2 Bite When I read an article about California not letting anyone build a new power plant in their state over 20 years ago. I knew that those save the whales people would flip on the switch one day an they would not come on. Remember when Enron got in trouble for the prices it was charging Californians? 40% of your electricity comes from other states or Mexico. Texas produces all it own electricity and has it's own transmission system not hooked to the rest of the country.
I installed 96 315watt panels with optimizers and three 7.6kw solaredge inverters. I have two large houses, an office, welding shop, all fed from one meter. I have net metering with my utility. My annual production should be about 30mwh/year. Based on my usage history my solar should offset all my net energy plus about 20k miles in my Teslas. I am an electrical contractor so it took 3 guys 3 days to install the entire system. Total cost was $40k minus the 30% tax credit comes to $28k total cost. Our power rates are relatively low at $.11/kwh. So I am saving $3300.00 using solar. I paid for the system up front so the return on my investment is $3.3k / $28k = 11.8% (actually a little more considering the 20k miles in my cars). 11.8% ROI is better than most equity investments and sure beats CDs at banks!
If your personal solar power system isn't worth your money to you what the heck makes you think your personal solar power system is worth my money to me? Pay for your own personal power system. Why the hell do I have to pay for your electric car, your personal solar system, your personal water supply?
I used to have a 3kW leased solar system. Loved it! No upfront costs and after install, it cut our energy cost in half. I support solar power all the way.
@@robbirobson7330 haven't seen any yet . It still gets the same kw per day on average , had no problems with the inverter, I live near the coast and there is no corrosion on alloy parts yet. Cleaning panels regularly makes a big difference .
@@truthbehold8544 maybe it would still be a good idea to have more panels than needed, so if after 25 years or how long the output decreases you still have more than you need to go another 10 or 20 years.
That sounds like a 3kw DC system maximum. How do you live with that little energy? I thought I was doing quite well at 20kWh/day. A 10-year-old 3kWDC where I live would do good to produce 10 kWh/ day.
@@johnd01 I'm the only one there and I've managed to get my kw usage down to 4 kw a day, it took me a while to sort out what was using the most electricity and the replace it . I've got gas hot water gas oven . So it's not going t o work for everyone.
Breakeven is always the question people ask me. I explain that solar is an investment, like a bond which pays an annual return. My net worth doesn't decrease when I buy a 10 year U.S. Treasury note. When the bond matures, I get the principle back. The same is true for a solar system. One's net worth doesn't decrease when you buy a solar system. It increases the equity in your home by an average 4% according to Zillow and others. You recoup that money and more when you sell your house. In the mean time, the "interest" on your investment is the annual savings on your electric bills. Even if you have to take out a home equity loan to buy a solar system, the return is almost always more than the interest on the loan. It really is a no-brainer investment that most people are overlooking.
I live in California and I pay around 16cents per Kw. and this is 2020, and solar panels with the installation cost around 25 thousand where I live. I don't get the point of installing them, it is a rip-off. besides my A/C monster consumes around 3Kw per hour. a solar panel will be useless. painting your home to deflect sun heat will save you from 20 to 30% on the energy bill.
I'm in Western Australia, when I bought my home, one of the first things installed was 22 (maximum) panels to get the Government rebate 7.1 cents per kW, I went from paying between $400AUD per bill to now even during winter month's the biggest bill I have received is $52AUD Jinko Panels and the Envoy Monitered system is what I chose, with an almost $4000AUD saving on the in stall
I recently got solar installed with a fixed monthly bill from the solar provider of $120 for 25 years, 0 cost to me for maintenance and purchase price. My electricity bill used to be all over, ranging from $250-$700 per month... I only pay my electric company the monthly payments for the warranty on gas burner and AC unit. But the electricity bill is to solar provider. I still have yet to get my first bill from solar and electric & gas provider after solar install, hopefully it was a good move to go solar for me because I've never ever gotten an electricity bill under 200 in past 15 years
Based on some rough calculations, I determined that solar panel degradation isn't really a big deal, when your production of electricity drops below a threshold, let's say the 80%, you can just add on an extra panel for every 5 panels, so 10 panels, add 2 and you're back at roughly the same production. That's not taking into account the hopeful gains of efficiency and drop of prices that might make replacing the whole system affordable.
I've been off grid for 26 years and I only have 2000 watts of solar and 2500 amps of batteries. And it works perfectly. Never had a electric bill even if they brought it in I would refuse it. There is no payback.
I've got 8 120 amp hour AGM 3500 watt inverter 3000 watts of panels and run everything of this except my fridge..been going for 8 years batterys cost me 300 each.
@edwardschlosser1 1800w (6×300w) panels in the UK mid 2019 cost £1300, 8 X 160ah lead carbon batteries £2500, I'm totally off grid because the cost to connect is over £10,000.
Can you give a general description about what components of your system...I'm a newbie living in Rural Area with constant power cuts !! Right now a Truck crashed against 2 electric poles and I'm biacked out !! I want to be autonomous. !
Hi, I enjoyed watching you uTube video & especially that you included a narrative of the prices, costs & benefits. So thank you for your presentation & I will look forward to a further update on your PV system & progress in future years. You live in a sunny part of the USA & I reside in the UK (Colchester), at my latitude we do not receive any where near as much sunshine & the weather is cooler, more temperate & cloudier. In October of 2011 I had a 4-kwp system installed on the roof of my house & have since added a few more PV panels to squeeze 5.75 kwp through a 4-kwp inverter. I'll try & give you some maths (as I was so impressed with yours). System cost just over £12,841 in total, but I keep adding to it & tweaking it (I can't seem to help myself - lol). Included in this cost are two Immersun units, two 110v transformers & three power halvers. These help me more fully utilise the power when it's available without importing much electricity from the grid. We don't have net metering here (sob) but we do have a subsidised Feed-in-Tariff, I don't have any export meter either. The FIT income averages around £2,500 pa & it saves me about £350 pa of direct electricity costs. My system paid for itself in 4.95 years & over the 25-years of FIT it should yield an IRR of 21.6% pa. My annual electricity imports are now down to around 125 kwhs pa costing a mere £20 pa on a zero standing charge tariff. Most people don't believe this, however I have the bills & FIT statements to prove these figures. The system generates around 5,000 kwhs pa. I have a very detailed spreadsheet which auto-calculates the discounted cash-flows & income / savings budgeted & compares them to actuals. It also calculates the projected IRR, (I used to work as a cost analyst). The reason my imported electricity bill is so ridiculously low, is that I have gone mad on installing insulation: cavity wall insulation, double thickness loft insulation, triple glazed windows & I will hopefully this summer install insulation under the ground floorboards (horrible job). I also live quite an alternative type of lifestyle, so I live a green & frugal lifestyle. Just thought I'd show to your readers that there are benefits wherever you live in the world to trying to live a greener & more environmentally conscious way of life. I hope this comment helps someone out there. Regards to all, JohnnyK.
Ricky, this is an awesome video. You have convinced me its time to start collecting that sweet sweet free sunshine here in So Cal. Last time we talked about this you had a recommended installer, I need their contact info, so I can start pushing forward. Thanks man!!!
9.5 cents here in Indiana. We haven’t had an increase since 2004 and our local electric company just installed a 5.25 megawatt solar farm to keep the prices down. They also recently refurbished all of the distribution lines and poles here in town. We’re pretty fortunate after hearing what your rates are. All the local schools are installing solar farms to power the schools. They figure roughly $2 million savings per school over the next 20 years.
In the UK our utility companies pay an average of about 5% dividend. While our unit cost (kWh) is about half yours. So it looks like your share holders are getting ripped off as well.
Utilities are generally a regulated monopoly wherever they operate in the US. The stock is closer to a bond in terms of risk / reward profile since they have a guaranteed monopoly on their geographic market, but are regulated to a fixed pricing structure. Because of the lower risk reward curve, the stock price is driven up which minimizes the dividend as a % of stock price. In reality, while there are short-term flaws with an efficient market hypothesis, stocks are priced exactly how the individuals participating in the market determine they're worth, which means that there's no such thing as share holders getting ripped off.
@@Meton2526 if they are charging that much per (kWh) and are still only paying 3% then there is something wrong with the market. Either the shares are over valued and/or regulation is actually pushing the cost of electricity up! In the UK compertition keeps the unit cost in the £0.14-0.19 per kWh range, with off peek over night rates as low as £0.05 Charge your power wall overnight for £0.65 and let the solar top it up as and when it can.
@@patdbean Yes, there is something wrong with the market; government regulation. But no one has to buy stock in any company, and the people that continue to hold shares are doing so because they believe that it's a better value than selling it; they're not getting ripped off, they're getting exactly what they were willing to pay for. But we've also got a REALLY screwed up tax code in the US that causes the exact same dollar of revenue to be taxed multiple times before it's finally spendable by the shareholder receiving a dividend, so most companies have moved away from them, and instead most "profit" from owning stock is from selling it for more than you paid.
Thanks for the solar calculator. I live in Taiwan, and just noticed that I would need to consume much more electricity than I actually do and a +5kWh solar panel pack in order to get a real payback. My actual results would have a payback after 30 years, which it's not worthwhile.
Two months ago, I had an East-West facing 3.25 kw peak solar PV system fitted that benefits from LG monocrystalline panels with solar optimizers, Solar Edge inverter and an Eddi management unit that warms up the hot water tank with surplus energy. Even though I live in Scotland and we have had a rotten summer, my average daily electricity consumption is a unit per day. This has been achieved by behaviour modification such as buying a 1 kw kettle and only running one higher rated electrical appliance at a time to keep the load within what the PV system is presently generating. Even without any financial incentives or export payements, this has future-proofed the house and will pay itself back in about a decade.
@@TwoBitDaVinci I had to work around the orientation of my roof in conjunction with my recorded pattern of electricity useage, so six (325 Watt) panels face east and four face west with both arrays providing their best output between 11 am and 3 pm. The detailed online information from Solaredge is very helpful in getting the best out of the system.
Replaced our 8yo 1.75kW system last July (2018) with a 12.2kW system w/ 2x 5.0kW Fronius inverters at a cost net of rebates of $1.27/watt. Compared to the cost of our first system, this was under half the per watt price with a whole lot more goodies such smart phone monitoring of system and a bit of automatic kit that heats our traditional tank HWS when solar production meets certain parameters 》》at $500 this was/is the cheapest 8-to-10kW battery equivalent on the market and being completely online programmable, I am so far super impressed with its performance. Maximising our self consumption ability was the brief for each installer to quote a system design. That said, the 40 panels were installed as 10N, 10E and 20W across 4 mppts. (I'm in the sthn hemi by the way). Since late Jul18 when commissioned, production to date is 9.6MWh. Est ROI is 15% (taxfree for life of system) and a payback of approx 5 years (would be less if not for restrictions on feed-in with elec co, still working on that one). Very happy so far...next step is an EV with V2H capability. Bring on the Renewable Energy Revolution.
When I first watched this video 3 weeks ago I was researching residential solar and wanted to see real world examples, and thanks in part to the excellent presentation of your very good real world results I decided to install a 6.5kW system from Momentum solar, using Hanwha Q panels and Enphase micro-inverters on my home in SE PA. Unfortunately Pennsylvania isn’t a great place for solar, but it’s not the worst... I got a 15 year loan on the system and if it performs at rated capacity then I will save a few bucks starting with month one, so if we ignore the loan and just look at my monthly spending the system will be “break even” from the day it’s installed. Of course that only happens if the system hits 96% rated performance, which in PA might be overly optimistic. I will follow up here once I get the system installed and have some numbers, if you are curious.
I'd love to get an update on your solar system. I'm in south-central PA, so similar weather conditions. My house is ideal for a solar rooftop installation (no shade, south facing, higher than neighboring houses) but unsure about the ROI given the # of sunshine days and my average electric consumption.
Here’s an update on my solar system after 30 months: My 8kW system typically maxes out at about 50kWh produced on a nice sunny day, and averages a little over 1MWh per month in the sunny months (March - August) dropping down to a low of barely 400kWh in December and January. 2020 and 2021 each saw just over 9MWh of production in total for the year, and my electric costs $0.13482/kWh, so a savings of $1,213.38 for the year, for an average of $100/month. Unfortunately my monthly loan amount is $136, so *at current prices* I’m in the red $36/month until 2034, at which point the system will be paid for, and I will start saving $100/month, so another 5 years to recoup my losses and, sometime in 2039, finally start actually saving money. This is why solar doesn’t always make sense… if your location isn’t good, or if your electric rates are low, then the payback takes distressingly long. The “good” news is that, since the loan is fixed, if the cost of electricity goes up, then the payback happens sooner. When the cost of electricity reaches $0.1814/kWh I will break even, on monthly average, but, since my solar doesn’t usually meet 100% of my usage, my total monthly costs will still be higher than now. One way to look at my current situation is that I’m paying $36/month now for more savings in the future, how soon that future comes depends on electric rates. In the mean time, my solar system has reduced my carbon footprint, so there is also value in that.
