Grid-tied solar

[cqaigy2]

I would counter by saying many of us are Green and never bothered with the label...

My Grandparents little dairy farm was very Green... they only bought in bulk things they could not raise... flour, sugar, coffee... never bought any finished/processed goods... just about all of my grandmother's clothes she made from bolts of material... they never owned a car or truck... they did buy a tractor in 1950 and it was still being used 50 years later...

I seen the other side too... managing apartments in the city... seems there is never enough space in the dumpsters... we had a garbage strike a few years back and the city was drowning in trash... my parents could fill a 20 gallon trash can in a month... kids just tossing bottles to watch them break.

Maybe being green is taking a step backwards... just like using mason jars, the same ones year after year and not buying into the disposable everything...

I guess I'm a throwback too... never needed the newest or latest of anything... my 30 year refrigerator, rotary phone and hand me down CRT TV's work just fine...

The biggest contrast I see is low income families where each member, kids included have cell phones... the cable package costs a $150 a month and 50" TVs and yesterday's game station is in the trash...

A man after my own heart. Belong to a religious based organization that also provide financial planning services. He was at our place and said that we wouldn't be effected by inflation because we don't own anything new and don't buy a bunch of unnecessary stuff. It works well for my wife and i. I guess we learned this from our parents and don't pay attention to advertizement for what we need to live a fulfilling life.

 

[houstonscott]

A man after my own heart. Belong to a religious based organization that also provide financial planning services. He was at our place and said that we wouldn't be effected by inflation because we don't own anything new and don't buy a bunch of unnecessary stuff. It works well for my wife and i. I guess we learned this from our parents and don't pay attention to advertizement for what we need to live a fulfilling life.

I agree, as long as you don't demand and advocate others live like you or try to control them into living like you, and that you understand your way is not the right way, it's your way. My gut tells me people live their lives with the resources they have and find happiness is whatever they have earned for themselves, but are always looking to improve their situation for themselves or their family. HS

 

[KiwiBro]

Here's a prediction, FWIW;
The Tesla Powerwall home storage batteries will be superseded (actually, blown out of the water) by other options well before the end of this year.

 

[MossRoad]

Here's a prediction, FWIW;
The Tesla Powerwall home storage batteries will be superseded (actually, blown out of the water) by other options well before the end of this year.

Here's my prediction:
Just like Apple iPhones, Tesla will release new models in rapid succession to stave off obsolescence. Remember, marketing is way more powerful than actual capability of a product.

 

[KiwiBro]

Here's my prediction:
Just like Apple iPhones, Tesla will release new models in rapid succession to stave off obsolescence. Remember, marketing is way more powerful than actual capability of a product.

That's what I think Tesla brings most to the party - the ability to reach people willing to pay to essentially drive this closer to mass-market than it otherwise would be. It certainly isn't the product itself because I don't think the Powerwall battery is quite hitting the sweet spot yet, but boy their marketing clout is impressive.

Interesting times ahead.

 

[dave1949]

Results for June + July 1-3, 2015.

I saw this thread pop up this morning and realized I forgot to take the June reading.

*The actual June-only amount would be closer to 380 AC kWh I think.


*********************************** Model Prediction ***********************************************
OLD
_______388____412____509_____374____353____308____ 341___383____394____369____283____331____4,447

NEW Waterville, ME
_______273____322____491_____449____417____375____ 438___542____443____408____350____319____4,827

NEW Portland, ME
_______453____486____523_____452____448____409____ 444___464____466____461____351____368____5,325


GENERATION
Year___Jan____Feb____Mar____Apr_____May____Jun____ Jul____Aug____Sep____Oct____Nov____Dec____Total

2012____NA____NA_____NA____NA_____NA_____NA_____NA ___461_____481____378____400____297____NA
2013____440___375____462____487_____375____379____ 377___470_____476____453____414____278____4,986
2014____360___446____577____525_____361____390____ 395___453_____489____380____295____299____4,970
2015____431___456____612____473_____440____407*


Values are AC kilowatt hours.
Model source: NREL PVWatts Calculator

 

[Redneck in training]

Here's a prediction, FWIW;
The Tesla Powerwall home storage batteries will be superseded (actually, blown out of the water) by other options well before the end of this year.

Elon Musk said few years back that Tesla is is primarily battery company. With its size and capitalization it should have enough R&D muscle to stay ahead of competition.

 

[ultrarunner]

Pacific Gas and Electric has received the go ahead to restructures rates.... the issue is many are no longer paying the cost of providing service... alternative energy, LED lighting, other energy saving measures and new construction techniques are all taking a toll on the bottom line.

Interesting times ahead... my now 80 year old neighbor still says he wakes up with a smile each day... several years ago he designed and installed his hillside array and has not paid for a single kW since... seems each month, another area home is going solar although most are are in the 8 to 12 panel range.

 

[arrow]

I've got a building that uses about 18,000 kWh per month. There is a company that wants to sell us a solar system with no storage stating that the local electric corp. (NGrid) will by back the excess. I've checked around and no where can I find that NGrid has to buy anything back. After all the taxes , fees and surcharges, we pay about 23 cents per kw. so our bill is a bit over 4K per month. I am concerned about snow load and how much a system this large will produce during winter months. As I do not feature going onto a roof to shovel off panels, a ground array is almost mandatory. They make a statement that r.o.i is about 5-8 yrs.

We average 98 days out of 365 of pure sunshine and the rest is partly to fully cloudy. Kind of skeptical at this point. Installation cost is 300K so the math is not meshing in my head as they have stated. Right now it seems to me as if it would be more like over 20 years r.o.i.

I asked where they got their output numbers and they say "around here". Well in comparing where say Siberia is, Texas is "around here". They have one other array in RI but it is near the coast where it does not snow as much. I asked to see the billing comparisons for actual savings and they state it is not in their purview to show that systems billing costs. OK, I understand. When contacting the "principals" of that system, they were very enthusiastic and stated they were saving quite a bit of money. I asked for an example but the woman could not give me an actual figure. If it was their first installation in the state, I am wondering if the solar company gave them an incentive to "pitch" their system. I'm not getting straight answers from anyone so I've got red flags going on in my head at this point.

 

[ultrarunner]

Some of my skeptical friends have signed contracts for a fixed rate for 10 to 15 years... they own nothing and by signing have locked in their cost per kW.