

 

Fortunently here in Minnesota they passed alaw last year preventing HOA from banning solar..so it is on my list


As of July 1, 2023, Minnesota is one of the 28 states where HOA's must allow solar. Because one in four Minnesota homeowners live in an HOA, this law ensures that rooftop solar will continue to grow in our state. If your HOA already allowed solar installations, nothing has changed for you.

 

I've been very happy with the net-metered solar system on our home. For power outages though, I installed a 10-circuit manual transfer switch so I can selectively power any of my home's 120v circuits as needed. My travel trailer (parked by the garage) has an additional 800 watts of solar panels, 420 amp hours of lithium (lifepo4) batteries, and a 2200 watt inverter, so I use that system to power my home during short (3-4 hours) outages. The trailer always is connected to my home's transfer switch so I don't even have to step outside to switch over the power. For outages longer than that (which occur very rarely here), I can roll out and fire up a portable 3500w gas generator. My RV tow vehicle ('96 Suburban) has a 42 gallon gas tank (which I keep full in case we ever need to evacuate due to a fire), so I always have plenty of gas on hand for the generator. Add into the mix my smaller 2500w dual-fuel generator and all the propane we keep on hand, and I figure we could comfortably go a few weeks without grid power.