Great video. I used your previous ones before I got my solar system. I've found that the real benefits (savings) are by leveraging solar to provide cheaper energy costs than what we currently use. So just comparing it to the power purchased from the electric company doesn't do it justice. Shifting from using my whole house gas furnace and reducing the set back temp on it to using electric space heaters in the winter saves me about $35/mo. Also moving to purchasing gasoline to electric for EV is (going to) save me $360/mo in energy costs (not including net savings for maintenence) based on the marginal increase in costs (monthly finance payments) for the larger solar array I bought to pay for the extra electricity use. Which after 12 years when the finance terms (@3%interest) ends, increase my savings. Just examples of how solar can be leverage to save more money by redirecting expensive energy use to cheaper sources. Great work, keep it up
@@TwoBitDaVinci thank you. I have a background working for an energy services company where we would have to guarantee savings through conservation and generation measures for cities and school districts. I had one of my vendors, pingo solar, who did my home (after much scrutiny) see if they were interested in reaching out to you. They are very good in service and pricing. Instead of micro inverters, have you looked at using optimizers? They seem to be cost effective
NC. Again, I bought everything "wholesale" and installed it myself. Really easy, Ironridge racking system on my metal shop roof, 17-18 panels per string, 2 strings per inverter, 3 Solaredge 7600 HD inverters with optimizers. Real quick and easy install. I had to rework some electrical taps in some of my breaker panels and install a large 200 amp disconnect at my meter base to meet code. Real happy with the results. I would love to get a wrecked Tesla battery pack and install an inverter to see if I could bank my own power. The net metering is a sweet deal but at some point the utilities will not be able to offer it. I wish Tesla would allow two way power flow so I could use my cars for storage. Ultimately that will be the future, all EVs plugged in all the time as a sink and source for the grid. I have been in renewable energy for 40 years and this is the first time I can honestly say renewables can work to make a real difference! Battery technology is finally coming of age and will make solar of real value.
@Andy, have you ever considered recording your setup and sharing to the world? The more we share in how to install solar systems the more we can see the rise in clean energy and happier family's saving money.
@@Mr_Battlefield Yes I should. Not enough hours in the day, nor enough days left in life! Maybe someday I can get caught up? I run my own business and it keeps me hoping!
If you do not want solar panels, use water and wind. Use a wind turbine, make it yourself or buy it. Use the stream of a river if you are fortunate to have this behind your garden. Make yourself some propeller that's connected to a motor. Make it waterproof, you'll have always some energy to charge batteries. You have a roof, when it rains the rains goers somewhere, isn't? make a propeller connected to a motor once again, you'll charge your batteries as well when it rains. So, a wind turbine and a propeller that turns by water. There will be wind even at night, your batteries will be charging during the night. Just a thought. Something I'm making right now. My goal is like everyone, to power my freezer and fridge. And what about heat? When you use a fireplace, place aluminium tubes in the chimney where water runs through. Your water will be heated for free.
My electric bill is a minimum of $500 a month. I use kerosen heat, and have a gym membership. I basically have a fridge and led lighting and live in 1 room, i charge my phone and ipad. I told the electric company to shut it off i dont need it. 5 monts later i saved $2500 and the only problem I have is charging my phone and ipad. I have a grocery store at the end of my block and i grill daily.
If at some point you move to another house, you should consider choosing a DC-coupled inverter and battery. This could save you up to 20% in system expenses.
I've installed 6.6kw of panels and a 5kw inverter system onto my house, it cost me fully installed AUD$5700 after the government rebates. With a 5 person home and me working from home most days we haven't paid a power bill in over 2 years, in fact the credit has amounted enough that I can have the electricity company pay me. Worth it.
@@kielanmajor2030 I used a Melbourne based company named Evergreen Solar Power, I purchased Jinko panels and a Fronius inverter, I don't live in Melbourne they had no issue having the installer travel to central Vic.
IM in San Diego too and I love my 36 panels in my big house the bill it's under 75. a month and this is my 5 year with them in 1 more year my circulation it will pay off.
Well now many people ask when they are going to recuperate their expenditure, what I would like to know is when do you recuperate your expenditure paying the electric company or dumping money into fuel and maintenance for a generator?
excellent video. The opportunity cost discussion about investing in the stock market vs the cost of panels was a good point to address, but given that utility costs are a sunk cost regardless, solar can be a no-brainer in the right circumstances.
I purchased and installed my own off grid system of 12,000 watts in panels, 800 watts in micro wind turbines, 8 kwh battery bank, 3k watts inverters, and 3 60 amp solar charge controllers and all the fixings (shunt and multi meter, rectifiers, wires, fuse boxes, breaker boxes, light sockets, etc.) for 4 thousand bucks and have been running for a year and a half now. Off grid is the way to go, if your county allows it. Learn to run your heating and cooling first, eliminate the largest part of your power bill, use the grid as backup.
Solar panels are an extremely conservative investment. Even if the stock market tanks, they continue to provide power. Thus you really should only compare against conservative investments that are very unlikely to crash with the general market.
Excellent point. I worked in commercial solar for three years. You know who invests in those solar farms? Conservative life insurance companies. They are getting 8% IRR, essentially guaranteed. That there proves solar is a smart investment.
I’m a solar professional. Very good information. I live and work in Florida, and I did in Texas as well. Both Florida and Texas have different programs.
utility companies are limited at raising the prices each year by 8%. if you look at your year to year rates, youll see that the companies do actually follow that. i will be ordering solar panels for sure in the next few years
I just installed a 7kw array on my house. DIY. No rebates no tax credits. I bought the panels on ebay, inverter, power optimizers. I used Sunpower 327w (21 of them) It took 5 days to install working 3 hours per day. The panels cost 31 cents per watt, solaredge power optimizers $60 per and inverter was $850. My entire system with me doing 100% of work was $5400. Once again no rebates or tax credits. SInce Dec 13, 2018 to Mar 12, 2019 I have generated 1.4mwh. Worst time of year, rainy, cloudy. My payback should be 5 years at 10c per kw for electric here. Even on a cloudy day my power coming from the gris is zero. I also bought the sense monitoring system so have a real time reading of what I use. Since I do not have it registered yet, I feed the grid on sunny days. I got commercial grade panels that were used 3 years. They are so cool as they generate 60 volts. Optimizers regulate that so each string puts out 390 volts off the roof. Wiring is very small and each panel is monitored. I can see the production per day per panel. I was in Cozumel and checked on production and could see if it was cloudy or not based on seeing the power of each panel. There is a shady area on 3 of the panels. You can see the shade effect on a sunny day but they produce almost the same on each panel on a cloudy day. Cost installed no tax credits or rebates, installation time 15 hours. 80 cents a watt!!
The new net metering rules make my "powering yourself" concept even more important. Don't export your excess solar power to the grid. Use it yourself using smart device and battery usage. I talk about this concept on my channel and my blog.
For me, solar is worth it just to poke the fossil fuel companies and hangers on in the eye and stop filling the pockets of people that don't deserve your hard earned money. What could be better than clean energy independence?
I couldn't agree more! When I first got my system, I was a bachelor and had a super low bill. The installers even said I wasn't a good candidate. I got solar as more of a science experiment so I could understand performance first hand, and generation my own energy. I mean, how cool is that
@@TwoBitDaVinci Absolutely, and you get enjoyable and priceless first hand experience and sense of profound satisfaction. At least that's my experience of building 480W of portable solar panels for my ebike that together fit in my backpack and weigh just 10 pounds. (24 x A3 foamboard sheets and 144 sunpower cells).
@@TwoBitDaVinci Yes, just a 1.5kW hubmotor kit and a pile of lipos fitted to an old mountain bike. Not exactly cutting edge stuff, but I love it to bits. Have collected about 7kWh of 18650 cells which I'm going to put in a trailer to give it a stupid amount of range this year!
I self installed my own 5Kw Array this year for $3000. Net metering @ $0.125/kWh puts my ROI at about 3 years. 20x 250w BenQ panels Home made ground mount. Danfoss DL 4.4kW Grid tie inverter You can buy used panels for next to nothing, and if they're less than 10-15 years old, they're worth buying used over new.
I'm a home owner who pays taxes. I purchase 5 300w panels three years ago. I learned how to install them efficiently and safely myself. I've since added an additional 5 250w panels and use a 3kw LF inverter from 4kw LiFePO4. I'm totally off grid. All this for under $4000.00 and NO SUBSIDIES!
I am from Australia , I have a 6.3kw (20 Phono panels) solar system . Its summer here and I get 15 cents per kwh when I send power back into the grid . 38.5 kwh a day is my best so far . Have not paid a bill since getting solar on my roof and i get a credit quarterly .
I have read the comments and remarks that people have made. Ther are three points that dominate the project are, 1. Cost the cost of the system to start with and how much return savings you are expecting to get back. 2. what is the total amount of your power consumption ?. space and direction the roof is facing and storage space. Third qestion to ask is if the panles are so good, way dosent every house not have them ?. And that is the same argument is around everyweher you go. 4. dose your system include hot water ?. if not will you be installing one? I am installing them as i live of grid on an sailing catamaran. Gerard.
I have a totally different experience. I installed a 20 kw system on March 2019. 60 LG panels with 335 watt per panel. The system designed to provide 75% of my need. After a year of operation my electric bill increased by 20%. This is taking into account the 15 years loan payment to pay for the system.Two factors that partially contributed to this increase. SECO, utility in Lake County Florida, pay whole sale price for any surplus kwh generated from my solar system and when I need it in the same evening I pay the retail price. The balance is instantaneous and not on a monthly or annual bases. Such policy is destroying any solar incentives. By the way I am a retired Solar Energy Scientist.
Florida is really behind in this regard. You sir need a battery next. I’m going to be getting a power wall soon. I’m also going to attempt a diy battery project. If your utility won’t compensate you fairly, you have to go battery. Plus you’ll be better prepared for emergencies
Here in Texas, we have a 2400 sq. ft home. Our electricity bill for last month was $53. (Oct 15 - Nov 15) But I am interested in Tesla's rentable solar arrays.
tixximmi1 : I volunteer for a non-profit solar company. You would not qualify because your rate is too low and the payback period would be longer than the projected life of the system.
@@M13x13M Yes I know. Furthermore I couldn't take advantage of the tax credits. But I still get companies telling me that they could save me money. I already own 5 bridges, don't need another one.
@@burtonnystrom4606 Yes I know how it works. The renting model allows you to know the upfront costs rather than crossing your fingers and hoping you'll make out. And I would place the figure more towards $125 per month.
@@burtonnystrom4606 And, by renting you can cancel as the panels "wear out". You're not stuck with them. It's a great idea, hope they can execute the plan.
Thanks for sharing and making a great video about your experience. I have the best house in my neighborhood for solar and decided to go for it this year. I had my garage roof redone 2 months ago and will have a 5.3kW system installed next month on it. This faces south of course (I am in Michigan) and I also have a big part of the back of my house roof that faces south - will consider more solar in the future on that, could time it to get a battery as well and then produce everything I use (or very closely) but will remain grid tied as the winter isn't nice here. I view getting solar as diversifying investments. It may not have the best ROI but it has one and is really nice knowing you are making your own clean energy.
Went online with my Solar City 7.8kW grid tie string inverter system July 1, 2015. It has given me a 70% of use return over its life so far. I had just moved to this location and it was an 'All Electric Home'. I bid low on the initial look, not really wanting all electric. We got the house and 2.3 acres for $90K under asking. I retired about a year later and paid for the system with a bonus I got when retiring. The residence will get converted to a heat pump with 90%+ propane backup and propane water heater and range. We are at about $.124 per kWh now, were at about $.113 when we started. We net differently in Colorado, it is on a yearly record of use/generation. We can make up to 125% of our yearly use and get paid back at the retail rate, any generation of over 125% that gets sent back to the grid only makes wholesale reimbursement. I like it. The utility here, United Power, is currently going to a time of day pricing scheme now that they have smart meters everywhere. They are not making solar customers go to this scheme at this time, thank goodness. I am considering a second system on my shop out back as I am now retired and am building a home business. I have a separate meter on the shop, so I can get the same deal on 125%, the up front advantages aren't as high as they were back then, but the cost of solar has gone way down. I am going to start with 12X 72 cell panels on an E/W tracker with N/S adjustment manually once a month or so, going to use the Enphase grid tie microinverters. The shop is used for welding and woodworking and has R38 walls and roof. I have installed a Modine 92% 110K Btu propane unit heater and will put in a heat pump with an evaporative cooler to cool the condenser in very hot weather. It gets down to single digit humidity here in the hotter months of the year. I am making the second system very expandable so if I make very much more than the 125%, I will start using some of the high sun power to heat water and store & use during nighttime in the colder parts of the year. My rooftop system makes the most power in spring and fall probably because of the roof angle, also the high temps of summer combine with the sun angle to make fall - winter - spring the money times of the year. Cold rainy day yesterday 11% of use, not really that bad. Temps were 31° low 44° high, resistance heating in the house - space heating and hot water. House is Brick with 2x6 R32 walls and ceiling. We are about 45 miles NE of metro Denver. We have sun here a LOT. Solar has been good to me and I am going to continue to expand my use of it. It's not about the money entirely, it's about common sense. Michael from Colorado.
