Solar panels? Anyone have them?

[TR Custom Parts]

Is it worth all the hype? My usual electric bill here in CT is around $225 if the furnace or AC isn't running. Summer bills can be around $400 or more, winter mid $300. Have forced hot air furnace with oil, older central air unit that works great but uses a lot of juice to run. Electric hot water heater.

 

[cruzn57]

hey Mark,
I don't, but my kids do,, and so do my friends, ( both in so calif,) they pay $120 per mo,( to install company, for the system) vs $200+ prior.( as much as $400 + in hot times)
and their bill is less than $10, so yes they are happy.
I will probably bite the bullet in the next year or so, BUT.... I will purchase the system outright, so no monthly payments, just the elect bill.
currently my elect bill is $100 in the summer (using a/c) and under $50 in the winter. but I foresee an increase in the rates before long.

 

[Jay J]

There are tax offsets (30%? but don't quote me on that) which make this an alternative worth looking into. With O'Bummer's all out war on coal fired plants, we can expect our electric bills "to necessarily skyrocket"--his words, not mine. In addition, PV panels have come way down in price, making it even more alluring. Here in the southwest, with more than 260 days of sunny days , it just makes sense to get any relief possible...

 

[Squid4life]

I was told since my bill was near $100 at worst, we shouldn't look into it too hard, there isn't really any benefit. Although, if my energy bill was as high as yours, I would most definitely look into it. That seems like a whole lot of money...

 

[Pronto]

I'ld love to put a solar panel on the roof of my garage. To get the sun though, I'ld have to have 5 trees cut down and no shade in the afternoon.

 

[6APPEAL]

I'ld love to put a solar panel on the roof of my garage. To get the sun though, I'ld have to have 5 trees cut down and no shade in the afternoon.

If your home is shaded by the trees you cut, I would not count on solar to completely offset the increase in your bill due to loss of shading. I've seen estimates as high at 30-35% energy savings by having afternoon shading of you home by trees during summer.

I had an Elm tree by my house that would shade the roof from about noon to about 3. Then my next door neighbor's Oak trees would shade part of the roof and west wall until about 5. Then the neighbor 2 houses west massive Red Oak that would shade the entire west end of my house until sunset. I lost my Elm tree in Katrina (split at fork about 20 foot high on trunk). My next door neighbor trimmed his damaged trees after Katrina. The neighbor 2 houses over ended up losing the Oak a couple of years later due to damage from Katrina. My electric bill rose with the loss of each shade tree. The tan brick on the west end of my house gets very hot during the summer and you can feel that heat radiating through the wall 2 to 3 hours after sunset. It's great in the winter (passive heat), but sucks in the summer. I've planted a Crete Myrtle on the west end of the house, but it has yet to get big enough to shade the west wall of the house.

 

[Rubicon 327]

Who were you thinking about using Mark? I called one of the companies that were really pushing their radio commercials around here recently and I didn't care for their follow through. Apparently the salesman for our territory upped and quit with no notice so no one ever came and talked to me like they and scheduled a month earlier, they just had a sales rep from N.Y. send me an estimate and said "call me if you have any questions" .....I never even bothered.

I am almost in the same boat as you and can only see our bill's going up. When I get around to it I am going to call http://ecosmartct.com/ and see what they have to say, at least they are local.

Dave

 

[626gn]

I think solar panels are a good investment given your posted energy costs. However, there are other things to consider besides whether you should get one or not. The renewable energy market is extremely competitive right now. With that comes smaller profit margins. Smaller margins means companies are always trying to find ways to cut costs in the form of cheaper modules and/or cheap labor just to stay in business. All of this could result in problems in the years to come in the form of failing modules, poor installation practices (roof leaks), and the use of substandard components, all of which may not be evident right away. Not sure about CT but the market is overly saturated with companies selling PV systems where I live. Competition is good in that it drives prices down but this makes selecting the right company to do the job that much more important and making the right choice will play a big role in your long term happiness with the system, especially in a business climate like this.

In a nutshell, find an established company who's had a good reputation, preferably, long before PV came to market. Some companies are only in it now to ride the wave, make money, and bail. Nothing wrong with that, but you want someone who will stand behind what they sell and still be around for you years from now, after all, a PV system is not a buy it and forget about it thing. It needs to be maintained properly if you want it to last. Know where the panels you buy are coming from. All panels lose some energy output over time. Cheap panels could significantly reduce your energy production in years to come. As an example, Kyocera has been making solar modules for over 37 years and their panels experience less production loss over time. Of course they cost more than the China stuff but like many other things in life you get what you pay for. Lastly, industry experts predict at least half of the worlds PV Manufacturers will either go bankrupt or be taken over. In the case of bankruptcy your multi-year warranty, which you paid for, will be worthless. Just some food for thought...

 

[TR Custom Parts]

Sungevity is the company I contacted so far. Wish I could just go down to HD and buy the panels myself! LOL

Some good points 626gn! Have to do some more research. Here in CT electric rates are crazy, Not like I have some big Taj Mahal place here, just a standard raised ranch with three bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, two car garage under. My compressor and electric hot water heater are the two big power hogs I guess along with electric stove not that my wife cooks much, . Just heard recently that CL&P will be upping their rates by 8% and UI who I have will probably not be far behind.

