Solar AFTER 10 Years - What I Wish I Knew...
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 22 มิ.ย. 2024
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Have you ever thought about getting solar? I've had it for over 10 years now, and I've learned A Lot...
I've had Solar for 10 Years - Here's The Thing...
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》》》TWO BIT DA VINCI《《《
I'm Ricky; this is Two Bit da Vinci, and if you're interested in learning about the future why it's going to be far more awesome than you think, join us for the ride!
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Chapters
0:00 - Introduction
1:30 - System Hardware
2:47 - Series vs Parallel
4:30 - Inverters
7:50 - Using DroneQuote
9:37 - Digging Into Data
11:00 - Warranties
13:05 - Solar ROI
15:00 - Fun Facts
15:55 - Maintenance
17:30 - Battery Backup
20:38 - Conclusion
#solarpanels #newenergysystem #10years #teslaenergy #teslapowerwall #powerwall #solarenergy #solarpanelshome #solarpanelsbegining #solarscam? #bestelectric #truthaboutsolar #solarexperience #supercharging #sunenergy #energiasolar #10años #panelessolares #drone #quote #dronevideo, Solar AFTER 10 Years - What I Wish I Knew... - วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
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I'm in England, waiting for rain to be turned into household power.
I've seen the sun in videos and books. Looks really bright and useful.
🤣
Quite feasible and worthwhile in the UK check Solar installs and monthly generation videos from Spectrum Geeks and EV Puzzle both UK based for examples.
technically, you could...
You must somehow contain all the rain water in a tank, then use the water to spin the generator... basicly you are making a mini dam hahahaha
I can't imagine the price for the land and the tax hahaha
We are better with wine power in the UK. We don't get enough sun on the winter
And you have plenty of humidity as well!
Common problem with roofing and solar companies, the go out of business to avoid warranty, then start another company different name.
@Rainbow Capone how is that the fault of the consumer.. who said it was cheap.. u said cheap... that's a huge assumption.
truth is people do that all time. we had a pool company do that in my home town... scammer do the best they can to cover up being scammers
That's when you only buy the 5-year warranty instead of the 10-year warranty ;)
@@davidpaikins3172 The point we are making is that if you choose an installer who has been around for 10 years or more and have done your due diligence then the price you will pay won’t be the cheapest but you are much less likely to fall foul of the scammers and con artists.
Hello I was a kitchen in home sales person....Windows do it a lot.... most companies know failure rates ....had classes on this.... change incorporation to avoid failures.....yup..
@Rainbow Capone quality electronics company use cheap chinese parts.. read.... known failures..do who is quality....
I've only been on a 3 kW solar power off grid system for about 30 months, with a 32 Lithium 275 Wh cells. It's is quite a journey to see it function within my control. I did all the work myself while using a smaller solar system to build it with. The panels are used (8 x 360 Watt) ground mounted SunPower. But the biggest reward is knowing I have total control of my electric power.
Using solar power is a game changer with more pros than cons. We have severe weather in the Midwest and power outages are common with heavy snow and ice during the winter. While not the ultimate problem solving solution it helps with the basics.
How long do lithium battery still working well?
@@invisibletosociety8338 how will solar help in the case of heavy snow and ice? Your pannels will not produce anything. If you have a battery it will be empty after 1 or 2 days if you are very conservative....
Until you have to change those batteries. Enjoy that cost. It's like buying everything but the wiring all over again every 15 years. Unless you electric is really expensive, it's impossible to get ahead by using solar.
@@deydraniadiancecht8298 actually the price of inverters and batteries is going down each year (and they perform better) , price of copper and installing going up. I can replace batteries and inverters on my own, no need to crawl on the roof.
I like the idea of solar carport or gazebo for ease of access or ground mount if you are in the county with the space. Also you can go with a small battery and an inexpensive generator for longer duration outage such as hurricane source events etc. Also note that in the USA adding solar increases the value of your house by 4% on average. You are my favorite Da Vinci!
Been on solar for 4 yrs and it still feels great on hot sunny days where my AC is on max and I'm still sending extra power to the grid.
Wow that means you have a pretty big system congrats!
Peter N. Good for you. We have 2 systems at 3KW each, no problem to operate a 4 Ton AC system and still have a little extra going back into the grid. One of the panel arrays is pointed West so it continues producing until 5 or 6 pm. Couple of years ago I added batteries and a hybrid inverter so as not have interruptions during outages or rolling blackouts. Its very comfortable not having to worry about the power company or grid failures that seem to be getting worse.
My AC will flatten my battery quite quickly, my panels may just keep up with it. Its a 10kw system.
@@tonyp2865 Are you saying the solar array is 10Kw or the battery pack is 10KWh? If your solar array is that big it should run your AC with plenty of extra power. Also, HyperEngineering makes a really good soft starter for Central AC condensers.
@@bentleyjarrard885 Both are 10 Kw, I have a large air con for Australian conditions.
A 10 year review? This is unheard of. Well done!
Thats because he is paid by the Climate Control Mafia to lie to you.
I am going on 18 years with my setup and have no problems so far. I love it. My power bill before I went solar was 535.00 a month. Now that money is mine and not the power company.
@@thomasbranson7237 that’s awesome! Have you done any long term cost analysis? What year was your break even point?
@@r.t.hannah9575 Simple payback analysis (break-even date) is meaningless. The real way to do it is to perform a life-cycle cost analysis compared to the life-cycle cost analysis of doing nothing. The option with the lower life-cycle cost is the one to choose if money is the only factor.
Look at it this way, if a solar system installed at your house has a 8-year simple payback, and a new water heater has a 2-year payback, which one is a better investment? With no other information, you have no way of knowing. How about adding a third alternative: Does it makes sense to add a PV system and a new water heater? Why would you add a new water heater when you'd be getting power from your PV system? You might come up with the wrong answer if you are dealing with only simple payback.
@@gatoryak7332 What tf are you talking about?!? She asked you a simple question, don't try to make it sound more complicated than it really is, just to justify the fact that you have absolutely no idea how to calculate and answer to one simple question.
Finally, a comprehensive review of the pros and cons and overall costs associated with a solar system which kept me from obtaining a system! My biggest fear is hail which we can count on every year here in Calgary! And the harsh winters mixed in! Do the panels over the roof keep the attic a lot cooler due to the shade and under panel air circulation?
I found that by delaying the charging of my DC coupled battery until noon in summer, my output increased by 12%. I also found that my 41 panels rated at 13.25 kW could actually produce 15 kW of power. This 15 kW limit was made up of 5 kW going straight from the panel's DC output to my DC coupled battery battery and 10 kW flowing through my 10 kW inverter to my EV, house and the grid.
All panels are rated at a solar constant, they may be operating because you have above average exposure
Are you 8n Ohio?
Melbourne, Australia.
@@johnrogers1423 As Andrew said, the panels are rated at 1000w/m2 at 25c. Here in AUS we have higher than average UV exposure and if you couple it with lower temperatures the panels can exceed their rating. The rating is also a little conservative to allow for the warranty and variations in quality.
Got my panels for 21 years now. They are well above 80% still. Had to replace 1 converter I reused from my very first solar installation 23 years ago. 300 € of maintenance in 21 years. I am going to double the capacity and add a Batterie next year.