Some numbers that people may find useful: we just installed solar in eastern Massachusetts. $34K for 32 panels @ 325 watts each (10.4 Kw). We expect to get about $11K back on our taxes in 2020, and are borrowing $23K in home equity to finance the rest. The payoff time is about 7.5 years. The sunlight is not as good as in a southwestern city, and we may take down a tree to increase the power (would be helpful for our garden as well). The system won't power the house if the grid goes down. The only way to actually be off-grid is to install a house battery such as Tesla, and then we could almost kiss the power company goodbye. However it's another $15K that we can't afford at present; first we have to pay for the current system, so maybe in 4-5 years as prices come down it'll be worthwhile. We're told solar adds value to the home. That was not always true; years ago, solar was a liability; people worried it would make roof repair and replacement more expensive. It does indeed, so if your roof is within 5 years of needing replacement, you should go ahead and do it, and then it will last roughly as long as the panels, i.e. 20-25 years. I don't actually recommend going solar unless you're an environmental extremist (like my wife). I like my 20 MPG minivan and my fossil-fuel-powered home just fine. Energy prices are historically low right now and gasoline for example costs about the same as it did in 1970, when adjusted for inflation. Natural gas is dirt cheap and is quickly replacing coal in power plants. Anyway, it's certainly better to have solar than not to have it. Once it's paid for itself, we'll be very glad to have done it in 2019 while the federal credit was still 30%. It's going down to 26% in 2020, then 22% in 2021. But panel prices are dropping, too, so possibly will balance out. What doesn't seem to drop very fast is the installation price, which is 90% labor. Luckily there are lots of companies competing in this space, and they have it down to a fine art -- it took them about a day and a half to do ours, start to finish, and that included de-icing the roof on a chilly December day. For fewer panels and less challenging weather conditions, it should take 3-4 guys one long day. In 20 years, who knows what energy innovations will have come. Probably panels (if we even still call them that) will be far more efficient, far cheaper, maybe will just be incorporated into the average roof as Tesla's doing now with their expensive but gorgeous "stealth" solar roofing. Probably batteries will also be far better and cheaper. It's also possible that someone will invent a miniature fusion generator; Lockheed and other companies are hard at work trying to come up with such a thing, to enable aircraft to stay aloft for months at a time. But that tech does not exist yet. For now, the best production technology is what you can get installed, and expect a payoff of 5-7 years depending how much and how many.
Your system cost is really high. In Germany you get 10kWp for $15K complete. I could buy 32 of your panels for around $5k online. We don't get tax credits, but 10 cent per kWh we put into the power grid. Since we don't have as much sun, our break even here is around 10 years. With runtimes of at least 20 to 25 years, it's still a good investment.There are banks over here that give out credits for 1-2% for pv, because it's save money. If you have a big roof, a pv system can pay your energy costs and a big part of home owner tax and house insurance.
@@Psi-Storm Does that include cost of labor? I actually didn't want to install solar; I just finished paying off my debts and did not want to borrow, but my wife insisted. If it were up to me, I would have spent about $5K for a DIY system to just feed my home office and maybe the refrigerator.
@@ChickensAndGardening In Germany, yes. You would pay around 1100€ per kWp + 19% Vat for the complete installation. The tax you get back because your pv is considered a small buisness. If you build bigger and already have a scaffolding because you are roofing the house anyway, that price can drop to 950€.
If you are adding a battery/s to your system there is a company called Redflow that manufactures Zinc bromine batteries. They are totally (and easily) recyclable, can be completely discharged (run flat) with no damage to the battery and they excel in hot conditions. I'm not sure if they sell to the states but you could check out their website if interested. They sell for approximately $10,000 for a 10 KW battery
The installation of the "Direct T.V. antenna" can destroy your roof; the roof structure will be destroyed by the large bolts . . . I had to replace 3/4" plywood where this antenna was attached . if the solar panels are attached with large screws it could cause your roof to leak and the repair is expensive.
At our family home, we have solar panels and battery with inverter. But we also got a DC line direct from the batteries running in the home. This we use for DC LED lighting.
Great 8-year review. You might increase your energy consumption during solar production hours by using a heat pump water heater (which will decrease your water heating energy). In addition, these usually have a heating element. If you connect this to an energy diverter, then some diverters will allow you to increase the level of energy consumption from energy generated. In this way you could increase the percentage of energy when generating more energy. Also, keep in mind that this is the last year of a 30% Federal tax credit. So, if you are increasing the size of your system, this might be a good year to do it.
E K I have seen some panels that are water cooled the heat waist is the used for domestic hot water! My freind heats his pool with a low volume pump cycling the water!
Dana Putnam I rather not get involved with all that plumbing. Your idea is great for keeping the solar panel’s work temperature a bit lower, but if you think about it, most solar systems in the northern hemisphere overproduce energy in the summer, and they produce less energy in the winter due to the angle of the solar resource. In other words, despite the additional summer heat, solar panels manage just fine. In addition, keep in mind that solar panel costs probably will increase due to the additional complexity of the internal water tubing required. Today I can find reasonably good quality solar panels for around $0.50 per watt. I prefer the system I suggested: few solar panels, some wires, a hot water heat pump, plus an energy diverter. Moreover, since the time I wrote this, I learned that myEnergi makes a diverter called the Eddi which has the ability to control a hot water heat pump directly with the addition of an sense board. This allows for possibly the greatest efficiency in terms of energy self consumption from solar panels.
Yeah I get that. This guy also has a sprinkler on a timer to keep the dust from blocking the light. Of course you know that heat causes more electric resistance so the low volume pump is more than free. Here in California the utility has to buy back the electricity from its solar clients. So the more you make the lower your bill because you sell back what your not using. I don’t know but I would guess keeping the temp down may increase longevity (expansion contraction on crystalline (brittle ) ) substrate causes fracturing . Electrical resistance can displace + / - p junctions and string links lowering overall capacity.of current.
Dana Putnam most systems have more panels than the rated inverter size. Therefore, even if one is paid to produce, there is a limit to how much the grid will buy. The limit is the size of the rated inverter, and then to top it off, there is curtailment, and this applies, particularly, to California. Therefore, I believe setting a roof solar system to maximize self consumption of produced solar energy is the best that can be accomplished. At some point, all grid operators will pay less for energy produced than for energy sold to consumers. Therefore, feed-in-tariff schemes will become less valuable as more consumers install solar roofs. In fact, the current evolution of things in most countries is to transition from FIT to net metering. The best that a humble consumer can do is to attempt to produce energy at the lowest possible cost and consume as much as possible of the produced energy. This can best be done by following the old adage of K.I.S.S.
#1 thing to consider before installing a solar array. Is the price of my electricity more than around 18 cents per Kwh and do I get enough unobstructed sunlight seasonally? This can make all the difference in the world. I thought I might just add my most helpful advice in what I learned about solar panel installation. A string inverter is where all the panels are hooked up in series or parallel, and the major drawback is you never know what the input of the individual panels is, and the least of these individual panels output is what your overall output is going to be. I can get more technical, but trust me on this point. Microinverters, meaning that each individual panel has its own inverter allows you to get voltage from each panel, and the ancillary benefit is that you can monitor them separately and/or together as a unit. This may sound like a small difference, but trust me it's not. If a string inverter strokes out you are done. If a microinverter shoots the shit, you are just out that single panel. I am not a promoter of Enphase, but I pondered this question many times. Do I want all the benefits of microinverters and pay 20% more, or do I want the limitations and catastrophic failure potential of a string inverter? I would go as far as to say get 20% fewer panels and go for the microinverters if you can't afford more. About batteries. For the commercial customer, they don't make economic sense unless you are off-grid as of Feb 23, 2019. This may change very soon. even in the next couple of years. And if you are super handy with electrical stuff, you can buy second-hand 2170 lithium-ion batteries on eBay or someplace and build your own battery affordably. If money is no issue, then the only advantage batteries have is uninterrupted power service during power outages. I look forward to the day batteries make economic sense, because then we are off to the races with energy independence.
@@rnegoro1 If your question is if the battery is unnecessary to the operation of the solar panel array, absolutely yes. You do not need a battery for a solar panel array. The major advantage if you DO decide to have a battery is if there is a storm, and everyone in your neighborhood has no power, you will have a battery back up. The other potential advantage is when the sun goes down, during the early evening, power rates are higher. A battery could offset or mitigate some of that cost. The problem is the battery as of today, Feb 24, 2019, the battery may only last 10 years and will cost 10k (on average). So in those terms, it doesn't make economic sense. Is that helpful?
To the best of my knowledge, and research, the materials used in solar and wind turbines are basically removed from the economy, they cannot be reclaimed. That's the main reason I am against them and in favour of nuclear. Also, I live in the UK where neither will ever amount to much, and to produce enough energy to cope with today's demands would require covering 25% of our land area with panels/turbines. And guess what? When we most need the energy, at night and winter, coal and nuclear are the only options. Something else Two Bit da Vinci doesn't tell you, is that current cells or turbines will produce less energy over their working lives than it took to manufacture them. As a point of fact, the British government has removed the facility for selling your energy back to the grid which used to offset the installation price. Now, any excess to your needs goes into the grid for no recompense. This video is basically a sales promotion.
@@KillerBill1953 not true. There are underground markets for used panels. The fact of the matter is that panels are very sturdy. Most that have been installed are still in use. What usually breaks is the front glass. It's my understanding that this glass can be replaced.
@@KillerBill1953 In Germany there is legislation that forces sellers to take used solar panels back and to recycle them which can be done to a degree of 95%. But since there is no legislation in the US for that and it is cheaper to build new panels instead of recycling old ones it is not done. It is a political issue not an environmental one. Plus your figures are wrong and there is a lot of misinformation in your post but that would lead too far to adress it.
@@burninghard If you say so. I do know that apart from the most recent designs, solar panels use more energy in their manufacture than they generate. The materials used to make them cannot be recovered. You need to look at the life cycle of a product, not just when it is used. Most products use most energy during their manufacture but people ignore the energy used to transport them, install them, and then take them away and dispose of them. That is not misinformation any more than anything else I have written. Like all Climate Change Cultists you tell me I am wrong but you argument is so self-evident you feel no need to back it up with fact. All over Europe are warehouses full of bailed plastic bottles which cannot be recycled because they are made of a plastic laminate. They can be used to some small degree but most never will be. The super magnets used in wind turbines cannot be broken down and the materials reused. Neither wind nor solar are a realistic solution to the manufactured problem of carbon emissions. CO2 is a trace gas and not the demon it has been turned into. Have a very good day. When we don't burn up in 12 years, and we all know that will not happen, perhaps you will recall my views.
Solar pro here. Do not clean your panels. Leave them alone. A research study performed in Southern CA found that there was virtually no difference in performance between never-washed panels and panels washed semiannually. What will happen is that contaminants in your water will permanently discolor the panel frames.
I am new to solar. It would have been nice to get a what is next guide after my install. I am now 2 months in and not quite sure what to expect. One thing I am noticing is that my energy provider is still billing me at a rate more that I expected since I am now on solar power. So not really sure if I was to cancel my utility company or keep them. And if I am keeping them I just thought my bill would be less since my panels are generating my energy.
There are quite a few things that this video does not mention about: 1. TOU tariff, which is consumer has to pay different prices at different time depending on when the electricity is consumed. The electricity is much more expensive (double or even triple price) in peak hours (usually from 5:00pm to 10:00pm) when your solar panels have little output. 2. Monthly charges for NEM users. So even if you do not use any energy from the grid, you still have to pay about $20(YMMV) bucks as long as you connect to the grid in CA. 3. No more tax credit. So now it takes even longer than before to break even for you initial investment. Solar is good, but not as cheap as you imagine.
J Q batteries from used EVs are cheap got 7kw for 1,200$ charge during the day with solar use them at peak rate times. If I exceed storage I charge at night for pennies. Infact in some situations I don’t even need solar to break even.
My 4kW system cost $10K, no tax breaks or subsidies. It will pay for itself in 5 years through electric bill savings. But the biggest advantage, to me at least, is the change in lifestyle. I generate slightly more than I use, so I don't have to be careful in my usage. I can run my heat or A/C and not worry about what it costs. I can leave my refrigerator open as I get things out for dinner. I can run two 26-cubic-feet refrigerator-freezers with a clear conscience. I can keep two large desktop computer systems running (religious differences: I'm Windows, Wife is Macintosh), I can run my swimming pool and my garden lights all I want. Finally, I can pat myself on the back a little bit for giving my excess to the grid on a 12-month use-it-or-lose-it basis and doing my tiny little bit to help the planet. Putting in solar panels was one of the smartest things I have done in a long time.