One other aspect I have to consider, my roof is OK but probably about 15 years old so coming to it's end of life. Would make sense to put a new roof on first so more $$$ I don't have especially with the main bathroom renovation I am in the middle of! And I have a second layer of shingles so would have to be a strip job.

 

[626gn]

Yes, if you need a new roof as well now's the best time to tie the two together. I'm not in the PV business but I do Construction Management. Can't tell you how many times I've seen people install new roofs then add a PV system shortly after. When your roof leaks, and this happens a lot because depending on the system there could be dozens of roof penetrations, the roofer will say "well you just voided your warranty when you let the PV guy put holes in your new roof to install his equipment..Not my problem anymore". At that point it just becomes a pissing match.

Not sure how it works in CT but a lot of roofers here also have a PV branch as well or partner together so that warranty does not become an issue should you have leaks. Generally speaking, I would put my money on the roofer when it comes to knowing how to properly flash a penetration vs a PV installer. There will always be exceptions but generally speaking leaving the roof work to the roof professional and the PV work to the PV professional works out well.

 

[Jims project]

Have you considered putting a Two Stage Timer on your Hot Water Heater for now? It's like a clock set it for lets say 4am to turn on and then 7am to shut off then in the afternoon turn it on at say 3pm to 7 pm. Just takes getting use to but helps on the bill from the thing running all day.

 

[Pronto]

We have natural gas for forced hot water heat, water heater and dryer. When we first got the house we had an electric dryer. Later after an addition I converted to a gas dryer in the laundry room. At the same time I got rid of the water bed. My electric bill dropped dramatically. The latest thing I did is convert all my lights to the flourecent style ones a few years ago. that dropped the bill significantly too. I'm sure my bill will be going up since I'm having a ductless a/c system installed this month. It will be worth the money though.

 

[TR Custom Parts]

Oh yeah. Forgot about the water bed, have had one since the 70s! We do not have gas on our street so we can not convert. Have many fluorescent and some LED lights as well. Sometimes I think my neighbor has tapped into my meter LOL

Have you considered putting a Two Stage Timer on your Hot Water Heater for now? It's like a clock set it for lets say 4am to turn on and then 7am to shut off then in the afternoon turn it on at say 3pm to 7 pm. Just takes getting use to but helps on the bill from the thing running all day.

Been there. done that. didnt make a difference.

 

[v6turbo87]

You can get an oil fired hot water heater. They are expensive but you already have oil furnace. Will probably drop your electric bill hundred fifty bucks a month.

Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app

 

[Rubicon 327]

Oh yeah. Forgot about the water bed, have had one since the 70s! We do not have gas on our street so we can not convert. Have many fluorescent and some LED lights as well. Sometimes I think my neighbor has tapped into my meter LOL


Been there. done that. didnt make a difference.

Who is your electric supplier and what are you paying for kw hr? Right now I am with Levco energy and locked in at 7.89 cents for 6 months....that will be up in October I think then I will have to play the game again and look for a low rate.

Just watch put for the early cancellation charges some will try and hit you with. I wasn't paying attention and one of my 6 month low rates ended and they bumped it up double....you probably heard about how they were doing that all over and the State stepped in and supposedly did something about it.

Do you rate shop for your electric supplier? http://www.energizect.com//compare-energy-suppliers

 

[TR Custom Parts]

With UI right now 9 cents a KWH. Was with Northern Power at 7 cents but got a voice mail from them in Dec saying they recommend switching switching from their service as they were going up to 17.9 cents! Takes two months for it to go into effect for the switch so got screwed out of whatever I did save with them.

 

[TT/Ameasap]

I didnt go as far as solar panels, but tried everything else to get my gas and electric down. I was never satisfied. So, when it was time to buy a new (used) home, I just so happened to find the house Im in now. It uses passive solar and thermal mass in the winter, then in the summer it shaded from trees and the angle of the roof.
My wife and I are eventually going to build a brand new home with these exact features in mind because this house is so efficient.
Gas and electric at the most run 200 in dead of winter and 100 in the heat of the summer... Im in IL.
Summertime I just have to pay the gas hookup fee of 10 bucks.

 

[6APPEAL]

I didnt go as far as solar panels, but tried everything else to get my gas and electric down. I was never satisfied. So, when it was time to buy a new (used) home, I just so happened to find the house Im in now. It uses passive solar and thermal mass in the winter, then in the summer it shaded from trees and the angle of the roof.
My wife and I are eventually going to build a brand new home with these exact features in mind because this house is so efficient.
Gas and electric at the most run 200 in dead of winter and 100 in the heat of the summer... Im in IL.
Summertime I just have to pay the gas hookup fee of 10 bucks.

Paying attention to how your house is built using the 'lay of the land', passive solar, thermal mass, planting of trees (deciduous or evergreen) and shrubs, etc. There is tons of information on how to do this to get you home built to be as efficient as possible. This is great if you have property where you can build as you please. But, a lot of homeowners associations do not allow you the freedom to built you home as you see fit in planned subdivisions. The same can be said for cookie cutter builders in new subdivisions.

 

[TT/Ameasap]

Ya of course it not intended for everyone. Just an option.
I went from a brand new home in a home owners association to my current home. It was built in 1984. I live a little further away from the city, but I like piece and quiet and lower taxes to boot.

 

[TexasT]

http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?249637-Solar-is-up!&highlight=solar+panels

Some info over there