Never cleaned the panels.
It’s so cool!
Wow!!! I’d love to chat! We should do an episode about them!
@@TwoBitDaVinci Why not. At the moment I’m not living where those panels are installed but we will move back there soon. Then we will modernise. In case you are interested we can chat for sure.
80% without cleaning for that ammount…?
I seriously wonder how many increase you get for cleaning them, but taking in account the 5% given it means they are still around 90% compared to when new
When did you break even?
@@Shalmaneser1 After around 10 years give or take 1 year. Got very high incentives in Germany around the 2000ers and had not to pay back the whole amount of the loan. Since than ☀️😎
Oh my goodness! I study electrical engineering and i find your content the best yet seen ever from thousands. PLease continue what you do, please!!
Be sure and pick enough econ classes to see what he's missing.
As an offgridder for more than 30 years, I can say that solar panels are the modern world's miracle. I do anything that needs energy from lighting, water pumping, milking, cleaning to irrigating a 5 hectare of land. I've invested a good deal on panels and their contraptions to meet the energy need, and the investments I've made have paid off generously. Now, I meet 80 % of my total energy need from the solar systems. The only area I can't use solar is heating my home in winter.
A more energy efficient idea for heating your house in winter might be heat pumps. Even with the smaller amount of power you’re able to generate in winter, heat pumps are significantly smaller and energy efficient than furnaces.
Also consider installing a wood burning stove (if possible)
@@thecardwarskingdom6368 if you have easy access to free wood, a high efficiency wood burning stove is a good option to heat your home.
@@abdervish right, my thought processes would think that most offgridders would be able to find a few trees around
Heating and Cooling (A/C) are the 2 most important things...and Solar fails at both
Thank you for this. I appreciate that you have broken everything down into smaller bits. Every video I have watched so far has dumped an overwhelming amount of information without really giving an explanation of the system. Until now I have been left feeling stupid and frustrated. While I will have to watch it again before purchasing a system this video has given me that aha(!) moment to what to do for my situation. Meaning a cabin in the woods soon to be my off grid full-time living space.
Had mine here in Australia for 11 years and it paid for itself inside 2 years. Since then, I have never had a power bill. It was installed by an electrician friend of mine who was scrupulously honest, thankfully......The rates the power companies buy the generated power from me helped of course.....great video, thanks for sharing.
Short question: can you share your build specs? How many panels of what wattage each? What controller do you use, what is your setup for energy storage? What model batteries and their Kilowat/ Amp hour capacity? Any other details to share?
My situation:
I live in Miami, Florida, USA. I think we have comparable sun levels to Australia. I've been on the fence for a while deciding whether to take the expensive plunge into a full conversion. One issue is the buyback- our electric provider (FPL) doesn't buy back excess power (yet) so we either have to store excess power in batteries or lose it. Factoring that loss of potential income, the break even point on a solar system ranges from 12-18 years (range is due to varied cost of our battery choices and how energy capacity storage we want.)
Hi Sam! Thank you for sharing. I’m in NSW, did you have to get any special approvals for a non-solar company to do the install? We’ve been told by a few different sources that this isn’t possible and/or our home insurance will be invalidated.
Had my 13kw system for nearly 3 years now - haven't looked back. Best thing to invest in ever. For those in Australia (I'm NSW), I had Solaray Energy install mine. Great company, VERY tidy work and their systems make use of Enphase hardware (microinverters) and are Tesla-ready for batteries or cars (whether you install now or later).
Very helpful info Sam & Jeff, thanks to both of you as I’m in Melbourne and been sitting on the fence about solar for past 3 years. Obviously we don’t get as much sun as you do in nsw but I still think the long term investment is worth it. Do you guys think battery is worth it now or just manage our usage for now with heavy stuff like washers etc for during the day and wait till battery technology improves and becomes more competitive?
here in the states, in SE, .. Duke energy still likes to hang onto billing .. charging $10 for 'connect fee' --because they have a meter reader come out .. that may have gone to wireless reading by now ..
and they play with the 'connect fee ' billing as well .. before it was duke, it was progress energy ..
like any basically monopoly, they feel they r the only game in tonwn and the customer dosent have much choice ...
In depth, clearly communicated info on a subject that can be pretty confusing. Having a 10 year experience to evaluate separates you from a lot of other reviews or opinions on solar. Well done. I liked and subscribed based off of this video.
were you interested in solar?
me too
@@Ciiren i too am offgrid for 3+ years and its worth it. Use a simple inverter and few panels and couple of batteries and it is all fixed .
Thank you. I am going solar. The fact that it reduces my own carbon footprint on this planet is good enough for me to go solar
3 cars in 10 years? Late stage consumerism.
I'm finding this a year later, but this is a great video, thank you! Considering solar for our home now, and your calculators are especially appreciated (as I'm sure their logic still generally applies). Thanks again!
I'm in Brasil (yes with a "S") and I have 8x 340Wp panels and 8x 220Ah batteries. I agree with every single word you said in this video. In my case, The energy my panels produce is more reliable than the energy company. I'm not 100% off grid, but I have most of my house on solar and that part is 24/7 on solar. My energy bill fell 75% off. I intend to keep the house 100% off grid and use the grid only for emergency purposes.
the average energy bill used to be around 60-80 euros a month, that doesnt warrant buying a big system, which needs to be serviced.
The nation's exonym is Brazil, its endonym is Brasil. Kinda like "Alemania" vs "Deutschland".
@@lunafringe10 over a 15 year period you would spend 10,800 - 14,400 euros on electricity at 60-80/month and that is if the prices don't increase. If you can supply your electricity for the amount saved, I don't see a problem with them, especially if you are charging a plugin hybrid or EV as gas prices are much higher than electricity. I have a neighbor that has only purchased 4-5 tanks of gas since 2018 as the rest of their driving has been on electric in their plugin hybrid.
Another great advantage in hot climates is they shade the roof and make cooling the house more efficient just by their presence
This is actually why I want it. My roof gets direct sunlight and heats my attic to unbearable levels 😥
@David Golden Never thought about that aspect. Interesting thought.
This largely depends on how much space you have between the panel and your roof. Tesla tiles sit directly on the roof. There are even water cooled panels to make the panels more efficient in hot climates. These double as water heaters for pools and assistance to your regular water heater.
Panels will provide a bit of shade, that much is true. But in hot climates those panels heat up. And not by a little bit either. This excessive heat reduces the lifespan of the panel pretty drastically and to add insult to injury, the efficiency of turning sunlight into electricity drops a lot as well. Planks would have a similar effect regarding shade, but are way less expensive than solar panels.
Shade helps in areas with high temperatures, but what you really want is mass. As in 1 meter thick walls etc. The sun will heat such walls during the day but the inside of these walls remains cool. And when the temperature drops at night, these walls radiate the heat back out, so you will feel comfortably warm. Of course, the sun will "charge" these massive walls again during the day and you will be comfortably cool during the day.
Costs more during construction, but afterwards you won't need any airconditioning at all. The energy savings over the lifespan from such a house easily cover the extra construction costs.
