Home Solar Packages

[The_Tick]

Hey...so I did the search, and if there is already a thread then I will leave it to D-Hole to point out for me.

We are looking at putting solar on the new house. Has anyone else done this already? There are quite a few options out there, between leasing and purchasing, and I am curious as to what the CS/CUF brain trust thinks about it.

The system they have sized for our house is 41 panels. 11KW.

The numbers are hard to come up with on a new home, but they figure consumption will come up to about 1616 KWH per month.

Anyone care to share their experiences?

Tick

[Uncle Ted]

In most cases it the cost/benefit analysis of solar power usually boils down to what kind of tax benefit you can get although the panel cost has really started coming down. The thing to keep in mind with solar power is the panels lose efficiency over time. Something like 20% over 25 years...

[TripletDaddy]

dont know about the cost, but solar panels all over a house generally look really nice.

[The_Tick]

They don't look that bad in all honesty.

I am just looking to save a little money in the long run. PG&E is constantly working on raising their rates 10-13% a year.

The new house is bigger than the last one, and I didn't like the power bill in the last one.

[Katy Lied]

They might not look bad to start with, but after they age and get all rusty, yikes.
I'd check to see what the typical age for those panels are, and then divide by 2. That's when they'll start to look super ugly.
If you're lucky, your house is oriented so that the panels go on the back side of the house so no one can see it.

[cougjunkie]

Call Vivint.

[Moliere]

They might not look bad to start with, but after they age and get all rusty, yikes.
I'd check to see what the typical age for those panels are, and then divide by 2. That's when they'll start to look super ugly.
If you're lucky, your house is oriented so that the panels go on the back side of the house so no one can see it.

Yep, and need to factor in the cost to have them removed once they are done. I can't imagine the payback period on those things is less than 10-15 years, which is a long time to wait for a payback. Also, with the price of gas being so low (and expected to remain very low due to fracking and increased gas power plants) I can't imagine power prices will be out of control anytime in the next 10-15 years......well but of course you live in California so who knows really.

You might be better off putting a small windmill in your back yard.

[The_Tick]

Yep, and need to factor in the cost to have them removed once they are done. I can't imagine the payback period on those things is less than 10-15 years, which is a long time to wait for a payback. Also, with the price of gas being so low (and expected to remain very low due to fracking and increased gas power plants) I can't imagine power prices will be out of control anytime in the next 10-15 years......well but of course you live in California so who knows really.

You might be better off putting a small windmill in your back yard.

I don't know what power bills look like in other places...but here is a good example:

Old House = 1800 SQ Ft. Faced East/West.

AC Unit - Set to 83 degrees.

August 31 day power bill - $475.

December 31 day power bill - $180 (no AC, just electricity to run furnace)

Gas is additional...

@CJ...Vivint is on my list to call. You have a "friends and family" hookup for me?

[cougjunkie]

I don't know what power bills look like in other places...but here is a good example:

Old House = 1800 SQ Ft. Faced East/West.

AC Unit - Set to 83 degrees.

August 31 day power bill - $475.

December 31 day power bill - $180 (no AC, just electricity to run furnace)

Gas is additional...

@CJ...Vivint is on my list to call. You have a "friends and family" hookup for me?

Of course, I will text you the info.

[The_Tick]

Of course, I will text you the info.

And this....is why I will defend you with my dying breath!

[FN Phat]

I don't know what power bills look like in other places...but here is a good example:

Old House = 1800 SQ Ft. Faced East/West.

AC Unit - Set to 83 degrees.

August 31 day power bill - $475.

December 31 day power bill - $180 (no AC, just electricity to run furnace)

Gas is additional...

@CJ...Vivint is on my list to call. You have a "friends and family" hookup for me?

damn. 83 degrees is not even comfortable.

[cougjunkie]

damn. 83 degrees is not even comfortable.

I was actually thinking the same thing. Then I remembered Fusnik said when he lived in Arizona they could not get the temp below 85 in his house. I would die.

Although we do keep our house colder than most in the Winter (66) in the summer we keep it around 75.

[FN Phat]

We keep it 68 in the winter and around 75 in the summer


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[The_Tick]

Check out this link...

http://www.pge.com/en/myhome/myaccount/charges/index.page

You can use my old zip code of 93313.

Look at some of your power bills where you live, and then use that KWH number from your bill and apply it here. You too can know what your power bill would look like in Bakersfield!

And 83 isn't comfortable...but it is affordable.

[Moliere]

I don't know what power bills look like in other places...but here is a good example:

Old House = 1800 SQ Ft. Faced East/West.

AC Unit - Set to 83 degrees.

August 31 day power bill - $475.

December 31 day power bill - $180 (no AC, just electricity to run furnace)

Gas is additional...

@CJ...Vivint is on my list to call. You have a "friends and family" hookup for me?

I don't think I broke $300/month in 2013, which is partially due to replacing our upstairs AC unit with a bigger/more efficient unit....but it's also due to steady/low gas prices.

Remember that Vivint is basically a door to door sales company. I'd be sure to read the fine print with anything they are offering and certainly compare against other offers. Vivint seems to do a better job than most door to door companies, but they aren't below not fully disclosing the terms of financing or costs.