@@TwoBitDaVinci Only to the extent that I called a solar panel installation company that claimed to have been in business for a few years and told them I needed about 25 kWh per day and when did they think they could have it up and running. :-) I *did* specify the layout -- it was put on stanchions on my upper deck to provide shade as well as electricity.
What will happened when there is power outage? How good are the Tesla backup batteries? Are any other backup batteries? Are these backup batteries worthy of investment? Are they able to cover a medium size home during the night time? What's the warranty for these batteries? If you need to change them, what's the replacement cost? This guy did not say too much about the advantages and disadvantages of the leased or buy (cash)? If someone can afford, and can get a great interest, is it worthy to buy? In the end, based on people's experience, is it better to buy or lease? Thanks for your help.
Just signed up for solar a few weeks ago and cannot wait for installation. Here in Florida electric is cheap 9.5 cents for first 1,000 used so break even is longer. But reduction in bill covers the monthly loan payment, and after 10 years free electric power. Just bought electric chain saw and cultivator instead of gas powered. And my next car will probably be a plugin hybrid.
I'm in Seattle, expecting a 5-6 year payback period. State incentive, 30% tax credit, referral credit, and only about $100 a year that goes to Seattle City Light to be connected to the grid. 5kW Solaredge w/ 16 LG panels + DC Optimizers. 1st year production was right at 7MWh! They estimated 5.6MWh.
Just installed 600w panels, 40amp charge controller, 3000w inverter, and 340 aH of lithium in my rv. Panels were about a dollar a watt. What you're not telling people is the astronomical cost of batteries/storage of that power. My 2 Renogy lithium batteries cost 3 grand. Panels themselves are fairly cheap. And I did the work myself. But it is nice to know wherever I am, I can microwave some corn dogs.
When I told people who asked that my payback time would be roughly 10 years, they said stuff like, "That's too long. It isn't worth it." I usually reply, "I have been paying the local electric utility for more than 10 years and they still haven't called me and told me that since I have paid my bills on time and have been a good customer, I am paid up you won't be billed again." My other choice for a response is, "So you don't own your own home because the mortgage takes too long to pay off and it isn't worth it. You rent instead?" They mostly get an odd expression and decide it isn't worth the effort because I just don't understand their logic. They would be right, to me the ten years is too long of a payback argument doesn't stand up.
Nice job...5 yrs ago I qualified for Solar City lease option here in LV NV-16 beautiful panels installed 1 day no maintenance issues. Working with a broker also installed his solar in Townhome here. Will share this with QUINCY.
I live on an sailing catamaran and i am installing an 750 watt system and that will produce enough power to charge my 300 Amp hour battery bank in 6 hours. Gerard.
Glad you mentioned the Enphase inverters. Solar City, aka Tesla uses them exclusively. I bought some shares and it is happy to return the investment. I own Tesla shares which owns Solar City that uses Enphase Inverters. It's like planting trees to offset CO2 emissions.
You have retail net metering. How can batteries pay in your system? Where I am the utility does not want to let you charge your batteries from the grid. They also set the differential low enough that you will probably have to buy new batteries about the time you break even.
Coming up on six years for my solar, my install cost was $4000 after credits. It lowered my bill from $800 every 3 months to around $250, so my payback was about 2 years and 3 months, I have added more panels last year and now my bill is about $50 every 3 months. I did get lucky with the extra panels only 2 years old from a factory being demolished for $40 each. Go solar as soon as you buy your own home, you wont regret it ever
did you watch it? 8 years 9 months based on my 2011 system. i'll break even in the first part of 2020 but for how much bigger a system you could buy today, my breakeven period would be about 3.5 years. its all in the video
There are plenty of people that live in snowy areas that also have solar. They will normally have a long Pole device to remove snow from their panels after a storm. Remember also the panels will heat up once the sun comes out. I would also suggest adding a wind generator because typically snowy areas have lots of wind in the winter.
Hi Jason - very nicely done and informative video. An easy way of looking at the cost of your system is to divide the system cost by the amount of kWh generated. In your case, it would be $6,400 divided by 14,100 kWh (14.1 MWh). Your cost at 8 years is slightly more than $.45/kWh.
Recently I got a price for the smallest system that my states regs. allows for grid tie. 3500 watts installed was $2.70 per watt. My state allows the power provider to pay me only 50% of their rate for excess power and does not have any rebates. The payback is over ten years. I am considering a mini split with direct solar PV and a reenginered PV powered hybrid electric water heater. These require some changes in my life style but geez, a five year payback verses ten years . HVAC and water heating now have options such as the mini split and hybrid mode only water heating that is a attractive option where a state is not solar freindly such as my state and notably Florida.
I'm wondering if you could tie in the battery system in an electric or hybrid vehicle to your main system to increase you capacity. Thinking mainly for emergency grid down situations.
Well, if you are signing up for net metering now in Southern California, you can no longer be on a tiered system! You have to be on the Time-of-Use rate plan where they pay you very little during peak solar generation hours and charge you 50% more in the evening. So yeah, instead of investing in large scale energy storage facilities to balance out the power, SC Edison will just force customers to pay way more after sunset, no brainer, right?
On that Tax issue... "The United States has spent more subsidizing fossil fuels in recent years than it has on defense spending, according to a new report from the International Monetary Fund. The IMF found that direct and indirect subsidies for coal, oil and gas in the U.S. reached $649 billion in 2015" (Rolling Stone 8th May 2019)
Good Video. I am here in TX and will be waiting to see what you find out. So you know, there are areas in TX with Monopolies for utilities. I know because I live in one. They are called Co-ops here and you have ZERO choice. But the guy across the street could based on the boundaries. I went with a 15kw system and 2 PWs in December of 2018. The payback period is very long due to low rate. Probably less environmental regulations though. As far as Net Meter, good luck with a Co-op! I have monthly net meter. No Rollover. If I underproduce, I pay the full retail rate. If I overproduce, they just take it with no rollover of credit to the next month. Where I grew up, that’s called STEALING. Plus there is no grandfathering with a Co-op in Texas.
Yeah. real long payback time unless rates jump. But there are allot of benefits for the Environment and back up power with the Powerwall if you have the time to recoup it
Came here to say this. Don’t get me wrong, this is a great video, but that was inaccurate. Also, the price per watt mentioned is without considering installation costs. And as per your co-op, I assume you’re with Oncor, so try switching to Green Mountain Energy. They have a really good buy-back program.
Omar Guerrero Actually I am in that CoServ region of North Texas. But Coops were not part of deregulation in Texas. Therefore you CANNOT switch providers and you MUST use them. Literally you have no choice for electricity. Now the rates are great but their NetMeter policy is terrible.
that's right, its STEALING... that's why you have to take out the middle man and do it yourself, its not hard... it does take a real effort.. NEVER LEASE SOLAR... its always been a scam. the power company will always try to screw us, and they will if we let them. the only way is to take control and learn... imho.. believe in yourself and buy 1 item at a time if you have to. I use the power company for backup, a service fee I pay once a month... small money for backup. people just read and watch videos and use anything in your power to get off of the power companys invoiceing, they will always take the small persons money if they are allowed to. good luck
Great video. I am a subscriber and am a fan of the channel. I found the video on why tesla cars are the safest very insightful and interesting and I look forward to more videos. The only thing I would respectively have a different opinion on is, I think that solar panels are a much better as an investment than suggested at 6:00. In my view comparing it to the Nasdaq (or the stock market) is not a fair comparison as it is much risker than solar panels and returns vary significantly even over 8 year periods. For the period in question the Nasdaq performed better but over other periods the Nasdaq has performed worse (Someone who invested over a 8 year period in 2005 would have lost money (the Nasdaq declined from ($42.28) 2nd December 2005 to ($38.55)13th December 2013. The value of solar panels also does not experience sharp drops of 1/3 to 1/2 in short periods of time. The level of risk with Solar Panels is much more like US government bonds or Bank savings accounts. (I.e. a steady consistent return). It compares favourably to them in the current low interest rate environment (if you live somewhere sunny like California). Maybe you could compare them in a future video. As an investment, solar panels also offer asset class diversification, as they are an independent asset class. The output from the solar panels does not correlate with returns from the stock market, bonds, or housing, reducing risk in a portfolio. The Solar Panels may also add to the overall value of the house. I live in Northern England and would love to have solar payback after 5 years, but unfortunately the payback time if I am at home all day is 18 years. If I am out until 4 most days there is no pay back (i.e. its longer than the warranty term of 25 years), so its very much location dependant.
Hey Andrew, so glad to hear it! I made the stock market comparison because I got hundreds of comments mentioning it. Yeah it’s not a comparison I’d make either.
So, when are you going to expand what you have up there to beat the rising costs and get out of that second tier pricing ? And will you consider enough battery now to take you through the 4-9 peak hours year-round ? Are you sited such that you can pick up more early morning or late afternoon to augment your gain curve ramps ?
I,m just so glad a I found your channel...I feel were reaching the tipping point, more and more people getting on board...THANKS TO EXCELLENT VIDEOS LIKE THIS.
Would you mind setting the video's language to English? UA-cam is actually generating German subtitles for this video... This would help me because I'm not good at English... Thanks
And I thought PG&E rates were expensive until I saw yours. Sheesh. SDG&E really is raking you guys over the coals with rates. Thanks for the video. Been looking at putting a system on our roof with an LG Resu 10kWh battery. Will be interested to see how you like your powerwall (or other battery).
Thanks Mark, yeah I asked around, and my friends in LA and SF both pay less... that was really surprising... but what can one do? Oh, I know, make one's own energy :) Yes I'm looking forward to the powerwall!
@@TwoBitDaVinci Have you considered the LG RESU 9.8kWh? I'm looking at that as opposed to the powerwall. Would be interested in your thoughts about the two.
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2 Bite When I read an article about California not letting anyone build a new power plant in their state over 20 years ago. I knew that those save the whales people would flip on the switch one day an they would not come on. Remember when Enron got in trouble for the prices it was charging Californians? 40% of your electricity comes from other states or Mexico. Texas produces all it own electricity and has it's own transmission system not hooked to the rest of the country.
Did you get3the tesla wall?
Not yet. Still waiting, there are pretty long wait times
@@TwoBitDaVinci well I pretty sure I can get you one if you are interested.
You may want to have a look at enphase batteries again. They are releasing their new model to rival Tesla dec 19/jan 20
I installed 96 315watt panels with optimizers and three 7.6kw solaredge inverters. I have two large houses, an office, welding shop, all fed from one meter. I have net metering with my utility. My annual production should be about 30mwh/year. Based on my usage history my solar should offset all my net energy plus about 20k miles in my Teslas. I am an electrical contractor so it took 3 guys 3 days to install the entire system. Total cost was $40k minus the 30% tax credit comes to $28k total cost. Our power rates are relatively low at $.11/kwh. So I am saving $3300.00 using solar. I paid for the system up front so the return on my investment is $3.3k / $28k = 11.8% (actually a little more considering the 20k miles in my cars). 11.8% ROI is better than most equity investments and sure beats CDs at banks!
Wow 96 panel system for $40k that sounds amazing. Where do you live!
@Andy, Do you have any battery backup systems added to your solar setup?
Did you install it yourself?
Since YOU did it DIY/ AND PAID UP FRONT... CONGRATS AND THANKS FOR SAVIN THE PLANET!!!! KUDO'S 2 U !!!!
If your personal solar power system isn't worth your money to you what the heck makes you think your personal solar power system is worth my money to me? Pay for your own personal power system. Why the hell do I have to pay for your electric car, your personal solar system, your personal water supply?
I used to have a 3kW leased solar system. Loved it! No upfront costs and after install, it cut our energy cost in half. I support solar power all the way.
Solar is the way to go! Great job! 👍👍
I was about to lease some panels. Luckily I saw this, the fact that they may put a lien against my property is an absolute deal breaker.
100% agree. Take your time save and own them
I've had 10 solar panels for 10 years and haven't paid for electricity for 10 years . Broke even after cost in 3 years so 7 years of profit.
what about panel degradation can you see any difference after 10 years?
@@robbirobson7330 haven't seen any yet . It still gets the same kw per day on average , had no problems with the inverter, I live near the coast and there is no corrosion on alloy parts yet. Cleaning panels regularly makes a big difference .
@@truthbehold8544 maybe it would still be a good idea to have more panels than needed, so if after 25 years or how long the output decreases you still have more than you need to go another 10 or 20 years.
That sounds like a 3kw DC system maximum. How do you live with that little energy? I thought I was doing quite well at 20kWh/day. A 10-year-old 3kWDC where I live would do good to produce 10 kWh/ day.
@@johnd01 I'm the only one there and I've managed to get my kw usage down to 4 kw a day, it took me a while to sort out what was using the most electricity and the replace it . I've got gas hot water gas oven . So it's not going t o work for everyone.