@@geroldmanders9742 meter thick walls??? Man, that sounds preventatively expensive, even considering a lot of energy savings. I've never in my life heard of a house being built even similarly to that. Like how do you have windows, and if you actually have enough for ample natural light won't that kinda mess up the reasoning behind the bunker-thick walls? For me anyhow, replacing solar panels every 15-20 years sounds wayyy cheaper and more enjoyable as an energy saving solution
I wish you another 10 happy peaceful years to come! Regards from Athens Greece...thank you...
Hello and thank you Panos! I want to visit Greece as soon as things settle down!
That's a very nice sentiment to share, thank you.
About 9-10 years ago I designed and built the last home I'll ever build for my wife and myself. As we were more than 1,000' from any electrical source and more than a mile off of any paved road, it was cheaper to design the house for solar and install it than it was to run power that 1,000' and then still have a massive Khalifoniastan PG&E bill each month afterwards. So I built a 4KW system with an on the ground rack (no shadows, precise angles for best performance and easy to clean regularly) next to a 10'x10' battery/inverter shed using lead acid batteries, two separate banks of them at 48v. It also housed a generator/inverter about 60' from the house. Other than monthly maintenance (checking battery water levels and cleaning panels) it worked quite well, allowing us power when winter storms came up and shut everyone else down.
Now, like so many who could no longer stomach the insanity which has become my native state, I live in Idaho where electricity so far is running about .086 cents a KWH instead of over .50 cents. It's NOT the cost of electrical generation which has gone up in Khaliforniastan, it's the politicians robbing yet one more piggy bank there while failing simultaneously to upgrade and produce more electrical infrastructure...
10 years later, LOVE this thank you so very much!
This is actually one of the best solar videos I’ve ever seen, good job!
Agree!
Here in Australia we have two factors in favour of solar, the first is we get a lot of sun (perhaps the only advantage of being on the driest inhabited continent) and secondly we have much cheaper solar systems. I recently added a 6.6kw system to the already existing 5kw system and added two Tesla Powerwalls. The system powers my house, charges my Tesla and exports about 150% of power I use even though the system is throttled by my energy supplier to 5kw of export. It takes a couple of really low production days for us to draw from the grid - happens about once a month on average…
Which is exactly why people in wetter (but still sunny) climates need to consider options other than just solar. I've seen so many videos or comments in which people say things like, "But solar doesn't make enough power!" And solar is the only thing they're trying or wanting to use. But wind and hydro also generate electricity easily and aren't hard to install. And these people don't have to go with only one or the other, but often pretend that they do. When I install my grid, it will utilize all three, as all three are a thing where I live and plan to live. It might take a while, but there is zero reason to be a purist when there're other options available.
@@stiaininbeglan3844 It isnt about being a "purist, its about practicality and feasibility. Hydro power is not only rare for anyone to have access to moving water, but the components are seriously expensive, if you arent jerry rigging something yourself out of an old washing machine. Wind is also cost prohibitive. You cant generate any real usable power through wind, unless you have an enormous blade head, with an enormous generator coupled to that enormous blade head.
You either have no clue what you are talking about, or are so rich, the costs wouldnt affect you. Most people do not have river frontage on their land, or the capital to buy land with river frontage. And even if you did, the river would have to move fast enough and consistantly enough to generate power, and even then, you are fighting with the Government to allow you to build a water wheel to generate that power.
People arent poopooing wind and hydro. Its just not feasable for the vast majority of people.
@@carllennen3520 This exactly. Most people do not live in places where wind and solar are viable. On top of that, neither is nearly as eco-friendly as its proponents would have you believe.
Do you get massive subsidies to cover the cost of the panels and installation? We don't.
@@carllennen3520 to add to this, unless you are a homesteader you likely would not be allowed to install a wind turbine in your backyard due to NIMBYs. There are not many wind options that would be considered acceptable but most neighborhoods and towns.
This video makes me really appreciate the communication style of a good engineer. Direct, precise, concise, with real and useful information and no rambling, wild speculation. Its a longish video but there's no fluff; there really is that much information.
Except he was wrong about current and volts making an assumption that high current is really bad and you'd need heavy wires which is completely false. The size of a wire is based on WATTS which is a function of both current and voltage. You create higher voltages when transmitting power over any kind of distance because it's more efficient.
🙂
I'm In South Africa 🇿🇦 and had no choice but to go off grid few weeks ago. Loving the setup so far. Currently running 9x545w Canadian panels which in future will double up to another 9 taking me to 18 panels of 10kw in total. My inverter is a 10kw and I'm running 10kw on batteries which I will take to 20kw in the next few months. I'm running a 4 phase so solar during the day battery at night and if I have to topup it will look for eskom but if they offline for loadshedding then it will switch to my generator but only to charge up the batteries but so far it hasn't been needed. Will see how it performs in winter and will spec it accordingly. I went the full Kodak route except for the Canadian 545w panels.
Yo .. ZA ..
@@ihateemael I went for a full Kodak system, so running Kodak BL 3.6 lithium batteries they good for around 10-15yrs warranty is 12yr
with the way ZA seems to be going I hope you have a shotgun to stop people from stealing those panels
Thanks for some really good, in-depth info...
I'm in the research stage of building a home on wheels, and you answered a number of questions that I've had.
More importantly a number of questions that I hadn't even considered yet...
Much Thanks!
I've had mine in the UK for 10 years too. Paid for themselves in 6 years, then invested in a Powerwall 2, another great investment which together cost £20k. They contribute 68% toward our total power consumption, which now includes our two electric cars, so no more petrol, or diesel fuel costs either. Best investment ever.
As a general rule, -IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO CHARGE AND ELECTRIC CAR. DURING DAYTIME YOU ARE AT WORK. it depends how many kilometers are you away from home. . AND IF YOU RETURN LATE NIGHT OR LATE AFTERNOON YOU HAVE'NT ENOUGH SOLAR LIGHT TO CHARGE YOUR E-CAR neither enought time to perform the charging. ..- The energy needed is about 6kWh, of A Tesla S 85kWh battery. 2 de set. 2021
I am sorry guys.
nobody is properly realising. you need at least the same set of power bank that cost us$ 5000 to store the energy you need from solar panels to recharge the car when returning back home . supposing you spend 50% of the car.battery in distance of 100+100 kilometers . and that is in the most favourable sunny days. also remember in very high temperatures in summer ;: the solar-pannels efficiency drops.
Either you've been lucky or I've been unlucky! My UK system was installed fifteen years ago, and I can't see them even breaking even within another ten years. At the first signs of significant degradation I shall be removing the system and not replacing it.
Wow, powerwall 2 costs 20k in the UK. In the US you can get 5.1kwh for $1700, so three of these to match your tesla would be $5200. I'm guessing that diy projects are frowned on in the UK (in the US, you just don't qualify for the tax credit).
Great content. On the cleaning. I had the solar folks when they were on the roof install a PVC piping syste wit sprinklers aimed at the panels. I simply turn on the water for about 15 minutes when the panels are dirty, actually dusty and they are clean, the whole system there ran 500 dollars with the parts and labor. My break-even point was 3.7 years. Our panels are on 3 side, to the East (yep, morning sun, no trees) South, the bulk of the panels and finally West for late afternoon. My payback was faster because of credits back to grid and - - we live in the desert with an average of 286 days of sunshine.
