Anyone here have a solar panel setup at home?

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  • Gd999

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    I have a house near me that has his whole southern roof with solar panels, and probably enough to power his whole house. I have about 1/2 the roof he does facing south. Has anyone done a decent solar setup either to save money or to have power when SHTF? I’m also on gas heat and water heater, so that’s a whole other dilemma.
     

    foszoe

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    I was THIS close to pursuing it until we decided to buy a truck and a 5th wheel. Ate that budget. Now if the Biden administration offers up additional incentives....The real expense is when you go into hybrid systems with batteries. Supplemental panels aren't all that expensive.
     

    shibumiseeker

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    near Bedford on a whole lot of land.
    Recommendations for vendors currently in business?

    Anymore I look for price per watt on panels. For electronics it depends on what I’m buying. Some of the MPPT controllers made by newer companies like Renogy are decent. Good inverters though are still worth the money.

    As far as vendors go, Northern Arizona Wind an Sun and Alt-E have been around a while and have a ton of knowledge, but their pricing is all over.

    As far as installation companies, I have no experience there ;-)
     

    avboiler11

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    I have a small 1.2kW array on my barn, 24V battery bank and 2kW inverter. Works GREAT for that application.

    The economics of solar are pretty tough here in SoIN for homes. Multiple overcast days really impacts generation capability if your desire is to power your home, and for non-grid backup storage can be quite expensive.

    If one wanted to run only critical circuits in their home from a transfer switch, such a backup system could be comparatively affordable. I've thought about this multiple times. At this point, I've elected for a simple solar generator and portable solar panel for short duration issues and a 2kW Champion inverter genny for longer runs.

    CARES extended the solar tax credit at 26% through 2022.
     

    Thor

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    Thank all the taxpayers who are paying for your set up. Solar makes no sense in IN unless Uncle Sugar is footing the bill for you through us.
     

    shibumiseeker

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    Thank all the taxpayers who are paying for your set up. Solar makes no sense in IN unless Uncle Sugar is footing the bill for you through us.
    Interesting concept. You know this because you’re an expert?

    BTW, I’ve bought all of my system and all pieces since I started over 30 years ago out of my pocket. No subsidy, no tax breaks.

    But, since you’re so concerned about Uncle Sugar, you’d better stop driving your car and disconnect your power because you wouldn’t have either if it hadn’t been for Uncle Sugar.
     

    Thor

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    Interesting concept. You know this because you’re an expert?

    BTW, I’ve bought all of my system and all pieces since I started over 30 years ago out of my pocket. No subsidy, no tax breaks.

    But, since you’re so concerned about Uncle Sugar, you’d better stop driving your car and disconnect your power because you wouldn’t have either if it hadn’t been for Uncle Sugar.
    Yes, I've been working 'around' I wouldn't say with the losers in the green (color of tax money) industry for decades.

    Congratulations on self reliance.

    Infrastructure has been a responsibility of governments in society since before Rome built the Apia Way. A benefit for all is not the same as a benefit for my house alone paid for by others.

    Also there was this just up thread: "CARES extended the solar tax credit at 26% through 2022." solar like wind once again not paying their way.
     

    shibumiseeker

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    Yes, I've been working 'around' I wouldn't say with the losers in the green (color of tax money) industry for decades.

    Congratulations on self reliance.

    Infrastructure has been a responsibility of governments in society since before Rome built the Apia Way. A benefit for all is not the same as a benefit for my house alone paid for by others.

    Also there was this just up thread: "CARES extended the solar tax credit at 26% through 2022." solar like wind once again not paying their way.
    So you are in favor of more tax?

    Just as an exercise, how much tax subsidy has the petroleum industry had?

    I guess taxes are ok if it’s something you don’t like to support.
     

    Thor

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    So you are in favor of more tax?

    Just as an exercise, how much tax subsidy has the petroleum industry had?

    I guess taxes are ok if it’s something you don’t like to support.
    No, not in favor of more taxes...though after today's National Day of Mourning more taxes are most certainly on the way. I am in favor of fewer or zero handouts I don't care who you are. Maintaining roads, railroads and harbors, the military...you know, the enumerated powers thing...are what taxes should go to.

    I've already had my workout today so no thanks to more exercise.
     

    Tactically Fat

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    If the timing / price / availability of home solar ever works out in my favor, I'd love to look into it.

    The good thing about this technology is how efficient newer panels are at generating electricity in lower-light situations.

    Here in Indiana, we're cloudy like 60%+ of the time (on average, per year). I'd bet that the newest panels can probably come close to generating the same power on a cloudy day as older panels used to produce on a sunny day. To me, that's pretty incredible.
     

    avboiler11

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    PV cost per watt has come down dramatically; more efficient cells also allow greater generation for a given panel size.

    That said, overcast days in this state are a KILLER for generation...especially in the winter. On my 1.2kW array, I'm quite lucky to generate 200w in the middle of an overcast day. For grid tie applications this isn't a HUGE deal, for fully off-grid setups it can be a killer.

    Oversizing a PV array to generate more power on overcast days is generally less expensive than doubling storage to account for those overcast days.
     

    IndyIN

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    I really tried to convince myself in the fall of 2019 that it was a smart decision for us. I think for self-reliance or being green they make a lot of sense. Saving me money anytime soon, not so much.

    For me, my electric company has only had 2 rate increases in 12 years. My utility buys back surplus at the wholesale rate, so you do not really want to oversize a system here. Several neighbors have installed them but can't explain their break-even point at all. I believe a few financed them (one has the Tesla battery wall), which makes even less sense to me. My break-even point was around 11 years from now and didn't include the growth that my original cost could have if I modestly invested it. Most of my neighbors do not stay in a house for 10 years, and it really won't get them any extra when they sell their home.

    In my opinion, get a system if you want to be off the grid, you have a crazy utility that jacks rates around aggressively, you have a utility that charges peak rates when overall energy consumption is high, or you just want to do it for the environment.
     
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