Breakeven is always the question people ask me. I explain that solar is an investment, like a bond which pays an annual return. My net worth doesn't decrease when I buy a 10 year U.S. Treasury note. When the bond matures, I get the principle back. The same is true for a solar system. One's net worth doesn't decrease when you buy a solar system. It increases the equity in your home by an average 4% according to Zillow and others. You recoup that money and more when you sell your house. In the mean time, the "interest" on your investment is the annual savings on your electric bills. Even if you have to take out a home equity loan to buy a solar system, the return is almost always more than the interest on the loan. It really is a no-brainer investment that most people are overlooking.
Just had 22 x 320w panels installed each panel cost $190. SolarEdge system with microinverters brilliant.
Nice looking to go solar!
Love the brake down the bill. Best video out of 25+ plus on solar I watched today.
@M Detlef F u kid who cares go to a English teachinnnnn site u idiot trolllll and you is is is blokededed
I live in California and I pay around 16cents per Kw. and this is 2020, and solar panels with the installation cost around 25 thousand where I live. I don't get the point of installing them, it is a rip-off. besides my A/C monster consumes around 3Kw per hour. a solar panel will be useless. painting your home to deflect sun heat will save you from 20 to 30% on the energy bill.
Where in ca? I doubt you pay $0.16 between 4-9pm
I'm in Western Australia, when I bought my home, one of the first things installed was 22 (maximum) panels to get the Government rebate 7.1 cents per kW, I went from paying between $400AUD per bill to now even during winter month's the biggest bill I have received is $52AUD
Jinko Panels and the Envoy Monitered system is what I chose, with an almost $4000AUD saving on the in
stall
I recently got solar installed with a fixed monthly bill from the solar provider of $120 for 25 years, 0 cost to me for maintenance and purchase price. My electricity bill used to be all over, ranging from $250-$700 per month... I only pay my electric company the monthly payments for the warranty on gas burner and AC unit. But the electricity bill is to solar provider. I still have yet to get my first bill from solar and electric & gas provider after solar install, hopefully it was a good move to go solar for me because I've never ever gotten an electricity bill under 200 in past 15 years
Based on some rough calculations, I determined that solar panel degradation isn't really a big deal, when your production of electricity drops below a threshold, let's say the 80%, you can just add on an extra panel for every 5 panels, so 10 panels, add 2 and you're back at roughly the same production.
That's not taking into account the hopeful gains of efficiency and drop of prices that might make replacing the whole system affordable.
I've been off grid for 26 years and I only have 2000 watts of solar and 2500 amps of batteries. And it works perfectly. Never had a electric bill even if they brought it in I would refuse it. There is no payback.
hey show me how to make this
I've got 8 120 amp hour AGM 3500 watt inverter 3000 watts of panels and run everything of this except my fridge..been going for 8 years batterys cost me 300 each.
@edwardschlosser1 1800w (6×300w) panels in the UK mid 2019 cost £1300, 8 X 160ah lead carbon batteries £2500, I'm totally off grid because the cost to connect is over £10,000.
@edwardschlosser1
I love your math. Lol
Amazing how simplified math works, an equation like your mouth + sentence × post = bull shit.
Can you give a general description about what components of your system...I'm a newbie living in Rural Area with constant power cuts !! Right now a Truck crashed against 2 electric poles and I'm biacked out !! I want to be autonomous. !
Hi, I enjoyed watching you uTube video & especially that you included a narrative of the prices, costs & benefits. So thank you for your presentation & I will look forward to a further update on your PV system & progress in future years.
You live in a sunny part of the USA & I reside in the UK (Colchester), at my latitude we do not receive any where near as much sunshine & the weather is cooler, more temperate & cloudier. In October of 2011 I had a 4-kwp system installed on the roof of my house & have since added a few more PV panels to squeeze 5.75 kwp through a 4-kwp inverter. I'll try & give you some maths (as I was so impressed with yours). System cost just over £12,841 in total, but I keep adding to it & tweaking it (I can't seem to help myself - lol). Included in this cost are two Immersun units, two 110v transformers & three power halvers. These help me more fully utilise the power when it's available without importing much electricity from the grid. We don't have net metering here (sob) but we do have a subsidised Feed-in-Tariff, I don't have any export meter either. The FIT income averages around £2,500 pa & it saves me about £350 pa of direct electricity costs. My system paid for itself in 4.95 years & over the 25-years of FIT it should yield an IRR of 21.6% pa. My annual electricity imports are now down to around 125 kwhs pa costing a mere £20 pa on a zero standing charge tariff. Most people don't believe this, however I have the bills & FIT statements to prove these figures. The system generates around 5,000 kwhs pa. I have a very detailed spreadsheet which auto-calculates the discounted cash-flows & income / savings budgeted & compares them to actuals. It also calculates the projected IRR, (I used to work as a cost analyst). The reason my imported electricity bill is so ridiculously low, is that I have gone mad on installing insulation: cavity wall insulation, double thickness loft insulation, triple glazed windows & I will hopefully this summer install insulation under the ground floorboards (horrible job). I also live quite an alternative type of lifestyle, so I live a green & frugal lifestyle.
Just thought I'd show to your readers that there are benefits wherever you live in the world to trying to live a greener & more environmentally conscious way of life. I hope this comment helps someone out there.
Regards to all,
JohnnyK.
Ricky, this is an awesome video. You have convinced me its time to start collecting that sweet sweet free sunshine here in So Cal. Last time we talked about this you had a recommended installer, I need their contact info, so I can start pushing forward. Thanks man!!!
9.5 cents here in Indiana. We haven’t had an increase since 2004 and our local electric company just installed a 5.25 megawatt solar farm to keep the prices down. They also recently refurbished all of the distribution lines and poles here in town. We’re pretty fortunate after hearing what your rates are. All the local schools are installing solar farms to power the schools. They figure roughly $2 million savings per school over the next 20 years.
That’s amazing thanks for sharing. Yeah our rates are really brutal
In the UK our utility companies pay an average of about 5% dividend. While our unit cost (kWh) is about half yours. So it looks like your share holders are getting ripped off as well.
Utilities are generally a regulated monopoly wherever they operate in the US. The stock is closer to a bond in terms of risk / reward profile since they have a guaranteed monopoly on their geographic market, but are regulated to a fixed pricing structure. Because of the lower risk reward curve, the stock price is driven up which minimizes the dividend as a % of stock price. In reality, while there are short-term flaws with an efficient market hypothesis, stocks are priced exactly how the individuals participating in the market determine they're worth, which means that there's no such thing as share holders getting ripped off.
@@Meton2526 if they are charging that much per (kWh) and are still only paying 3% then there is something wrong with the market. Either the shares are over valued and/or regulation is actually pushing the cost of electricity up! In the UK compertition keeps the unit cost in the £0.14-0.19 per kWh range, with off peek over night rates as low as £0.05 Charge your power wall overnight for £0.65 and let the solar top it up as and when it can.
@@patdbean Yes, there is something wrong with the market; government regulation. But no one has to buy stock in any company, and the people that continue to hold shares are doing so because they believe that it's a better value than selling it; they're not getting ripped off, they're getting exactly what they were willing to pay for.
But we've also got a REALLY screwed up tax code in the US that causes the exact same dollar of revenue to be taxed multiple times before it's finally spendable by the shareholder receiving a dividend, so most companies have moved away from them, and instead most "profit" from owning stock is from selling it for more than you paid.
@@Meton2526 they are regulated by the Public Utilities Commission. The P.U.C. mostly does what the utilities ask.
Thanks for the solar calculator. I live in Taiwan, and just noticed that I would need to consume much more electricity than I actually do and a +5kWh solar panel pack in order to get a real payback. My actual results would have a payback after 30 years, which it's not worthwhile.
Two months ago, I had an East-West facing 3.25 kw peak solar PV system fitted that benefits from LG monocrystalline panels with solar optimizers, Solar Edge inverter and an Eddi management unit that warms up the hot water tank with surplus energy. Even though I live in Scotland and we have had a rotten summer, my average daily electricity consumption is a unit per day. This has been achieved by behaviour modification such as buying a 1 kw kettle and only running one higher rated electrical appliance at a time to keep the load within what the PV system is presently generating. Even without any financial incentives or export payements, this has future-proofed the house and will pay itself back in about a decade.
Very cool. Why did you go east facing? I’m considering installing a west facing system to offset our crazy expensive 4-9pm prices of $0.56/kWh!
@@TwoBitDaVinci I had to work around the orientation of my roof in conjunction with my recorded pattern of electricity useage, so six (325 Watt) panels face east and four face west with both arrays providing their best output between 11 am and 3 pm. The detailed online information from Solaredge is very helpful in getting the best out of the system.
Replaced our 8yo 1.75kW system last July (2018) with a 12.2kW system w/ 2x 5.0kW Fronius inverters at a cost net of rebates of $1.27/watt. Compared to the cost of our first system, this was under half the per watt price with a whole lot more goodies such smart phone monitoring of system and a bit of automatic kit that heats our traditional tank HWS when solar production meets certain parameters 》》at $500 this was/is the cheapest 8-to-10kW battery equivalent on the market and being completely online programmable, I am so far super impressed with its performance. Maximising our self consumption ability was the brief for each installer to quote a system design. That said, the 40 panels were installed as 10N, 10E and 20W across 4 mppts. (I'm in the sthn hemi by the way). Since late Jul18 when commissioned, production to date is 9.6MWh. Est ROI is 15% (taxfree for life of system) and a payback of approx 5 years (would be less if not for restrictions on feed-in with elec co, still working on that one). Very happy so far...next step is an EV with V2H capability. Bring on the Renewable Energy Revolution.
Just paid $2.70 a watt ground mount system, INSTALLED. It pays to wait sometimes....
When I first watched this video 3 weeks ago I was researching residential solar and wanted to see real world examples, and thanks in part to the excellent presentation of your very good real world results I decided to install a 6.5kW system from Momentum solar, using Hanwha Q panels and Enphase micro-inverters on my home in SE PA. Unfortunately Pennsylvania isn’t a great place for solar, but it’s not the worst...
I got a 15 year loan on the system and if it performs at rated capacity then I will save a few bucks starting with month one, so if we ignore the loan and just look at my monthly spending the system will be “break even” from the day it’s installed. Of course that only happens if the system hits 96% rated performance, which in PA might be overly optimistic. I will follow up here once I get the system installed and have some numbers, if you are curious.
I'd love to get an update on your solar system. I'm in south-central PA, so similar weather conditions. My house is ideal for a solar rooftop installation (no shade, south facing, higher than neighboring houses) but unsure about the ROI given the # of sunshine days and my average electric consumption.
How much is the 15 year loan?
Here’s an update on my solar system after 30 months: My 8kW system typically maxes out at about 50kWh produced on a nice sunny day, and averages a little over 1MWh per month in the sunny months (March - August) dropping down to a low of barely 400kWh in December and January. 2020 and 2021 each saw just over 9MWh of production in total for the year, and my electric costs $0.13482/kWh, so a savings of $1,213.38 for the year, for an average of $100/month. Unfortunately my monthly loan amount is $136, so *at current prices* I’m in the red $36/month until 2034, at which point the system will be paid for, and I will start saving $100/month, so another 5 years to recoup my losses and, sometime in 2039, finally start actually saving money. This is why solar doesn’t always make sense… if your location isn’t good, or if your electric rates are low, then the payback takes distressingly long.
The “good” news is that, since the loan is fixed, if the cost of electricity goes up, then the payback happens sooner. When the cost of electricity reaches $0.1814/kWh I will break even, on monthly average, but, since my solar doesn’t usually meet 100% of my usage, my total monthly costs will still be higher than now. One way to look at my current situation is that I’m paying $36/month now for more savings in the future, how soon that future comes depends on electric rates. In the mean time, my solar system has reduced my carbon footprint, so there is also value in that.
@@cynthiacole6140 Loan repayment is $136/month for 15 years, and if I pay it off early I save some interest, with no penalties.
Two ways to “make money”: increase intake and decrease out going (solar to decrease bill)
Great video. I used your previous ones before I got my solar system.
I've found that the real benefits (savings) are by leveraging solar to provide cheaper energy costs than what we currently use. So just comparing it to the power purchased from the electric company doesn't do it justice. Shifting from using my whole house gas furnace and reducing the set back temp on it to using electric space heaters in the winter saves me about $35/mo. Also moving to purchasing gasoline to electric for EV is (going to) save me $360/mo in energy costs (not including net savings for maintenence) based on the marginal increase in costs (monthly finance payments) for the larger solar array I bought to pay for the extra electricity use. Which after 12 years when the finance terms (@3%interest) ends, increase my savings.
Just examples of how solar can be leverage to save more money by redirecting expensive energy use to cheaper sources.
Great work, keep it up
wow those are great points, sounds like good info for a future video, thanks!
@@TwoBitDaVinci thank you. I have a background working for an energy services company where we would have to guarantee savings through conservation and generation measures for cities and school districts.