3.7 years? I call BS. Most systems are at least 15 years payback. You forgot to calculate the time value of money, depreciation and the opportunity costs if that money was invested in something else.
Here I am at the end of September, 2022. I'm now in the process of contracting to get a system installed on my roof, and I'm doing last-minute worrying that I've forgotten some aspect. I saw my previous post and your response. Big shot of joy for me.. With more information under my belt, I can comprehend more details on this video. Thank you again. Charley
I’ve always thought it’s ridiculous that a company can sell a long warranty and just go bankrupt like that.
It's like they are a furniture store. Sell you an expensive piece of furniture with a long warranty, go out of business and start back up with a different name. Rinse and repeat.
Yes! I realized after buying windows for my house that came with a lifetime warranty that it meant only for the life of the company!
well if a company isn't making money what are they supposed to do, keep losing money forever or is the government supposed to use our tax dollars to keep them afloat like the Solyndra scam?
We got jilted the same way but with our water heater.
I am saying this as someone who has been working on microgrid systems, your information is very accurate.
I love this channel! You do such a great job with explaining things, and you are such an easy guy to listen to and very comprehensive coverage on every subject. This comes at a opportune time for me because I am going to see the fellows Hot Springs operation that runs 100% on solar And he’s going to show me around through what he’s done in creating his system and maintaining it. I’ve always been interested in solar and installed a system on our house about two years ago, which has worked out very well but you filled in a lot of gray areas in my knowledge. I will be able to have a better comprehension of what his system entails.
Excellent job with everything you do. I wish I had found your channel years sooner, but better late than never keep up the great work.
Two Bit. This was one of the most informative presentations I have ever seen. Thanks for that boat load of info. Really really informative
I did start experiencing with solar panels in 2010. Bought 2 small panels, soldered together, bought the cheapest charger and a small 12V battery for RV. Was pretty happy when in the next morning I saw a green light on my charger :) was experiencing wiring my bath and living room with 12V light bulbs, charging my phone and tablet with solar energy. But it became very handy when ib 2012 we were hit with Sandy hurricane and our neighborhood was left with no electricity for a full 2 days. I remember when I was getting home when it was already dark and turning on my lights in living room I did hear how people taking a walk outside (what else to do when there is no electricity in your house) were whispering "how does he have electricity at home?" :) that was the best moment. I was able to keep electricity for couple hours and for 1 charge of my phone. Since I had a small set up it couldn't last long so I had to go to sleep early hoping for a sunny day next day to fully recharge my battery.
Whenever I have no electricity it always seems like a really comfy, humbling time, to take a nap especially. Having just enough to scrap-by seem even more comfy.
Interesting experience, but the people talking on the street part was little scary ;) The outage lasted only two days, but otherwise expect someone to show up and take it from you, or expect to provide the services to the neighborhood, maybe charge their devices, especially if they think or know you are one of the peppers with off-grid system and full pantry. Difficult times unleash often the lowest instincts.
Great video. Cool seeing a long term perspective.
Dude huge fan! Thanks for taking a moment to stop by! I’d love to chat sometime… love your style and have some ideas
@@TwoBitDaVinci email is always open! JerryRigEverything at Gmail
@@TwoBitDaVinci prius,takes 70 yrs to pay for itself, you wont have it 70 yrs,will you..here in aus. i have a 10 pnl system. cost 9k, panels were 200 each,inv. 400. rip off. anyhoo.. i wanted mode pnls seeing the price came down to 3.4k,same system, sorry sir,you allready have a system, you can buy this,buit your input rate will go down to 6c, not your current 54c. yup,,so much for being green,. &,we can not,get off the grid. people without solar,are paying thru higher cost,to offset the loss from solar revenue. its a scam. i dare you,,to do a vid,on wind farms. what they cost to produce,set up,maintain,&,the ultimate re cycling of them,. all green inovations are a lose,lose, scenerio. total garbage brainwashing..we have companies that go around cleaning panels, they work better in low sun. after 30c forget it. like a lithium batt,too hot,shts itself.. thats my 4 bits..
@@TwoBitDaVinci you can have 400,000 kw panel system,but its the 5kw inverter,that governs the power,not the panels. in aus..if my panels are capable of 10kw,the inv only lets its 5kw thru..
@@TwoBitDaVinci battery syst cost 6k. ill wait for the power..as to your tesla. we will never run out of oil or coal,which is cheap,with infrastructure now. you,need outlets every 300 mile,installed,new. here in aus,we can go 1000 ks without a fuel stop.. good luck with your tesla, as i pass you.. plus,the sun controls the earths temp. NOT YOU. all this ''green'',production,is contributing more,extra,than just having coal & oil,& making it cleaner,not a whole new untested,costly system,that has a life span, a petrol engine can last forever. yours,can not. whats the cost of production,life span & re production,of your 3k batteries. ???...an engine,petrol,re build,is only 2k,after 30 yrs of use.. you lose.. if run for 30 yrs on lpg,it pumps out oxygen,go figure....&,end of the day,you,need a coal fired power station,to make all your green bs. foundries,machinery,cnc,s. ect ect.. cut down a forest,for a solar farm,,yup,,thats green,isnt it.. ignorance is bliss..
Awesome video. There are certain videos from certain channels I watch and re-watch while taking notes. This is one of those videos. Thank you for your time and data!!
Fantastic information, learned a lot, getting my roof measured next week. My roof faces southeast and largest area is facing northwest so not ideal. Not sold on battery yet and will wait for them to get better and more affordable. Thank you!
This is the first video of yours that I have watched. I have followed solar for years myself. You have taught me something. I look forward to having the time & money to invest into solar myself, following your model. You also have a passion for it that shows thru to me. Thank you for starting this channel. Looking foreward to more.
did you buy solar?
“What would you keep for 25 years”? The only thing I've kept that long is a wife; she came with no warranty, no trade in provision, a very messy separation clause, high maintenance probability, and, I was warned by the manufacturer that she would be a handful even in the best of times. 30 years later………..wwweeellll……….
That is so true, thanks for the laugh…
Best example ever :))))))
Best comment I've come across yet!
ROFL
Well
That's what you get when you buy a used car
And value depreciates rapidly.
Thank you so much for this feedback. This is my first time seeing your channel and you hit on ALL my areas of concern.
One of the most clearest and honest plus data based appraisals I have even come across via TH-cam. Thank you...
Your enthusiasm is absolutely contagious
Thank you sir!
This is exactly what I needed to know. Thank you for being so data oriented. We appreciate it. It's truly breath-taking to hear what you have to say. Subscribed and eager to learn more! We are cyclists and nerds for things like these. We own Jackery batteries (and will continue to buy). We are also about to buy pedalcell (this is a system that likely only bicycle tourists know about, where you cycle and the device uses magnetic tech to feed power to small battery banks like battery banks that help recharge your cellphones, etc.). Since we cycle a lot (we bike commute), this works for recharging small devices (and acts as a secondary way to charging small batteries besides the panels). Also just want to put it out there that if we fall down from installing our own solar panels and die, we are gonna sue. lol .... hahaahha.. sorry! Couldn't resist. Nah, we ain't likely ever gonna be climbing to the roof anytime soon (we are older folks), those little Jackery batteries and remote panels will do. All I can say is, your channel is so informative we are lucky to have found you. Thank you.
