$5,000 for a 3kW home grid tied solar voltaic for Mom's home

[ultrarunner]

PS... thanks for the link... definitely some good incentives offered in parts of California... unfortunately, doesn't appear like much for her city and county.

She would be the first in her neighborhood if we do it...

 

[TnAndy]

I've got 20 Enphase mircoinverters on the 5kw of my system. The rest, about 6kw, is battery backup. The Enphase side outperforms the larger battery based side quite regularly.

A 3kw system here in Tennessee will produce about 3,000kwhrs annually, or 250/month. I'd think you would see that in the SF area as well.....meaning it would knock out 1/2 your bill....maybe more based on that Tier stuff. Is that based on total use (you hit a level, the rate jumps), or time of day, or what ? Power here runs a flat 9 cents/kwhr for residential. (plus a basic meter charge of 12.50 + taxes)

Based on 40/month in savings, you're looking at a 10-11 year payback, assuming rates don't rise over that time period.

What is the TOTAL cost for the system installed ? (before tax and local incentives).....hard to compare prices, given state/local incentives vary so much. I understand here they are running in the $3-3.50/w range for grid tie only systems, prior to any incentives.

 

[ultrarunner]

The total cost is $7949 less tax credits of $2384 and possibly another $400 if a program is extended.

Presently, her electricity is billed on over all usage and not time of day.

Before the LED lighting and the kitchen 2 ea T-8 bulbs and unplugging her garage refrigerator she was routinely using about half at the highest tier level for her 2300 square foot home.

The kitchen had 3 ea 100 watt bulbs in the ceiling fixture and 3 ea 75 watt over the sink...

 

[TnAndy]

I looked into this briefly back in 2000 and it seems the cost was much higher back then.

Prices WERE a lot higher then. I started my system in 2007, and panels were $4/watt. (Solar World panels). Today, I can buy a much higher watt panel, same brand, for 90 cents/watt !

The Enphase M215 inverter I was buying for $150, dropped to about $125 (if you shop careful) when they came out with the newer, higher power one for larger panels. The M215 is fine for panels up to about 260w.

For Christmas, I changed out most of her lighting to Cree LED and so far it has been very satisfactory... and noticed a significant consumption drop... she still had bathroom light fixtures and ceiling fixtures with 3 75W bulbs each...

We too changed to Cree LEDs. GREAT lights, aren't they ? The recessed can lights are something like 12w and knock-your-eyeballs-out bright.

 

[ultrarunner]

I have nothing bad to say about CREE lights... everyone in the extended family got one from me their Christmas Stocking.

I was visiting a retired friend and he had a CREE light bulb on his counter and I mentioned it... he said his nephew works for the company and sent him some... he asked if I wanted them!

I told him CREE is the real deal and then he said maybe he should keep them.

The only unknown is how long they will really last.

Mom has electric range and a 1960's Amana Freezer and a 1980's Refrigerator... both just keep on working!

Leasing or no-cost solar is real big around here... especially for those with central A/C inland.

The folks that do the lease programs said she does not use enough to make it worth their while.

 

[TnAndy]

The total cost is $7949 less tax credits of $2384 and possibly another $400 if a program is extended.

Presently, her electricity is billed on over all usage and not time of day.

Before the LED lighting and the kitchen 2 ea T-8 bulbs and unplugging her garage refrigerator she was routinely using about half at the highest tier level for her 2300 square foot home.

The kitchen had 3 ea 100 watt bulbs in the ceiling fixture and 3 ea 75 watt over the sink...

You definitely did things the right way.....cut first before considering generation.

That is $2.64/w installed.....a pretty fair price considering the equipment is going to run me personally close to 2 bucks/w. (They probably get 20% or so off 2 bucks buying wholesale).

So the tier thing is amount based. Well, this should knock all that 15 and 32 cent stuff out, and put a decent dent in the 13 cent amount.

 

[TnAndy]

I told him CREE is the real deal and then he said maybe he should keep them.

The only unknown is how long they will really last.

They claim 50,000 hrs. I figure our can lights will outlast us at that rate. The can lights are a REAL heavy duty built aluminum finned housing....not really a bulb, so much as a 'unit'. They were expensive up front, but I figured the cost of power savings and factored in the life they claim, and turns out they are the cheapest bulb on the market over time.

 

[dave1949]

You could hang a Kill-a-watt meter on the old frig and freezer to see how much power they are using per month. Working fine and energy efficient are not the same.

Pretty dangerous though changing Mom's appliances--you know who will get blamed if the replacements aren't perfect. :laughing:

 

[ultrarunner]

^^^ And made in USA too...

Don't have any cans here... In Washington I have lots... with a 400 amp service to the home.

It's something I want to look at if/when I ever get back up there.

 

[ultrarunner]

You could hang a Kill-a-watt meter on the old frig and freezer to see how much power they are using per month. Working fine and energy efficient are not the same.

Pretty dangerous though changing Mom's appliances--you know who will get blamed if the replacements aren't perfect. :laughing:

So many of her friends got rid of perfectly usable appliances from Refrigerators to Washing Machines and every one is sorry they did... they wanted something new, in style and GREEN.

I think the biggest complaints were the front loader washers when they first came out... mom still has her avocado green Kenmores... she grew up on a farm where folks are raised to be practical.