I have the same issue here. ROI is beyond the life expectancy of the system. Big well insulated house with a brick exterior and cheap energy makes solar a poor investment.
I have the same issue here. ROI is beyond the life expectancy of the system. Big well insulated house with a brick exterior and cheap energy makes solar a poor investment.Install costs are high, electric rates are pretty reasonable, and we don't use a lot of electricity. Our five year average monthly electric bill is $87 and $107 for the past year, which was an exceptionally hot year. Of that, $28/month is a flat fee for being connected to the utility so the energy costs were $59 and $79 respectively. The fee would remain even if the net grid electric power usage were zero or below. Payback period is roughly eighteen years for us.
Install costs are high, electric rates are pretty reasonable, and we don't use a lot of electricity. Our five year average monthly electric bill is $87 and $107 for the past year, which was an exceptionally hot year. Of that, $28/month is a flat fee for being connected to the utility so the energy costs were $59 and $79 respectively. The fee would remain even if the net grid electric power usage were zero or below. Payback period is roughly eighteen years for us.
What kind of power storage? That is one area you have to worry about longevity.Living in Southern CA and in San Diego Gas & Electric service area. A 2-year old with crayons can make a case for a effective ROI. I was having $800+/month electric bills before I installed solar. Now I am looking at around $200 for a entire year. Even with a system for $110k Solar+Storage. My ROI is less than 8-years and that is even before you consider I no longer worry about running the AC. I now have 2 Electric cars and almost completely changed out everything in my home to be electric so I no longer use Propane. Which was also costing me $4-5 gallon.
I've had it quoted in Oklahoma. I am generally a low power user, very cheap power, and the power company will only net meter within a month (no payment for excess power nor month to month rolling) and the payoff was like 7.5 years.I have the same issue here. ROI is beyond the life expectancy of the system. Big well insulated house with a brick exterior and cheap energy makes solar a poor investment.
Install costs are high, electric rates are pretty reasonable, and we don't use a lot of electricity. Our five year average monthly electric bill is $87 and $107 for the past year, which was an exceptionally hot year. Of that, $28/month is a flat fee for being connected to the utility so the energy costs were $59 and $79 respectively. The fee would remain even if the net grid electric power usage were zero or below. Payback period is roughly eighteen years for us.
We have almost no insulation in a cheap 1960s tract house. The house has a few things that make a huge different for electric use: gas furnace, low angle white roof, long axis oriented east - west, covered porch and carport on southern and western exposures, trees on the east side. And the biggest thing: it's a small house.Either you have extremely good insulation or like an 85F A/C set point.
What kind of power storage? That is one area you have to worry about longevity.
As a safety engineer who keeps having to deal with li-ion battery packs I wonder how they handle thermal runaway for residential packs. A good design will handle catastrophic failure of a cell without allowing propagation to adjacent cells.They are LFP Batteries rated for 10,000 cycles to 70% Capacity. I am expecting at least 2-decades of service out of them.
The batteries themselves are in a cabinet and 16 cells (3V by 280 AH) are setup in serial to make a 48v battery. With a total of 5x 48V Battery to give me about 70 kwh of storage. The battery cells are accessible if you open up the battery box. In theory of one of the cells went bad and the installer was no longer available I could replace a bad cell myself. The installer orders the cells in bulk from China and then assembles them in a UL fire rated cabinet for installation. That is one of the reasons I went with this company is the batteries could in theory be serviced by the home-owner themselves. No black box like a Tesla Powerwall or other home storage solutions that a homeowner couldn't fix themselves.
https://18650battery.com/products/c...q_loVI2WwoknKOJdNSgOlWv4KIEqEQ0YaAnXdEALw_wcB
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Must have been a pretty fair install price. I'd install my own system but there is no way I'm going to work on 12/12 roof. I'd have to do a ground mounted system, which actually isn't a bad idea now that I think about it.I've had it quoted in Oklahoma. I am generally a low power user, very cheap power, and the power company will only net meter within a month (no payment for excess power nor month to month rolling) and the payoff was like 7.5 years.
Faster if I switch to a heat pump.
That white roof is one of the best things you could’ve done. When we replaced our roof last year, we replaced a traditional red shingle for a silver-white one. The energy use of the house dramatically decreases, even in winter.We have almost no insulation in a cheap 1960s tract house. The house has a few things that make a huge different for electric use: gas furnace, low angle white roof, long axis oriented east - west, covered porch and carport on southern and western exposures, trees on the east side. And the biggest thing: it's a small house.
As a safety engineer who keeps having to deal with li-ion battery packs I wonder how they handle thermal runaway for residential packs. A good design will handle catastrophic failure of a cell without allowing propagation to adjacent cells.