I'm in Upper Michigan @ 47*N Lat. 9 years on a grid tied solar system. My 2.5 kW array produces about 2.9 MWh/yr. No battery, no utility bills, no problems (yet). I still enjoy reading/recording my "demand" electric meter about every day.
Great video-- virtually a public service piece for people interested in solar. I live in the "high South" and have had a grid-tied system that consists of 16 panels and an inverter (all made by SunPower), along with a passive hot water system, since 2008 and agree with everything you say and recommend. Prior to installing this system I replaced our AC/furnace with a high-efficiency system that cut my total energy bill in half, but the solar cut it in half again. Over 15 years my panels have lost about 8% efficiency, but today about a third my total energy bill is related to fees. It's very low, but I also do other energy-saving things like hanging up clothes and keeping indoor temperatures "tolerable." Many thanks!
As your panels age and lose power, all you have to go is add another panel to compensate for the loss, that providing you have the space to do so. Greetings from Jamaica.
There's been things I've been meaning to research and I think you touched on them all. I hate videos that make claims without showing why they recommend it. You took the time to explain it all. Much appreciated.
Thank you! Glad to hear it
If your power company has peak billing, I want to point out that you can also install a battery -- no solar panels, just a battery -- and program the battery controller to charge it in the middle of the night and use it in the evenings, to reduce your peak power consumption. The savings per month is smaller, but the initial cost is also smaller.
You have a good thought there. That sounds like a good midway solution for when you want this kind of system, but only enough money for part of it.
to charge "it". what is "it"?
@@rickyrick9328 the battery.
Not necessarily. Batteries are far more expensive than solar panels in terms of life cycle cost when used continuously. They are only good for so many charge/discharge cycles. Do the math on the cost of each KWH of charge/discharge vs what you are saving on your power bill. You may actually be spending more. You will likely be replacing your batteries every couple of years this way and need several thousand dollars worth depending on your energy consumption.
This is a very old theory which is not true. The difference in day/night billing does not outweigh the losses in charging a battery and the losses in converting the battery voltage back to mains.
This is the most helpful video I’ve watched on this topic. What a wealth of information. It’s making me rethink initial phase and final phase costing/recovery as well as power failure, generator and battery bank decisions. You have opened a new window for me. Thanks. Will check out any other vids you’ve done on this topic.
That's a really good video, with actually useful and readable data. One of the interesting things with home applied solar energy is exactly the possibility of plotting how much you're capturing and spending. Honestly, household energy is the best, most sensible application for solar energy
Been in my new construction house almost 3 years. Just wished I knew if my employer will stop doing layoffs 2-3 times every year. If I knew I wasn’t going to have to move again for a long time, then solar would make more sense.
This video was very good and addresses the most important aspects of solar. Thank you. After hearing of the unrest in the cities and rolling blackouts in certain regions of the U.S. I decided to get solar as a backup. I live in Delaware and have solar panels, with optimizers on each panel, and a battery backup with a transfer switch. My system was activated in April of 2021. If the grid goes down a transfer switch isolates the SolarEdge panels and LG battery from the grid and feeds my house through the battery. Thus far, I haven't had any issues with the system and my wife loves the fact that we haven't been charged for electricity for months. The hardest part of getting the install was convincing my wife to get the install. Note, however; I researched the perspective installers before committing to a reputable local company. I didn't want to be at the mercy of a company based in far away Las Vegas, or elsewhere. I am very pleased with the company that did my install but I had heard some horror stories of people that used lesser companies.
That is a very important thing with any major work to be done, research the companies/ installers. The horror stories of just about any field of home remodeling/ enhancement done by door to door salesmen or companies/ installers from states away are endless.
M,You said you live in Delaware....so do I, who did you use and were you satisfied(install and warranty)? I live north De. Thanks in advance!
One of the most cogent and informative explanations of a solar system I’ve ever heard and I’ve been following solar since I was a kid in the 70s!!!
So I don’t own my home, however, I do own my semi truck. My truck is a “super-sleeper” so I have a full fridge, two burner stove, ac unit, and many accessories. It has a diesel generator that runs everything when the truck is off but it consumes a lot of fuel. So I just bought an 18 watt 7 amp solar panel that I’m installing this weekend. It’ll hopefully negate the need to run my generator and so excited to find out! Love this channel! Keep it up!
EXCELLENT!! Thanks so much for this organized, clear, complete, and honest explanation and appraisal of home solar systems. Very helpful.
I feel like this is the video which will make your channel blow up. The content is up there ; keep this up and you got it 💪🏻
Bro, I am very thankful that I found your channel. The info is straight forward and shared in earnest. I will definitely share links to your videos in my circle.😎
What a fantastically informative video! I'm installing solar now on my home in Yucatán, Mexico so I've been educating myself on what I should know.
I tried drone quote. What I learned is that they will give you 3 solar setups to pick from depending on price. Those systems are from different brands of solar panels ofc. They funnel all customers to one particular and exclusive preferred lender. Best thing to do is research terms of lenders in this business.
Thanks for the opportunity Toro Cars. You’re right about the lender; there are SO many different lenders for solar and we prefer to use one specific lender across the board (when possible) since it facilitates the process for all parties involved. In the end, as you mentioned, due diligence will take you far. We prefer to suggest some kind of financing outside of solar loans because there are better options for those that qualify.
@@dronequote what is the cost of getting a quote? Do you get back the cost of the quote if you decide to go with your recommended set up?
@@dronequote "facilitates the process for all parties involved" = "we can do less and pocket the savings"
Great review! Awesome you got it already in 2011. Love the battery!
I love your video, thanks a lot for all the useful details on the various options as well as your ROI calculations! This is exactly what I need right now, very early in my journey to a solar-powered retirement home in sunny Thailand! 🙂
Thank you Two bit Da Vinci - love the name Love your presentations,simple to follow & very educational keep up this high quality you are on a winner thank you☝️ so much
I've installed solar in the Netherlands i'm an electrician, any house electrician could do it it's easy as shit almost like lego's.
I’m a gardener and I installed it on my parents bungalow 👍 (I did do a course to qualify though as I fell for the global warming narrative at the time, and thought I was helping the environment🤦♂️). But you are correct, it wasn’t technically challenging.
@@diogenesegarden5152 long time no see but yes it's not hard the only hard part is the fuse box as it's the most important part, and on the other side of the coin there really is no real climate incentive to lay solar as they are just as polluting as the other ways of getting energy.
The one big plus of micrometers not mentioned is the ability to have different panels - makers in the same system so you don't care if have to replace failed panels with a better one in the future.
He does mention that.
I realize that this video is a year old but I love it! I noticed you mentioned LG but they are now also out of the solar panel in regards to being a manufacturer. But they may honor their warranty. I loved LG phones but their not into cell phones anymore. Their appliances and television technology are still going strong! Again, you have given me an excellent starting point as the technology is changing so rapidly. Oh, I'm 69 but I sandblasted and painted railroad bridges over the Missouri River with no safety equipment (not recommending that!), etc. So I've always pushed myself and I'm fortunate enough to be an excellent shape. But not everyone is, through no fault of their own. Oh...you can also piggyback lithium batteries. But you have Telsa which is excellent if installed by Telsa (current waiting time is 9 months). You spent $10,000 10 years ago. Just a good whole house generator can cost that much!!! Haven't touch on rebates, tax incentives, excess electricity purchased by your electricity provider (varies by state), and the list goes on and on as they keep changing every thing!! Love your ending comments about battery storage. My only negative is that I was going to subscribe but you charge $1.99. I've never seen that before.