I had one of my vendors, pingo solar, who did my home (after much scrutiny) see if they were interested in reaching out to you. They are very good in service and pricing.
Instead of micro inverters, have you looked at using optimizers? They seem to be cost effective
Jim Lee great analysis keep it up.👍
NC. Again, I bought everything "wholesale" and installed it myself. Really easy, Ironridge racking system on my metal shop roof, 17-18 panels per string, 2 strings per inverter, 3 Solaredge 7600 HD inverters with optimizers. Real quick and easy install. I had to rework some electrical taps in some of my breaker panels and install a large 200 amp disconnect at my meter base to meet code. Real happy with the results. I would love to get a wrecked Tesla battery pack and install an inverter to see if I could bank my own power. The net metering is a sweet deal but at some point the utilities will not be able to offer it. I wish Tesla would allow two way power flow so I could use my cars for storage. Ultimately that will be the future, all EVs plugged in all the time as a sink and source for the grid. I have been in renewable energy for 40 years and this is the first time I can honestly say renewables can work to make a real difference! Battery technology is finally coming of age and will make solar of real value.
That’s super cool. Yeah this is a very exciting time at the intersection of solar and battery storage
@@TwoBitDaVinci Great job, as always! Thanks!
@Andy, have you ever considered recording your setup and sharing to the world? The more we share in how to install solar systems the more we can see the rise in clean energy and happier family's saving money.
@@Mr_Battlefield Yes I should. Not enough hours in the day, nor enough days left in life! Maybe someday I can get caught up? I run my own business and it keeps me hoping!
@@420......... Ashe county, western NC
If you do not want solar panels, use water and wind. Use a wind turbine, make it yourself or buy it. Use the stream of a river if you are fortunate to have this behind your garden. Make yourself some propeller that's connected to a motor. Make it waterproof, you'll have always some energy to charge batteries. You have a roof, when it rains the rains goers somewhere, isn't? make a propeller connected to a motor once again, you'll charge your batteries as well when it rains. So, a wind turbine and a propeller that turns by water. There will be wind even at night, your batteries will be charging during the night. Just a thought. Something I'm making right now. My goal is like everyone, to power my freezer and fridge. And what about heat? When you use a fireplace, place aluminium tubes in the chimney where water runs through. Your water will be heated for free.
My electric bill is a minimum of $500 a month. I use kerosen heat, and have a gym membership. I basically have a fridge and led lighting and live in 1 room, i charge my phone and ipad. I told the electric company to shut it off i dont need it. 5 monts later i saved $2500 and the only problem I have is charging my phone and ipad. I have a grocery store at the end of my block and i grill daily.
That's pretty godamn impressive. Kudos, sir.
If at some point you move to another house, you should consider choosing a DC-coupled inverter and battery.
This could save you up to 20% in system expenses.
I've installed 6.6kw of panels and a 5kw inverter system onto my house, it cost me fully installed AUD$5700 after the government rebates. With a 5 person home and me working from home most days we haven't paid a power bill in over 2 years, in fact the credit has amounted enough that I can have the electricity company pay me. Worth it.
Kev who did you go through to purchase and install?
@@kielanmajor2030 I used a Melbourne based company named Evergreen Solar Power, I purchased Jinko panels and a Fronius inverter, I don't live in Melbourne they had no issue having the installer travel to central Vic.
Awesome mate cheers!
Question how much was your bill yearly or avg monthly?
I like the way you deal with credential cost / benefit and adding more panels over time
IM in San Diego too and I love my 36 panels in my big house the bill it's under 75. a month and this is my 5 year with them in 1 more year my circulation it will pay off.
that's awesome! I've been asking my friends in LA and the bay area, and I think we actually pay a fair bit more than either of those big locales!
Well now many people ask when they are going to recuperate their expenditure, what I would like to know is when do you recuperate your expenditure paying the electric company or dumping money into fuel and maintenance for a generator?
Also inflation of a non renewable energy source will continue to escalate making today’s investment even more meaningful
excellent video. The opportunity cost discussion about investing in the stock market vs the cost of panels was a good point to address, but given that utility costs are a sunk cost regardless, solar can be a no-brainer in the right circumstances.
I purchased and installed my own off grid system of 12,000 watts in panels, 800 watts in micro wind turbines, 8 kwh battery bank, 3k watts inverters, and 3 60 amp solar charge controllers and all the fixings (shunt and multi meter, rectifiers, wires, fuse boxes, breaker boxes, light sockets, etc.) for 4 thousand bucks and have been running for a year and a half now. Off grid is the way to go, if your county allows it. Learn to run your heating and cooling first, eliminate the largest part of your power bill, use the grid as backup.
Subscribed for Powerwall! Can't wait to see your video on that!
Solar panels are an extremely conservative investment. Even if the stock market tanks, they continue to provide power. Thus you really should only compare against conservative investments that are very unlikely to crash with the general market.
Great point
Yep. It's an upfront cost with little/no risk going forward. If you size it right, you have zero monthly costs after your initial "investment".
Excellent point.
I worked in commercial solar for three years. You know who invests in those solar farms? Conservative life insurance companies. They are getting 8% IRR, essentially guaranteed. That there proves solar is a smart investment.
I’m a solar professional. Very good information. I live and work in Florida, and I did in Texas as well. Both Florida and Texas have different programs.
Can I ask you a question about solar ?
utility companies are limited at raising the prices each year by 8%. if you look at your year to year rates, youll see that the companies do actually follow that. i will be ordering solar panels for sure in the next few years
Hi, where do you see the 8% limit?
I would like read up on this regulation.
I just installed a 7kw array on my house. DIY. No rebates no tax credits. I bought the panels on ebay, inverter, power optimizers. I used Sunpower 327w (21 of them) It took 5 days to install working 3 hours per day. The panels cost 31 cents per watt, solaredge power optimizers $60 per and inverter was $850. My entire system with me doing 100% of work was $5400. Once again no rebates or tax credits. SInce Dec 13, 2018 to Mar 12, 2019 I have generated 1.4mwh. Worst time of year, rainy, cloudy. My payback should be 5 years at 10c per kw for electric here. Even on a cloudy day my power coming from the gris is zero. I also bought the sense monitoring system so have a real time reading of what I use. Since I do not have it registered yet, I feed the grid on sunny days.
I got commercial grade panels that were used 3 years. They are so cool as they generate 60 volts. Optimizers regulate that so each string puts out 390 volts off the roof. Wiring is very small and each panel is monitored. I can see the production per day per panel. I was in Cozumel and checked on production and could see if it was cloudy or not based on seeing the power of each panel. There is a shady area on 3 of the panels. You can see the shade effect on a sunny day but they produce almost the same on each panel on a cloudy day.
Cost installed no tax credits or rebates, installation time 15 hours. 80 cents a watt!!
Thanks for being so thorough.
The new net metering rules make my "powering yourself" concept even more important. Don't export your excess solar power to the grid. Use it yourself using smart device and battery usage. I talk about this concept on my channel and my blog.
Wow, how do you not have 10 times the amount of subs you currently have. Super underrated!
Wow thanks so much for saying that ;) cheers
@@TwoBitDaVinci both of you get it. I wish i had become a subscriber earlier.
For me, solar is worth it just to poke the fossil fuel companies and hangers on in the eye and stop filling the pockets of people that don't deserve your hard earned money.
What could be better than clean energy independence?
I couldn't agree more! When I first got my system, I was a bachelor and had a super low bill. The installers even said I wasn't a good candidate. I got solar as more of a science experiment so I could understand performance first hand, and generation my own energy. I mean, how cool is that
@@TwoBitDaVinci Absolutely, and you get enjoyable and priceless first hand experience and sense of profound satisfaction.
At least that's my experience of building 480W of portable solar panels for my ebike that together fit in my backpack and weigh just 10 pounds. (24 x A3 foamboard sheets and 144 sunpower cells).
wow that's awesome! you built the bike yourself?
@@TwoBitDaVinci Yes, just a 1.5kW hubmotor kit and a pile of lipos fitted to an old mountain bike. Not exactly cutting edge stuff, but I love it to bits.
Have collected about 7kWh of 18650 cells which I'm going to put in a trailer to give it a stupid amount of range this year!
I wouldn't say I dont deserve your hard earned money Andy. I mean the work I do does give you the ability to live a pretty comfortable life.
i have had mine for 7 years and have zero degradation, i have been shocked how well these have held up.
Which panel brand did you use?
Canadian Solar, still look like new, same output.
I self installed my own 5Kw Array this year for $3000. Net metering @ $0.125/kWh puts my ROI at about 3 years.
20x 250w BenQ panels
Home made ground mount.
Danfoss DL 4.4kW Grid tie inverter
You can buy used panels for next to nothing, and if they're less than 10-15 years old, they're worth buying used over new.
I'm a home owner who pays taxes. I purchase 5 300w panels three years ago. I learned how to install them efficiently and safely myself. I've since added an additional 5 250w panels and use a 3kw LF inverter from 4kw LiFePO4. I'm totally off grid. All this for under $4000.00 and NO SUBSIDIES!
Thanks bro, 5300w panels would translate to how many individual panels?
@@princexl33840 I believe they meant 5-300W panels with an additional 5-250W panels for 10 panels and 1500W and 1250W respectively.
I am from Australia , I have a 6.3kw (20 Phono panels) solar system . Its summer here and I get 15 cents per kwh when I send power back into the grid . 38.5 kwh a day is my best so far . Have not paid a bill since getting solar on my roof and i get a credit quarterly .
That’s awesome! Bought an EV and am planning to add more panels to my system
I have read the comments and remarks that people have made. Ther are three points that dominate the project are, 1. Cost the cost of the system to start with and how much return savings you are expecting to get back. 2. what is the total amount of your power consumption ?. space and direction the roof is facing and storage space. Third qestion to ask is if the panles are so good, way dosent every house not have them ?. And that is the same argument is around everyweher you go. 4. dose your system include hot water ?. if not will you be installing one?
I am installing them as i live of grid on an sailing catamaran.
Gerard.
I have a totally different experience. I installed a 20 kw system on March 2019. 60 LG panels with 335 watt per panel. The system designed to provide 75% of my need. After a year of operation my electric bill increased by 20%. This is taking into account the 15 years loan payment to pay for the system.Two factors that partially contributed to this increase. SECO, utility in Lake County Florida, pay whole sale price for any surplus kwh generated from my solar system and when I need it in the same evening I pay the retail price. The balance is instantaneous and not on a monthly or annual bases. Such policy is destroying any solar incentives. By the way I am a retired Solar Energy Scientist.
Florida is really behind in this regard. You sir need a battery next. I’m going to be getting a power wall soon. I’m also going to attempt a diy battery project. If your utility won’t compensate you fairly, you have to go battery. Plus you’ll be better prepared for emergencies
Here in Texas, we have a 2400 sq. ft home. Our electricity bill for last month was $53. (Oct 15 - Nov 15) But I am interested in Tesla's rentable solar arrays.
tixximmi1 : I volunteer for a non-profit solar company. You would not qualify because your rate is too low and the payback period would be longer than the projected life of the system.
@@M13x13M Yes I know. Furthermore I couldn't take advantage of the tax credits. But I still get companies telling me that they could save me money. I already own 5 bridges, don't need another one.
Never rent and if your power bill is less than 100 in summer it’s not worth it for you to go solar unless you just want to produce your own power
@@burtonnystrom4606 Yes I know how it works. The renting model allows you to know the upfront costs rather than crossing your fingers and hoping you'll make out. And I would place the figure more towards $125 per month.
@@burtonnystrom4606 And, by renting you can cancel as the panels "wear out". You're not stuck with them. It's a great idea, hope they can execute the plan.
Thanks for sharing and making a great video about your experience. I have the best house in my neighborhood for solar and decided to go for it this year. I had my garage roof redone 2 months ago and will have a 5.3kW system installed next month on it. This faces south of course (I am in Michigan) and I also have a big part of the back of my house roof that faces south - will consider more solar in the future on that, could time it to get a battery as well and then produce everything I use (or very closely) but will remain grid tied as the winter isn't nice here.
I view getting solar as diversifying investments. It may not have the best ROI but it has one and is really nice knowing you are making your own clean energy.
You should retitle this "Why Go Solar", it could reach an even wider audience.
