It is
One of the things that I was surprised by the last time I had my roof replaced was the software they had at their disposal to know exactly how my roof was created in terms of square footage and every dormer, etc., on it. This wasn't something they needed to measure, but apparently had very detailed visual data I could only guessed came from some thing like a Bird's Eye view. They even know that the front of my home was two stories and three on the back (daylight/walkout basement).
I would think that Tesla was smart enough to have access to this kind of software/data to simple get a very accurate measure, orientation and type of roof design and place that into an automated workflow on their website. But maybe they are more focused on rockets and cars.
Oh I was wondering where people were getting their info. I get the same thing.
I've been looking into a more traditional solar setup and using this site to get an idea of pricing: https://www.solarwholesaler.ca/
I measured and I have room for about 3kw on my roof due to shape/shading etc so I figure about 15-20k for a half decent system. The biggest cost is the batteries and power electronics. (inverter/charge controller). I would want at least 2 inverters for redundancy and two big battery strings. I could go cheaper if I downsize on that stuff.
Virtually every solar panel you can purchase has power performance guarantees, the industry standard is 80% of rated power at 25 years. Some panel manufacturers offer 30 or 35 year power production warranties with the norm being 75% at 35 years.
Point being is there is literally nothing to break inside the panel beside actual physical damage from an external force. They will continue working long after that warranty expires just at a slightly reduced efficiency over the decades. As a matter of fact, the first solar cell ever made still works to this day.
While you are correct on all of your points in your previous post, one thing that you are missing is that along with the solar you are getting a "tile" roof too. So if your neighbor needed a new roof and decided he wanted tile just a normal tile roof would cost him roughly $40ishK +/- so you have to deduct that from the price of the Tesla roof. Sure you did it cheaper but they got a lifetime roof (well at least tile is and Tesla claims theirs is) AND solar and all you got was solar panels. Not really an apples to apples comparison.
I have designed solar systems for houses that were in desperate need of a reroof which had to be done before the solar install. Since they needed a new roof anyway that cost wasn't included in any ROI projections that I did. Would you argue that I ran the numbers wrong?
This would be something to look at if you are building a new home or about to reroof and considering a high end reroof.
This only supports my point of the needless "infinity warranty". I know there is very little that can go wrong with these panels. Hell, with the decreasing cost of solar panels, in 30 years time the more modern panels would be so much more efficient and cheaper that it wouldn't matter.
Correct, I've mentioned this previously, but that would greatly depend on the roof area needing to be re-shingled and cost he/she can get it. I imagine if you (the contractor) are ambitious enough to give this person solar, you will try to get them a good price on re-roof as well as new panels. I have a 4br 4bath with garage roof. I believe I've priced a new roof to around 10 to 15K. So even if I did panels myself and hire someone to do a roof, it's still cheaper.
Wow, I've never heard of installing two inverters simply for redundancy, not even sure how to wire that up although I'm sure I could come up with something if I thought about it. Just out of curiosity, why do you want a battery bank system? Does the power grid go down a lot or do you have a real need to go off the grid?
The ROI isn't very compelling nor is the upfront cost. I'd rather go through Solar City or the other dozen like it.
Total nonsense calculator. It makes too many assumptions that could be way off. Such as assuming everyone in a state has the same electricity rate. I pay about 40% less per kWh than the average in California thanks to having municipal power. Where I live solar roofs would never make sense due to low cost power we have
The issue is winter though, our days are so short, it would be hard to go fully off grid, but if I could do that, that's where I would save a LOT of money. Just being connected to the grid costs like $100/mo.
Wow! Do you mind telling me where you live? I've never heard of anything like that.
This only supports my point of the needless "infinity warranty". I know there is very little that can go wrong with these panels. Hell, with the decreasing cost of solar panels, in 30 years time the more modern panels would be so much more efficient and cheaper that it wouldn't matter.
Mis-identifies my home. The home it identifies, just around the corner, is of a different size, design/shape and orientation, and just a visual comparison would seem to indicate to me that my roof has more exposure to the sun. I was astounded by the Google inaccuracy considering it's regular MAP program is spot on. The house that link picked out was of a different name and number.This is probably more accurate in terms of how much sq. footage is available for a solar roof:
https://www.google.com/get/sunroof#p=0
Northern Ontario. They privatized our hydro company (Hydro One) and our rates have been out of control since then and go up every year. Actually multiple times a year. I pay over $170/mo and most of that is not usage, but fixed fees. They know people conserve more now so they get us with fixed fees and constant increases in rates.
At one point they were even talking about banning natural gas to force people to heat with electricity so they can make more money. Thankfully they seem to have canceled that.
One issue that has not been discussed (perhaps I missed it) is the mobile nature of our society. When I was young the term "nuclear" family became widely used and referred to the habit that contemporary people/families had of moving anywhere they wished ... pretty much whenever they wished. While some homeowners stay in their homes for long (20+ years) periods of time ... a large number do not ... and this is (IMHO) a problem when considering going with this technology ... at this price. If a homeowner is going to spend $60K on a new solar roof, only to move across country for a new job in 5 years time ... can he/she realistically expect to recoup the cost of the solar roof at time of sale? IMHO the answer is no. If considering a house I will not pay a (significant) premium for a house with a solar roof over one without.
Your thoughts?
Damn, that is some bullshit, I've never heard of anything like that. We would freaking riot down here if they added a $100 fee just to be connected.
Oh people are pissed, but nothing we can do. They're a private company now, so it's just capitalism at play. They are doing everything a corporation will do to maximize profits. I'm sure they'll start laying off linemen soon and it will take longer for power outages to be repaired etc. Typical corporate cycle.
Same here. Our Board of Public Utilities would never allow something like that unless they were completely in the pocket of the utilities.Our power company is private too but they have to get permission from local regulators for every single rate hike or fee. Like I said, we'd freaking riot and that shit would be legislated out of existence with the quickness.
Same here. Our Board of Public Utilities would never allow something like that unless they were completely in the pocket of the utilities.