Lol, they didn't go out of business, they just shut down and started a new company so need to honor any warranties.
Bankruptcy court would not allow them to do that.
Several companies here do that trick. Everything from lawn and garden to car companies. It's the new scam.
@@waynemcleod6767 doesnt work in a functioning country
The only way to have power during a power cut is to have a transfer switch and an inverter capable of working in 'off grid' mode - a battery whilst desirable is not always required. What is ABSOLUTLY required is a transfer switch - tesla version is the 'gateway' which is now part of the battery from what I understand.
SMA Sunny Boy inverters have a feature called Secure Power. This will provide backup solar power during a grid outage even without batteries. All built in with a manual switch.
@@ElyFrankes at what cost?
Sunny Boy inverters are some of the least expensive solar inverters you can buy. Cost depends on your array size. The Secure Power feature is standard.
Thank you for sharing your experience & learned knowledge. I have an educated understanding & am pleased that you have made such a comprehensive video, concerning what is a “whole picture”; for those who are considering solar power. This can & will help many people to make a more educated choice- & be able to make the most of any such infrastructure decision.
You can use blocking diodes to isolate shading panels ..I installed ally own system....and all my panels are ground level to deal with snow in winter..also use wind turbines for winter backup.. .which I use ..great vid ..!
Again a great video
I live in a more cloudy, wet climate (Ireland), for me a battery is essential for all of the reasons that you mention plus:
When sun is interrupted by clouds, solar production goes down so the battery can take over and supply thus minimizing need for grid
At times of low usage or load from within the house - that battery can charge thus minimizing excess solar from escaping to grid
In winter time, Batteries can be charged at night with night rate electricity and used during peak periods
As you say - South facing panes are most efficient - but without batteries - much of the solar will escape to grid
I'm impressed. In the 80's we installed solar hot water heaters with a 30 year warrantee, and i "believed". The company went out of business, in 5 years. I hated driving by and looking at one I helped install. I could see it decomposing. The frame used plastic, or something that degraded in the sun. ouch. They basically had to be removed in 7 years.
in the temperate climate zone the thermic solar panels last easily 30 years. Same for the tank (that should last longer than that). The frame is wood and with a metal cover, it is not really high tech (no electronics - as opposed to PV). And the absorptive layers also help up well.
If the termites do not get to them on the roof a wooden under a metall sheeting (with some space for aearation of course) should also hold up in semi-arid areas.
of course that was German engineering so unthinkable ! to use plastics forthe frame ;)
There is a consumer protection agency that does tests, who would have ripped apart a company that manufactures like that, or a solateur (plumber) who is cluless enough to work with such materials.
You should of known it was a scam when they told you that they had "hot water heaters". Hot water doesn't need heating.
Thanks for your honesty. If only the 5g installers would have a conscience
@@pinschrunner 5G doesn't do anything. Stop spreading mis information.
@@alihaidar5787, if it doesn't do anything then why are they installing 5G networks? 😉
Excellent video! Very clear explanation of the systems and your experience with solar. Far more knowledgable than the sales people I've had trying to sell me a system!
This video is great! I just bought a house in the Uinta mountains of Utah, and I’ll be replacing the roof and adding solar next summer. You gave me a lot to think about here. One of my biggest challenges is that I’m at the foot of a ridge to the south of me. So I don’t get a lot of sun on the roof during the winter months. I’m looking into whether it would make the most sense to put the panels on the roof or to mount some on posts on the north side of the yard which gets sun during the winter months. Thanks for all the info!
I'm in the process of becoming a full time Nomad and solar will be my primary source of energy. Right now I'm faced with so many choices. This video has helped me clarify what I need. Thank you!
I've been a full time nomad for four years now. Two years ago I got a solar system and threw my generator in the garbage. I love the ease and quiet of solar.
Please make sure your panels are professionally installed! Some panels GLUED on to a caravan flew off in highway traffic in Tasmania, causing a crash that killed three people. This actually was a professional installation, but obvs not good enough.
Excellent video. You covered it all. One thing, when the group of solar cells are connected in series, one cell goes open, that line is open. Have you encountered this situation in your system?
We're scheduled to get panels fitted next week, really reassured by your assessment-cheers buddy!!
Ricky, I just found your channel and subscribed. Great video for the first timer. I'm a pretty fair electrician, so I understand all the nerdy info and appreciate the time and effort you put into advising the public.
I'm building a DIY off-grid (hopefully) ICF home in the Tehachapi Mountains. Plans all approved and I'm just now completing the first phases of the foundation. With the cost of materials going crazy the past couple of years I wonder if I'll be able to complete the home without a bank loan. And banks want you to be grid-tied due to their bean-counters ability to insure against loss and potential re-sale of the property. I wish I knew more about banks who might fund off-grid homes but I guess I'll deal with that when I come to that bridge. ANY HELP APPRECIATED. Currently working with Iron Edison to build out my solar plans when the time comes. I've already purchased a 10kwh LiFePO4 battery from them. How do these batteries compare to the Tesla Powerwall? Again, any help appreciated, and looking forward to viewing your other video's.
Very well presented video,Although I'm completely offgrid in my Airstream I enjoy watching informative videos on solar. For me solar is a lifesaver. And it saves me from having to use gas and propane on a daily basis,so now with those prices going up I plan on saving even more and if,when the power grid goes down I'll be fine
I am damn so lucky, got my 8 kw solar system for 2000 usd nett after subsidy from govt of India. In ten months it has produced 8000 kwh totally negating my electricity bills.
Awesome! It seems like the US depending on where you live, says one thing about green, but then tells you another and regulations!
California won’t let you go off grid and has the highest regulation cost of any state. 😳
@@benjones8977 Absolutely Ben, cry from the politicians around the world for climate is just a farce (save few). I believe if the world really wants to get rid of dirty power it can be done in 8, 10 years. I am big fan of Elon he has started this tsunami.
@@ajaysachdeva9068
I know a number of stories talk about the fact that we’ve had free energy since Nikola Tesla. JP Morgan shut him down and ever since I think most inventions and solutions to our energy problems have been shelved by those in power.
If you watch the movie documentary called Unacknowledged, you will see in that film that the US and other governments have technology far beyond what they’re showing us.
Those in power want us to be their slaves and not upset their control of the system.
As the financial system/currencies collapse one after the other around the world, The New World order that they’re pushing will be put in place. God help us all after that. History has shown that mass murder usually happens after something like this.
Elon didn't invent it
Priceless information right here, thank you so much!
I am going to have solar installed in my home. Thank you for sharing your experience and knowledge of your solar system. Your video helps me to have appropriate questions about type of solar panel and inverters installed in my one level home. Also, your presentation are well done
I'm in the UK and have had my solar PV panels for 10 years too - June 2011. One of the best investments I have ever made, utility bills down and making money from the excess electricity that I sell back to the grid. I have just had a BACS payment of £400 from the Grid for my last quarters electricity supplied to them.