Went online with my Solar City 7.8kW grid tie string inverter system July 1, 2015. It has given me a 70% of use return over its life so far. I had just moved to this location and it was an 'All Electric Home'. I bid low on the initial look, not really wanting all electric. We got the house and 2.3 acres for $90K under asking. I retired about a year later and paid for the system with a bonus I got when retiring. The residence will get converted to a heat pump with 90%+ propane backup and propane water heater and range. We are at about $.124 per kWh now, were at about $.113 when we started. We net differently in Colorado, it is on a yearly record of use/generation. We can make up to 125% of our yearly use and get paid back at the retail rate, any generation of over 125% that gets sent back to the grid only makes wholesale reimbursement. I like it. The utility here, United Power, is currently going to a time of day pricing scheme now that they have smart meters everywhere. They are not making solar customers go to this scheme at this time, thank goodness. I am considering a second system on my shop out back as I am now retired and am building a home business. I have a separate meter on the shop, so I can get the same deal on 125%, the up front advantages aren't as high as they were back then, but the cost of solar has gone way down. I am going to start with 12X 72 cell panels on an E/W tracker with N/S adjustment manually once a month or so, going to use the Enphase grid tie microinverters. The shop is used for welding and woodworking and has R38 walls and roof. I have installed a Modine 92% 110K Btu propane unit heater and will put in a heat pump with an evaporative cooler to cool the condenser in very hot weather. It gets down to single digit humidity here in the hotter months of the year. I am making the second system very expandable so if I make very much more than the 125%, I will start using some of the high sun power to heat water and store & use during nighttime in the colder parts of the year. My rooftop system makes the most power in spring and fall probably because of the roof angle, also the high temps of summer combine with the sun angle to make fall - winter - spring the money times of the year. Cold rainy day yesterday 11% of use, not really that bad. Temps were 31° low 44° high, resistance heating in the house - space heating and hot water. House is Brick with 2x6 R32 walls and ceiling. We are about 45 miles NE of metro Denver. We have sun here a LOT. Solar has been good to me and I am going to continue to expand my use of it. It's not about the money entirely, it's about common sense. Michael from Colorado.
Some numbers that people may find useful: we just installed solar in eastern Massachusetts. $34K for 32 panels @ 325 watts each (10.4 Kw). We expect to get about $11K back on our taxes in 2020, and are borrowing $23K in home equity to finance the rest. The payoff time is about 7.5 years. The sunlight is not as good as in a southwestern city, and we may take down a tree to increase the power (would be helpful for our garden as well). The system won't power the house if the grid goes down. The only way to actually be off-grid is to install a house battery such as Tesla, and then we could almost kiss the power company goodbye. However it's another $15K that we can't afford at present; first we have to pay for the current system, so maybe in 4-5 years as prices come down it'll be worthwhile.
We're told solar adds value to the home. That was not always true; years ago, solar was a liability; people worried it would make roof repair and replacement more expensive. It does indeed, so if your roof is within 5 years of needing replacement, you should go ahead and do it, and then it will last roughly as long as the panels, i.e. 20-25 years.
I don't actually recommend going solar unless you're an environmental extremist (like my wife). I like my 20 MPG minivan and my fossil-fuel-powered home just fine. Energy prices are historically low right now and gasoline for example costs about the same as it did in 1970, when adjusted for inflation. Natural gas is dirt cheap and is quickly replacing coal in power plants.
Anyway, it's certainly better to have solar than not to have it. Once it's paid for itself, we'll be very glad to have done it in 2019 while the federal credit was still 30%. It's going down to 26% in 2020, then 22% in 2021. But panel prices are dropping, too, so possibly will balance out. What doesn't seem to drop very fast is the installation price, which is 90% labor. Luckily there are lots of companies competing in this space, and they have it down to a fine art -- it took them about a day and a half to do ours, start to finish, and that included de-icing the roof on a chilly December day. For fewer panels and less challenging weather conditions, it should take 3-4 guys one long day.
In 20 years, who knows what energy innovations will have come. Probably panels (if we even still call them that) will be far more efficient, far cheaper, maybe will just be incorporated into the average roof as Tesla's doing now with their expensive but gorgeous "stealth" solar roofing. Probably batteries will also be far better and cheaper. It's also possible that someone will invent a miniature fusion generator; Lockheed and other companies are hard at work trying to come up with such a thing, to enable aircraft to stay aloft for months at a time. But that tech does not exist yet. For now, the best production technology is what you can get installed, and expect a payoff of 5-7 years depending how much and how many.
Your system cost is really high. In Germany you get 10kWp for $15K complete. I could buy 32 of your panels for around $5k online. We don't get tax credits, but 10 cent per kWh we put into the power grid. Since we don't have as much sun, our break even here is around 10 years. With runtimes of at least 20 to 25 years, it's still a good investment.There are banks over here that give out credits for 1-2% for pv, because it's save money. If you have a big roof, a pv system can pay your energy costs and a big part of home owner tax and house insurance.
@@Psi-Storm Does that include cost of labor? I actually didn't want to install solar; I just finished paying off my debts and did not want to borrow, but my wife insisted. If it were up to me, I would have spent about $5K for a DIY system to just feed my home office and maybe the refrigerator.
@@ChickensAndGardening In Germany, yes. You would pay around 1100€ per kWp + 19% Vat for the complete installation. The tax you get back because your pv is considered a small buisness. If you build bigger and already have a scaffolding because you are roofing the house anyway, that price can drop to 950€.
Thanks for that update! It's really nice to know that long term evaluation.. thanks!!!
If you are adding a battery/s to your system there is a company called Redflow that manufactures Zinc bromine batteries. They are totally (and easily) recyclable, can be completely discharged (run flat) with no damage to the battery and they excel in hot conditions. I'm not sure if they sell to the states but you could check out their website if interested. They sell for approximately $10,000 for a 10 KW battery
The installation of the "Direct T.V. antenna" can destroy your roof; the roof structure will be destroyed by the large bolts . . . I had to replace 3/4" plywood where this antenna was attached . if the solar panels are attached with large screws it could cause your roof to leak and the repair is expensive.
At our family home, we have solar panels and battery with inverter. But we also got a DC line direct from the batteries running in the home. This we use for DC LED lighting.
Wow that’s cool. I’ve thought of doing that
Great 8-year review.
You might increase your energy consumption during solar production hours by using a heat pump water heater (which will decrease your water heating energy).
In addition, these usually have a heating element. If you connect this to an energy diverter, then some diverters will allow you to increase the level of energy consumption from energy generated. In this way you could increase the percentage of energy when generating more energy.
Also, keep in mind that this is the last year of a 30% Federal tax credit. So, if you are increasing the size of your system, this might be a good year to do it.
E K I have seen some panels that are water cooled the heat waist is the used for domestic hot water!
My freind heats his pool with a low volume pump cycling the water!
Dana Putnam I rather not get involved with all that plumbing. Your idea is great for keeping the solar panel’s work temperature a bit lower, but if you think about it, most solar systems in the northern hemisphere overproduce energy in the summer, and they produce less energy in the winter due to the angle of the solar resource. In other words, despite the additional summer heat, solar panels manage just fine.
In addition, keep in mind that solar panel costs probably will increase due to the additional complexity of the internal water tubing required.
Today I can find reasonably good quality solar panels for around $0.50 per watt.
I prefer the system I suggested: few solar panels, some wires, a hot water heat pump, plus an energy diverter.
Moreover, since the time I wrote this, I learned that myEnergi makes a diverter called the Eddi which has the ability to control a hot water heat pump directly with the addition of an sense board.
This allows for possibly the greatest efficiency in terms of energy self consumption from solar panels.
Yeah I get that. This guy also has a sprinkler on a timer to keep the dust from blocking the light.
Of course you know that heat causes more electric resistance so the low volume pump is more than free. Here in California the utility has to buy back the electricity from its solar clients. So the more you make the lower your bill because you sell back what your not using.
I don’t know but I would guess keeping the temp down may increase longevity (expansion contraction on crystalline (brittle ) ) substrate causes fracturing .
Electrical resistance can displace + / - p junctions and string links lowering overall capacity.of current.
Dana Putnam most systems have more panels than the rated inverter size. Therefore, even if one is paid to produce, there is a limit to how much the grid will buy. The limit is the size of the rated inverter, and then to top it off, there is curtailment, and this applies, particularly, to California.
Therefore, I believe setting a roof solar system to maximize self consumption of produced solar energy is the best that can be accomplished. At some point, all grid operators will pay less for energy produced than for energy sold to consumers. Therefore, feed-in-tariff schemes will become less valuable as more consumers install solar roofs. In fact, the current evolution of things in most countries is to transition from FIT to net metering.
The best that a humble consumer can do is to attempt to produce energy at the lowest possible cost and consume as much as possible of the produced energy. This can best be done by following the old adage of K.I.S.S.
5 panels? lol. I had 18 panels in Hawaii, and I now have 30 panels in Australia. Solar rocks.
#1 thing to consider before installing a solar array. Is the price of my electricity more than around 18 cents per Kwh and do I get enough unobstructed sunlight seasonally? This can make all the difference in the world.
I thought I might just add my most helpful advice in what I learned about solar panel installation. A string inverter is where all the panels are hooked up in series or parallel, and the major drawback is you never know what the input of the individual panels is, and the least of these individual panels output is what your overall output is going to be. I can get more technical, but trust me on this point. Microinverters, meaning that each individual panel has its own inverter allows you to get voltage from each panel, and the ancillary benefit is that you can monitor them separately and/or together as a unit. This may sound like a small difference, but trust me it's not. If a string inverter strokes out you are done. If a microinverter shoots the shit, you are just out that single panel.
I am not a promoter of Enphase, but I pondered this question many times. Do I want all the benefits of microinverters and pay 20% more, or do I want the limitations and catastrophic failure potential of a string inverter? I would go as far as to say get 20% fewer panels and go for the microinverters if you can't afford more.
About batteries. For the commercial customer, they don't make economic sense unless you are off-grid as of Feb 23, 2019. This may change very soon. even in the next couple of years. And if you are super handy with electrical stuff, you can buy second-hand 2170 lithium-ion batteries on eBay or someplace and build your own battery affordably. If money is no issue, then the only advantage batteries have is uninterrupted power service during power outages.
I look forward to the day batteries make economic sense, because then we are off to the races with energy independence.
So the battery is unnecessary?
@@rnegoro1 If your question is if the battery is unnecessary to the operation of the solar panel array, absolutely yes. You do not need a battery for a solar panel array. The major advantage if you DO decide to have a battery is if there is a storm, and everyone in your neighborhood has no power, you will have a battery back up. The other potential advantage is when the sun goes down, during the early evening, power rates are higher. A battery could offset or mitigate some of that cost. The problem is the battery as of today, Feb 24, 2019, the battery may only last 10 years and will cost 10k (on average). So in those terms, it doesn't make economic sense. Is that helpful?
When you replace solar panels, how do they dispose / recycle them ?
To the best of my knowledge, and research, the materials used in solar and wind turbines are basically removed from the economy, they cannot be reclaimed. That's the main reason I am against them and in favour of nuclear. Also, I live in the UK where neither will ever amount to much, and to produce enough energy to cope with today's demands would require covering 25% of our land area with panels/turbines. And guess what? When we most need the energy, at night and winter, coal and nuclear are the only options.
Something else Two Bit da Vinci doesn't tell you, is that current cells or turbines will produce less energy over their working lives than it took to manufacture them. As a point of fact, the British government has removed the facility for selling your energy back to the grid which used to offset the installation price. Now, any excess to your needs goes into the grid for no recompense.
This video is basically a sales promotion.
Have you needed to replace drywall? Don't purchase drywall from China because a lot of E-waste in it.
@@KillerBill1953 not true. There are underground markets for used panels. The fact of the matter is that panels are very sturdy. Most that have been installed are still in use. What usually breaks is the front glass. It's my understanding that this glass can be replaced.
@@KillerBill1953 In Germany there is legislation that forces sellers to take used solar panels back and to recycle them which can be done to a degree of 95%. But since there is no legislation in the US for that and it is cheaper to build new panels instead of recycling old ones it is not done. It is a political issue not an environmental one. Plus your figures are wrong and there is a lot of misinformation in your post but that would lead too far to adress it.
@@burninghard If you say so. I do know that apart from the most recent designs, solar panels use more energy in their manufacture than they generate. The materials used to make them cannot be recovered.
You need to look at the life cycle of a product, not just when it is used. Most products use most energy during their manufacture but people ignore the energy used to transport them, install them, and then take them away and dispose of them. That is not misinformation any more than anything else I have written. Like all Climate Change Cultists you tell me I am wrong but you argument is so self-evident you feel no need to back it up with fact.
All over Europe are warehouses full of bailed plastic bottles which cannot be recycled because they are made of a plastic laminate. They can be used to some small degree but most never will be. The super magnets used in wind turbines cannot be broken down and the materials reused. Neither wind nor solar are a realistic solution to the manufactured problem of carbon emissions. CO2 is a trace gas and not the demon it has been turned into.
Have a very good day. When we don't burn up in 12 years, and we all know that will not happen, perhaps you will recall my views.
You mentioned in one of your videos that you clean your solar panels twice a year. How do you clean them?
Solar pro here. Do not clean your panels. Leave them alone.
A research study performed in Southern CA found that there was virtually no difference in performance between never-washed panels and panels washed semiannually. What will happen is that contaminants in your water will permanently discolor the panel frames.