In college I did a of building energy usage simulation research. Low-E roofing was one of the things I looked at. Low-E roofing itself would help a bit, but not enough to pay much of a premium for it. White roofing, though, was a massive improvement, especially on commercial buildings that don't have the buffer space of a ventilated attic.That white roof is one of the best things you could’ve done. When we replaced our roof last year, we replaced a traditional red shingle for a silver-white one. The energy use of the house dramatically decreases, even in winter.
For summer, we’ve dropped over $100/mo in A/C costs since the roof replacement. Thermostat never below 76 and usually 77-78. It’s at 78 right this minute and feels quite cool in here. Prior new roof, 72 was the typical thermostat setting.
House is a tract house, circz 1992, brick walls, heat pump, adequate insulation in attic…nothing outrageous. Long axis of house east/west. Front faces almost due north..I think within 3 degrees of true mag north.
I was surprised how the color of the roof changed our power useage…made no other changes to house.
Also the big trend in residential roof now (thanks HGTV) is completely black roofing.
'It helps in the winter!'Watched people painting their homes entirely black/grey in Austin. Cursed trend.
'It helps in the winter!'
Do they still put a fireplace in every single home built in TX? Literally everyone I knew had one when I grew up. Everyone just had a stack of dusty wood that never got lit stuffed in it.
In college I did a of building energy usage simulation research. Low-E roofing was one of the things I looked at. Low-E roofing itself would help a bit, but not enough to pay much of a premium for it. White roofing, though, was a massive improvement, especially on commercial buildings that don't have the buffer space of a ventilated attic.
Cool roofing is another area that HOAs prevent the installation of. Also the big trend in residential roof now (thanks HGTV) is completely black roofing.
Have seen a bunch of folks in our neighborhood putting up black roofs and my wife and I just shake our heads. It costs enough to cool these houses in the summer.Watched people painting their homes entirely black/grey in Austin. Cursed trend.
Our house has one. We set it up with gas logs and use it a couple of times a year between December and February. Came in handy during winter storm Uri when power was out for three days.'It helps in the winter!'
Do they still put a fireplace in every single home built in TX? Literally everyone I knew had one when I grew up. Everyone just had a stack of dusty wood that never got lit stuffed in it.
Came in handy during winter storm Uri when power was out for three days.
My house built in 2010 has a B-vent gas logs fireplace with a sealed firebox. Worst fucking invention ever made. The B-vent and inlet air vent are not sealed and have no damper, so they leak like a seave. I noticed it the first winter we were in house when I was playing with my dog on the floor and was like "why is it so fucking cold right here." Stuffed shit everywhere I could on it to stop the leaks and as a consequence have never used it.'It helps in the winter!'
Do they still put a fireplace in every single home built in TX? Literally everyone I knew had one when I grew up. Everyone just had a stack of dusty wood that never got lit stuffed in it.
At least yours is vented. The thing they stuck in my house has no vent at all, just dumps combustion gas right into the house. My guess is that since the range is electric they figured a little carbon monoxide from the fireplace wouldn't hurt.My house built in 2010 has a B-vent gas logs fireplace with a sealed firebox. Worst fucking invention ever made. The B-vent and inlet air vent are not sealed and have no damper, so they leak like a seave. I noticed it the first winter we were in house when I was playing with my dog on the floor and was like "why is it so fucking cold right here." Stuffed shit everywhere I could on it to stop the leaks and as a consequence have never used it.
I've tried quoting getting it replaced with either a direct vent or wood burner and every response I've ever gotten is "not interested."
How the fuck did that pass inspection or was it a homeowner special?At least yours is vented. The thing they stuck in my house has no vent at all, just dumps combustion gas right into the house. My guess is that since the range is electric they figured a little carbon monoxide from the fireplace wouldn't hurt.
How the fuck did that pass inspection or was it a homeowner special?
Of course this is back in 72/73, but I was in more than one apartment in Atlanta that literally just had a flame bar with a metal grate/guard in front, free standing. Always, wondered about the CO you would be exposed to.At least yours is vented. The thing they stuck in my house has no vent at all, just dumps combustion gas right into the house. My guess is that since the range is electric they figured a little carbon monoxide from the fireplace wouldn't hurt.
Yeah, those things are dangerous as shit. I am pretty sure they are banned in the cities I've lived in in Oklahoma, but my mom had one in Ft. Smith and just about have herself Carbon Monoxide poisoning once.At least yours is vented. The thing they stuck in my house has no vent at all, just dumps combustion gas right into the house. My guess is that since the range is electric they figured a little carbon monoxide from the fireplace wouldn't hurt.