Someone else posted and complained that due to RAINY non SUNNY climate in the UK it was pointless for them. Can you share some insight on if/ how much that played out in your case?
@@AX-fx7ng Its hard for me to make comparisons with other peoples systems but here is what I have. I'm in rural Leicestershire, right in the middle of England - as far away from the coast as you can get - and the weather here is good, no extremes. My house is south facing, with no obstructions in the way of my panels, no tall building or trees. You don't need sunny weather for your panels to work, they work on the level of brightness - I have had good production on a clear bright day in December many times. I retired a couple of years ago so I can make use of the electricity generated as its produced - mowing the lawn, charging batteries, etc, etc.
If your system is below a certain level it is metered for what is produced but they just estimate the amount that you use of that production, so I try and use all of my production. As for rain, its great - cleans my panels for me :)
Great video. My biggest cost after 8 years was replacing my asphalt shingle roof. We had to remove 39 panels, and reinstall them. Cost in Canada was $7000. Ouch. Now we put a metal roof on, this should last long after I am gone. On average I generate 12 Mwt a year. I am happy.
I love the name of your channel. Great info video. Shared and following. Well you;re a third of the way there on your warentee and doing great so...awesome.
I have been doing solar since 2007. I have added on and upgraded over the years. There are areas that could save lots of money such as my case. I went from a $3600 a year utility cost down to less than $300 a year!
I have lived off grid with Solar since 1992. Never going back
Wow that's impressive, what US state are you in?
@@spiko-ou3bp interesting that you'd assume US...
@@JulianSloman interesting that you assume he assumes... maybe he knows he is from US
@@spiko-ou3bp California he said. Good vid
Problem is, in some places, you are forced to tie into the grid. Which is criminal and the ones responsible deserve to have their feet broken.
Well done video. Living in San Diego is perfect for this application. However where I live in northeast Ohio where electricity is $0.10/kWh, and 70% clouds I don’t see a payback in 8-3/4 years but more like 20+ years. That is an eternity. Love your show. Keep up the informative videos.
"....but more like 20+ years. That is an eternity." While I understand your point, that sort of attitude is the reason America hasn't made any really substantial infrastructure investments since the 50's....and Cleveland gets 2280 hours of sun a year on average. You don't need 100% clear days to generate power - you just don't generate as much on cloudy days.
Thank you for this down to earth video, very informative and structured.
Great video!
Just a couple points.
1. I bought my system in 2012 July for my home in Japan. Maybe it's different here, but my inverter has a socket - the guys who installed it told me that if the grid ever goes down, the panels do not stop making power, and I can plug into the socket and power what is needed, e.g. the fridge. Might want to look into that for your next inverter.
2. I have time based pricing, so I have always wanted a battery. However, powerwall, for example, costs about $10k. Based upon my calculations, and considering a life of say 10-15 years, there is no way I could recover my intitial costs. Note, I pay about 14 yen per kwh at night and 28 to 38 yen in the daytime. My solar panels are about 3kw.
1 it depends on how thew system is designed. And the stop while blackout is for the systems that feed in the grid the surplus. It is possible that the panels feeds only the house and waste the surplus if there is no battery, and hence, no need to stop producing for the house if the surplus does not goes into the grid anyway. But this will be an weird system. Also, the system can feed the grid, but have a gateway that will switch the house to feed on the solar system and the eventual battery, but shut off the grid, and in this way the grid will not be not affected by the local production when there is a blackout. It seems that he does not know about this piece of equipment.
2 Damn that time pricing sucks for batteries. You store expensive energy to use it at half a price. But you did not mentioned how much you get paid for your surplus injected in the grid. Also how many blackouts are there. Depending on these the battery may be worthy. Pushing the things to absurd, and imagining, random 10 minutes blackout absolutely every night, than a battery will be worthy. Sure, not an powerwall, but a cheaper one, to cover those 10 minutes and some more. I bought an UPS for my computer even blackouts are extremely rare. Let say twice a year. Few years back had one or two every winter, but in last 5 years had none. So I paid 50 bucks for the UPS, for peace of mind, not for recovering the cost. Why for things like solar and batteries and electric cars we need to compute the return of the cost, but we never look at recovering the cost when we buy everything else, from clothes, to all the gizmos we use in the house? Maybe because these things are quite expensive. But a car, or a computer, now even a phone are expensive too. Never heard anybody to look at recovering money for a phone that will last anyway only a couple of years, not a couple of decades.
And I am curious about how much it cost your system, and after how many years you recovered the investment.
He said, 8 years, for a 10k spent on a 1kw system. He mentioned that now could get a 4 times bigger system for the same money, and energy price doubled. So, ROI close to 2 years. But your system is as old as his, and more, maybe not so favorable located as his.
@@ehombane we never have blackouts here, so battery is unnecessary.
For the first 10 years I received 42 yen per kwh.
My system cost 1.8 million yen but I got 10% cash back from the gov. My year on year saving was 20,000 to 30,000 per month so I fully recovered my net investment in about 5 years.
My panels all face due south at an angle of about 20 degrees.
Sun is favorable in this part of Japan.
Now I only receive about 10 yen per kwh for electricity that I sell to the grid.
Net net, no point in buying an expensive battery
@@gerberjason6947 Thanks for the a answer. Wow, 5 years ROI back then, that was nice. I see, the reason was the good price for sold production. Now systems are almost 4 times cheaper, but you get 4 times less so ROI is no better.
Yep, no point on wasting money on battery. (Unless you really like them, like me :), and buy them to be there, just case. )
Great video built on experience! I was wondering what is the percentage cost of your batteries on the whole system, cause it seems to me that this is one of the critical point.
Have 30 panels in a ground mounted array, and we are putting in 18 more on a garage roof the 12th. You are right that you will probably replace yours long before they can fail. Good advice about the battery -- we need to do that too. Good vid. You are a great resource.
No need to replace if they're still working. The best thing to do for the environment is to not discard something that's still working, even at 80% efficiency.
@@LoanwordEggcorn yep just add more or resale if you have limited suitable sun exposure . someone will definitely buy them at a fair price. At least .16 per watt right now.
@@LoanwordEggcorn Yep. Same with people wanting to discard batteries that are 80-90% range. Rather ridiculous if you ask me.
@@samusaran7317 Agree. BTW, most well engineered EV battery packs will last decades of typical use, especially Tesla battery packs, and most people don't discard EV battery packs even if they lose 10% range.
Since most drivers in the U.S. and EU drive fewer than 40 miles / 60 km per day, most EVs remain highly usable even if they lose a few percent of range after many years of use. There really isn't much of a real-world practical problem of needing to replace EV battery packs for a very long time, especially well engineered ones.
That theme, however, is an excellent(ly deceptive) one from the oil and internal combustion engine manufacturer anti-EV FUD disinformation campaign playbooks.
@@LoanwordEggcornI agree with you but some people dont use their brains and it shows. If you have enough time you will see how ignorant people truly are online. Never underestimate people stuck on autopilot in life which is an ever growing majority these days.