I am new to solar. It would have been nice to get a what is next guide after my install. I am now 2 months in and not quite sure what to expect. One thing I am noticing is that my energy provider is still billing me at a rate more that I expected since I am now on solar power. So not really sure if I was to cancel my utility company or keep them. And if I am keeping them I just thought my bill would be less since my panels are generating my energy.
Do you have monitoring for your panels?
There are quite a few things that this video does not mention about: 1. TOU tariff, which is consumer has to pay different prices at different time depending on when the electricity is consumed. The electricity is much more expensive (double or even triple price) in peak hours (usually from 5:00pm to 10:00pm) when your solar panels have little output. 2. Monthly charges for NEM users. So even if you do not use any energy from the grid, you still have to pay about $20(YMMV) bucks as long as you connect to the grid in CA. 3. No more tax credit. So now it takes even longer than before to break even for you initial investment. Solar is good, but not as cheap as you imagine.
J Q batteries from used EVs are cheap got 7kw for 1,200$ charge during the day with solar use them at peak rate times. If I exceed storage I charge at night for pennies.
Infact in some situations I don’t even need solar to break even.
My 4kW system cost $10K, no tax breaks or subsidies. It will pay for itself in 5 years through electric bill savings. But the biggest advantage, to me at least, is the change in lifestyle. I generate slightly more than I use, so I don't have to be careful in my usage. I can run my heat or A/C and not worry about what it costs. I can leave my refrigerator open as I get things out for dinner. I can run two 26-cubic-feet refrigerator-freezers with a clear conscience. I can keep two large desktop computer systems running (religious differences: I'm Windows, Wife is Macintosh), I can run my swimming pool and my garden lights all I want.
Finally, I can pat myself on the back a little bit for giving my excess to the grid on a 12-month use-it-or-lose-it basis and doing my tiny little bit to help the planet. Putting in solar panels was one of the smartest things I have done in a long time.
That’s awesome! Did you install yourself?
@@TwoBitDaVinci Only to the extent that I called a solar panel installation company that claimed to have been in business for a few years and told them I needed about 25 kWh per day and when did they think they could have it up and running. :-) I *did* specify the layout -- it was put on stanchions on my upper deck to provide shade as well as electricity.
Very cool I’m jealous! Planning to add more solar maybe this year!
What will happened when there is power outage? How good are the Tesla backup batteries? Are any other backup batteries? Are these backup batteries worthy of investment? Are they able to cover a medium size home during the night time? What's the warranty for these batteries? If you need to change them, what's the replacement cost? This guy did not say too much about the advantages and disadvantages of the leased or buy (cash)? If someone can afford, and can get a great interest, is it worthy to buy? In the end, based on people's experience, is it better to buy or lease? Thanks for your help.
I have 5x160 panels 1300 dollars system, cut my electric bill More than half . I'm so happy with it
Electricity seems to be done differently depending on where in the country you are.
Just signed up for solar a few weeks ago and cannot wait for installation. Here in Florida electric is cheap 9.5 cents for first 1,000 used so break even is longer. But reduction in bill covers the monthly loan payment, and after 10 years free electric power. Just bought electric chain saw and cultivator instead of gas powered. And my next car will probably be a plugin hybrid.
I'm in Seattle, expecting a 5-6 year payback period. State incentive, 30% tax credit, referral credit, and only about $100 a year that goes to Seattle City Light to be connected to the grid. 5kW Solaredge w/ 16 LG panels + DC Optimizers. 1st year production was right at 7MWh! They estimated 5.6MWh.
Just installed 600w panels, 40amp charge controller, 3000w inverter, and 340 aH of lithium in my rv. Panels were about a dollar a watt. What you're not telling people is the astronomical cost of batteries/storage of that power. My 2 Renogy lithium batteries cost 3 grand. Panels themselves are fairly cheap. And I did the work myself. But it is nice to know wherever I am, I can microwave some corn dogs.
When I told people who asked that my payback time would be roughly 10 years, they said stuff like, "That's too long. It isn't worth it."
I usually reply, "I have been paying the local electric utility for more than 10 years and they still haven't called me and told me that since I have paid my bills on time and have been a good customer, I am paid up you won't be billed again." My other choice for a response is, "So you don't own your own home because the mortgage takes too long to pay off and it isn't worth it. You rent instead?" They mostly get an odd expression and decide it isn't worth the effort because I just don't understand their logic. They would be right, to me the ten years is too long of a payback argument doesn't stand up.
You did a great job on this video. Lots of data, charts and explanation.
Nice job...5 yrs ago I qualified for Solar City lease option here in LV NV-16 beautiful panels installed 1 day no maintenance issues. Working with a broker also installed his solar in Townhome here. Will share this with QUINCY.
I live on an sailing catamaran and i am installing an 750 watt system and that will produce enough power to charge my 300 Amp hour battery bank in 6 hours.
Gerard.
Glad you mentioned the Enphase inverters. Solar City, aka Tesla uses them exclusively. I bought some shares and it is happy to return the investment. I own Tesla shares which owns Solar City that uses Enphase Inverters. It's like planting trees to offset CO2 emissions.
Enphase and Tesla have been two strong returns in my portfolio. Great companies and great products
A very thorough explanation of solar panels. Thanks for posting.
You have retail net metering. How can batteries pay in your system? Where I am the utility does not want to let you charge your batteries from the grid. They also set the differential low enough that you will probably have to buy new batteries about the time you break even.
Coming up on six years for my solar, my install cost was $4000 after credits. It lowered my bill from $800 every 3 months
to around $250, so my payback was about 2 years and 3 months, I have added more panels last year and now my bill is about $50 every 3 months. I did get lucky with the extra panels only 2 years old from a factory being demolished for $40 each. Go solar as soon as you buy your own home, you wont regret it ever
What about leasing or PPAs?
never lease... there always a scam.. buy only...
Didn't notice in the video any mention of if you broke even or how close you were at this point.
did you watch it? 8 years 9 months based on my 2011 system. i'll break even in the first part of 2020
but for how much bigger a system you could buy today, my breakeven period would be about 3.5 years. its all in the video
@@TwoBitDaVinci OK i must be stupid, the break-even years count per city comparison at 10:35 makes no sense to me at all.
I would love to get panels but unfortunately I live in a snowy area where the sun only shines in the summer
There are plenty of people that live in snowy areas that also have solar. They will normally have a long Pole device to remove snow from their panels after a storm. Remember also the panels will heat up once the sun comes out. I would also suggest adding a wind generator because typically snowy areas have lots of wind in the winter.
Hi Jason - very nicely done and informative video. An easy way of looking at the cost of your system is to divide the system cost by the amount of kWh generated. In your case, it would be $6,400 divided by 14,100 kWh (14.1 MWh). Your cost at 8 years is slightly more than $.45/kWh.
Recently I got a price for the smallest system that my states regs. allows for grid tie. 3500 watts installed was $2.70 per watt. My state allows the power provider to pay me only 50% of their rate for excess power and does not have any rebates. The payback is over ten years.
I am considering a mini split with direct solar PV and a reenginered PV powered hybrid electric water heater. These require some changes in my life style but geez, a five year payback verses ten years . HVAC and water heating now have options such as the mini split and hybrid mode only water heating that is a attractive option where a state is not solar freindly such as my state and notably Florida.
I'm wondering if you could tie in the battery system in an electric or hybrid vehicle to your main system to increase you capacity. Thinking mainly for emergency grid down situations.
Well, if you are signing up for net metering now in Southern California, you can no longer be on a tiered system! You have to be on the Time-of-Use rate plan where they pay you very little during peak solar generation hours and charge you 50% more in the evening. So yeah, instead of investing in large scale energy storage facilities to balance out the power, SC Edison will just force customers to pay way more after sunset, no brainer, right?
On that Tax issue...
"The United States has spent more subsidizing fossil fuels in recent years than it has on defense spending, according to a new report from the International Monetary Fund. The IMF found that direct and indirect subsidies for coal, oil and gas in the U.S. reached $649 billion in 2015" (Rolling Stone 8th May 2019)
THANK YOU !!!!!
two bit, you are all over the map with this. please outline your thoughts for your next video, and help us follow along. wow
Good Video. I am here in TX and will be waiting to see what you find out. So you know, there are areas in TX with Monopolies for utilities. I know because I live in one. They are called Co-ops here and you have ZERO choice. But the guy across the street could based on the boundaries. I went with a 15kw system and 2 PWs in December of 2018. The payback period is very long due to low rate. Probably less environmental regulations though. As far as Net Meter, good luck with a Co-op! I have monthly net meter. No Rollover. If I underproduce, I pay the full retail rate. If I overproduce, they just take it with no rollover of credit to the next month. Where I grew up, that’s called STEALING. Plus there is no grandfathering with a Co-op in Texas.
PDK Life and Times I am in Texas too . Looking at solar that’s not good news .
Yeah. real long payback time unless rates jump. But there are allot of benefits for the Environment and back up power with the Powerwall if you have the time to recoup it
Came here to say this. Don’t get me wrong, this is a great video, but that was inaccurate. Also, the price per watt mentioned is without considering installation costs. And as per your co-op, I assume you’re with Oncor, so try switching to Green Mountain Energy. They have a really good buy-back program.
Omar Guerrero Actually I am in that CoServ region of North Texas. But Coops were not part of deregulation in Texas. Therefore you CANNOT switch providers and you MUST use them. Literally you have no choice for electricity. Now the rates are great but their NetMeter policy is terrible.
that's right, its STEALING... that's why you have to take out the middle man and do it yourself, its not hard... it does take a real effort.. NEVER LEASE SOLAR... its always been a scam.
the power company will always try to screw us, and they will if we let them. the only way is to take control and learn... imho.. believe in yourself and buy 1 item at a time if you have to.
I use the power company for backup, a service fee I pay once a month... small money for backup. people just read and watch videos and use anything in your power to get off of the power companys invoiceing, they will always take the small persons money if they are allowed to.
good luck
The best information on solar power so far. You need to start consulting and help others move to solar power.
Great video. I am a subscriber and am a fan of the channel. I found the video on why tesla cars are the safest very insightful and interesting and I look forward to more videos. The only thing I would respectively have a different opinion on is, I think that solar panels are a much better as an investment than suggested at 6:00.
In my view comparing it to the Nasdaq (or the stock market) is not a fair comparison as it is much risker than solar panels and returns vary significantly even over 8 year periods. For the period in question the Nasdaq performed better but over other periods the Nasdaq has performed worse (Someone who invested over a 8 year period in 2005 would have lost money (the Nasdaq declined from ($42.28) 2nd December 2005 to ($38.55)13th December 2013. The value of solar panels also does not experience sharp drops of 1/3 to 1/2 in short periods of time.
The level of risk with Solar Panels is much more like US government bonds or Bank savings accounts. (I.e. a steady consistent return). It compares favourably to them in the current low interest rate environment (if you live somewhere sunny like California). Maybe you could compare them in a future video. As an investment, solar panels also offer asset class diversification, as they are an independent asset class. The output from the solar panels does not correlate with returns from the stock market, bonds, or housing, reducing risk in a portfolio. The Solar Panels may also add to the overall value of the house.
I live in Northern England and would love to have solar payback after 5 years, but unfortunately the payback time if I am at home all day is 18 years. If I am out until 4 most days there is no pay back (i.e. its longer than the warranty term of 25 years), so its very much location dependant.
Hey Andrew, so glad to hear it! I made the stock market comparison because I got hundreds of comments mentioning it. Yeah it’s not a comparison I’d make either.
This was a really good video. You made a lot of good points.
So, when are you going to expand what you have up there to beat the rising costs and get out of that second tier pricing ? And will you consider enough battery now to take you through the 4-9 peak hours year-round ? Are you sited such that you can pick up more early morning or late afternoon to augment your gain curve ramps ?
Thanks for the video
I,m just so glad a I found your channel...I feel were reaching the tipping point, more and more people getting on board...THANKS TO EXCELLENT VIDEOS LIKE THIS.
Tipping point????? Ha
We had our solar panels installed in 2007 and we live in Ventura County. Plenty of sunny days and with that it was a no brained to install.
Would you mind setting the video's language to English? UA-cam is actually generating German subtitles for this video...
This would help me because I'm not good at English...
Thanks
And I thought PG&E rates were expensive until I saw yours. Sheesh. SDG&E really is raking you guys over the coals with rates. Thanks for the video. Been looking at putting a system on our roof with an LG Resu 10kWh battery. Will be interested to see how you like your powerwall (or other battery).
Thanks Mark, yeah I asked around, and my friends in LA and SF both pay less... that was really surprising... but what can one do? Oh, I know, make one's own energy :) Yes I'm looking forward to the powerwall!
@@TwoBitDaVinci Have you considered the LG RESU 9.8kWh? I'm looking at that as opposed to the powerwall. Would be interested in your thoughts about the two.
Home wind turbines are also getting very cheap and now have the same 3-5 yr payoff. They also take the sting away from smokey or stormy days