Solar Power

[SwimConnerSwim]

Anyone here have solar power? Thoughts, comments observations? My wife and I are considering it. We live in Northern NJ, and I've heard climate and location are important.

[weeniewawa]

does the sun shine at your house? if yes, solar will work.
actually it depends on your power companies rates, if they are high, solar will be better in the long run. Also if you install it, will the power company buy your excess power and at what rate. Some wont buy or gives you basically nothing for it.

[Hudson]

does the sun shine at your house? if yes, solar will work.
actually it depends on your power companies rates, if they are high, solar will be better in the long run. Also if you install it, will the power company buy your excess power and at what rate. Some wont buy or gives you basically nothing for it.
What he said..I know people in Jersey that have it..they said it is good in the spring and summer, they run their air conditioning off of it most of those seasons, the winter and fall is hit or miss..and they live right off the ocean so sunlight is unhindered by trees.

[HummerTuesdays]

I've heard it can take as long as 12 years to break even. By then the technology will most likely be obsolete. I'd love to go solar/wind, but will have to wait until I own a house.

[bb1mobile]

I have a house that sits on corner property.
Looked into solar because I have plenty of
sunlight all day long.
Didn't bother because as HT stated the cost
wasn't going to be recouped for way too long.
Just didn't seem like a good move for me.

[Sam_Adams]

If I remember correctly it will cost $10,000 for a small supplemental solar power package for your home and about $20,000-25 to take your house off of the grid if you hae an average 2,000sqft home.

If you add it onto the cost of building a home then you can live with it because it's not much different than paying $10,000 for an air conditioning system. But most people that already have homes won't go for it because it's not attractive since the electric bills aren't too high. But if you live in California then it would be worth while because of the blackouts.

I plan on setting up solar power at my homes when I have them built so I can be off of the grid and not have to worry about electric bills or power outtages(which happens everytime we get an ice storm).

I'm waiting for that solar power paint to come out on the market already. They have powercells embedded in the paint and they all connect due to proximity. All you have to do is paint it on, set up your input and let it dry.

[d0uche_n0zzle]

Solar hot water heating isn't as expensive as the off-grid set ups, but returns greatly, IMO.

[NortonsGravyLeg]

I've also heard in some states they will subsidize part of the cost as a grant if you install solar panels for your home. Not sure if NJ is one of them but it is worth looking into.

[MrBogey]

Expect about 4$ per watt of solar panel set. So if you need 15kW then plan on spending 60k on a system.

If you know anything about electricity or electrical maintenance then you'll love it. Set up a grid-tied system with a battery array for back-up and you'll be set.

Solar power is fucked only by cost and not quality.

[greensnacks]

Expect about 4$ per watt of solar panel set. So if you need 15kW then plan on spending 60k on a system.

If you know anything about electricity or electrical maintenance then you'll love it. Set up a grid-tied system with a battery array for back-up and you'll be set.

Solar power is fucked only by cost and not quality.

15kw system? you must have a big roof.

The $4/watt figure is for the panels, no? With installation it is usually double, so figure $8 - $10/watt. Adding batteries will make it even more expensive, roughly $12-15/watt installed.

The federal government provides rebates upto $2K (which end Dec 31, 2008) and state agencies will give you more. State rebates in California are generous and lower the total cost by about 30%. I spec'd a $32K system (roughly 6,000KW/year) and with rebates brought it down to about $22K. The system would have paid for itself in 9 years, and free energy for the next 21 years.

SunPower, one company that manufactures PV systems claim they will be able to reduce the cost of their systems by 1/2 by 2012. The polysilicon supply is tight and prices are high industry wide. With increased supply in the coming years and liberal rebates by state and federal agencies, costs should come down dramatically. The entry point won't be so steep and the return on investment will pay for itself in a couple of years (3-5 vs 10-15).

Congress wants to strip big oil of subsidies and dump them into renewable energy (wind, solar, thermal, biofuels, etc). The problem is, Bush has to sign the bill. Will he betray his oil brothers from $18 billion?

http://www.akeena.net/cm/About_Solar_Power/Rebates_and_Incentives/New_Jersey.html

http://www.seia.org

[MrBogey]

I'm doing it all in steps. First step is set up an inverter to act as a whole house UPS. Then add a 7kW propane back-up for everything but AC/heating, oven, and dryer. Then eventually throw a charge controller and some PVs in. That way my primary goal of never losing juice no matter the natural disaster will come to pass.

It stunk going 9 weeks living in the 1800s after Hurricane Katrina

[weeniewawa]

I'm doing it all in steps. First step is set up an inverter to act as a whole house UPS. Then add a 7kW propane back-up for everything but AC/heating, oven, and dryer. Then eventually throw a charge controller and some PVs in. That way my primary goal of never losing juice no matter the natural disaster will come to pass.

It stunk going 9 weeks living in the 1800s after Hurricane Katrina

problem is, living there it could happen all over again. as long as you don't flood you will be good. but we all know how good of a job they did raising the capacity of those levees.:arrrh:

[oandapartycock]

I don't know how much equity you've got in your home, but if you can do a $25,000 loan for 10 years you payment would be about $275 under current rates if you've got good credit. Plus, the interest would be tax deductible if you itemize. a !5 year loan with the same terms drops the payment down to about $200.

So subtract your average monthly electric bill from whatever the loan payment would be and there's your actual cost, without factoring in how much the electric company would buy back any excess power.

And like other people have said, check for rebates from the federal, state, and the electric company itself.

This guy Doug Fine was on Leno last week during "Green Week" and he wrote a book on being completely oil, gas, and power company free. Even converted his Subaru to run on used fast-food vegetable oil.

http://www.amazon.com/Farewell-My-Subaru-Adventure-Living/dp/1400066441/ref=pd_bbs_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1209331258&sr=1-1

[MrBogey]

problem is, living there it could happen all over again. as long as you don't flood you will be good. but we all know how good of a job they did raising the capacity of those levees.:arrrh:

I live on the northside of I-12. If we flood then everything south will be unsalvagable.