For anyone confused about why panels stop working when the grid goes down - imagine being an electircal worker happy you've turned off the grid area and about to start working on the lines while some person up the road a bit is buay pumping electricity into your line from the other direction.
It makes a lot of sense to cut it off but still a major downside to getting solar to offset power outages.
Great video, really gets to the point and explains what you need. Would love to know how a home could go totally off grid, meaning more than one power wall or battery? What would you would need to do that 24/7?
It would probably be unreliable to be fully offgrid unless you produce more power than you actually use. Since power can vary wildy between both the time of day and time of year, you would need to be able to store a lot of power for a long period of time to permanently avoid using grid power.
At least with solar only anyways. There may be ways to mitigate this with other renewables, but that depends a lot more on your specific home conditions and location. It also depends how much youre actually willing to spend up front to get the necessary stuff.
It is possible to be fully offgrid, but from what ive seen, its usually not worth the trouble, and its better to at least still be hooked up to the grid for when you're not producing a surplus of energy. Generally best to use grid power during the colder months where the sun is out less, and sell back to the grid during summer.
I thought I would share some lessons learned from doing my own solar install. Date of install end of Dec 2021. 1. If you pay a company to do your solar install, I seriously doubt it would ever pay for itself over 20-25-30 years. I also doubt your electric bill will be zero in the summer months as most solar companies flat out lie. Being inform, you can have them put their expectations on legal papers for your future safety. 2. If you do your own solar one can expect a 4-7 year return on investment. You will have to get educated on permits with your local city and power company. If I can do it anyone can. 3. Power Company Billing was my biggest surprise from this entire venture. Rocky Mountain is NOT solar friendly to the average home owner. The excess power sent to the grid for storage comes at a great cost. I discovered after a few months of billing that We pay RMP .077 cents per KWH. When you generate excess solar power, the excess goes to the RMP grid but RMP only credits you .04 cents per KWH. So, in others words grid storage is not free or cheap. RMP skims nearly 50% off the top. WHAT DOES ALL THIS MEAN: 1. When you have your solar designed and drawings engineered you have to figure in 1/3-1/2 larger system to make up for the RMP skim ratio. I was lucky and added 30% more panels then necessary because I wanted an electric water heater. So far my last 3 utility bills have been $13 the minimum fee RPM charges and that includes free hot water. Jan-Mar our bill was $45-$60 due to winter clouds with a typical electric bill of $100-ish in the winter and $375 in Summer RMP resets the homeowner grid storage to Zero March to March. Of course, RMP keeps the excess storage when the clock is reset. We lost $15 storage credit. Yep RMP keeps your excess after Mar billing is closed out and you start your grid battery storage at zero. This feature does not encourage being "green", It flat out encourages running ones AC to 68 degrees in July and August and push less out to the grid. So during the day your system pushed out excess power to the gird at .04 cents and at night you buy your power back at .077 cents. Yah get the KY jelly ready. 2) Another big disappointment is RMP in Utah takes ALL the homeowner carbon credit rebates. Most states let the solar owner sell the Carbon Credit which can add up to $100-$300 per month passive income. If Utah is serious about encouraging Solar for Homeowners the laws need to be changed. Only serious pressure on our elected officials will we make strides in Solar. Conclusion: Overall I am happy with my solar only because we did all the labor ourselves. We expect near zero ($13) per month electric bills from here on out. Beware that many States like Florida have increased the $13 minimum to $30 now.... so that must be our near-term future for residential solar. This year the homeowner will still be eligible for a 26% IRS rebate and up to $1200 Utah rebate. The crazy part of the Utah Credit: You have to pay $30-$35 ish bucks to set up a Utah Rebate account in order to claim your solar rebate. Another shocker! The 26% Federal IRS rebate for DIY is only for cost of materials. Your Labor is not deductible. One can however hire out parts of the job like mounting the rails and running electrical inside the attic. You will need receipts for the rebates. Pros: We find that it is more cost effective if we run our home ac at 68-70 degrees during the day and raise it up to 73-75 at night. The heavy use during the day results in less RPM skimming off grid storage but just enough to run the ac at night and draw from our grid storage. Not very "Green" in my mind but it is what it is. Con's: One has to be aware to not have too much excess "Banked" on the grid when March comes a knocking. You lose all excess. So in others words crank up the electric heaters, electric blankets, leave all the lights on and dry ones hair more often. Excess storage is not a tax deductible loss but should be! So in other words you have to manage your usage. Does not require much time but it is another thing to do. About 10-15 minutes a month. Bottom Line: Would I do it again? Absolutely YES. I would not hire it out but if one uses their own elbow grease and fill in with some contracted work it is well worth it. Yesterday was 92 degrees and my total draw from the grid was zero. I actually pushed 40kwh to the grid. What is 40kwh? enough to run 40 100w light bulbs for 1 hour or 4 ton HVAC system for 6-8hrs
A small typo...40kwh equals 40,000 watts which is 400 x 100w bulbs for 1 hour
I have some solar power plant design experience myself, so one quick tip to prevent shading you can install the panels in landscape and wire the panels in two rows. In that way only one set of panels will be in shade at the initial time of shading
Great video, I have learned so much from this video than all the YT videos put together!
Thank you for sharing your interesting and comprehensive experiences having gone solar. I installed a 3.5 kwh tracking system in 2008 which stores electricity by turning the meter backward. My house is all electric. The system paid for itself in about eight years. Of significance is my heating system, electric radiant heat in the ceiling. This system is far less expensive to install and better than radiant heat in the floor. Better because the mass to warm before it begins or stops heating is small so it is fast to respond. It feels like standing in the sun as the heat radiates down on you.. Every room has its own programmable thermostat. Heating can be minimized during high cost hours. There is another benefit to electric radiant heat in the ceiling. In 50 years there has been no maintenance. I did upgrade the thermostats to programmable ones. No furnace, no fan, no gas lines, no replacements. For new housing, such a system AND solar to power it should cost less than radiant in the floor.
Just wanna say, nice room my guy. Thanks for the good info too.
Great video! Very informative! I’ll keep watching and I’m subscribed.
thanks for posting, these are all great points and have helped me in my decision making for string vs. micro inverter, and installer selection.
I would advise everyone to be careful when cleaning the panels, hard fiber mops can scratch the panel and that is worse than any gunk you might have.
Edit: very nice observation about those west facing panels.
IMO the problem with solar is the resources needed to make it widespread, domestic wind power prodution might be a good complement but when you account for home batteries plus the rise of EV will create a very high demand for rare earths and I dont think we are that close of a material science breakthrough to make it viable but hopefully I am wrong on that.
Perovskite solar cells do not use any rare earth's.
@@WetPig it uses rare metals, you got me
@@porcus123 What exactly do you define as rare?
Great feedback. Question what type of cleaning solution do u use? Do u use a wiper on the panels ?
Most of those minerals are recyclable indefinitely but we need recycling to work property. Europe takes it more seriously but in NA you can throw everything in black garbage bag and nobody cares
Best yet explanation. You might say that the silicon solar cells generate voltages that forward bias its internal cells diode. This limits each internal cells output to about 0.5 volts. The solar cells reverse voltage is usually more than 30 volts when shaded, this subtracts from the strings output. adding a power silicon diode across each string reduces the shaded strings loss to about 1 volt.