The Electric Company Can Bite Me!

Sp8ctre

Sp8ctre

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Finally got our solar system turned on today! The wife was thrilled to watch the power meter slow down and then start turning in reverse as we fed the grid instead of taking power off of it! I will supply more than I need with the system we bought...so no more electric bills!

The next thing I want is for Elon Musk to get those batteries perfected and the price reduced so I can get completely off the grid! The Bastid electric company buys my excess at .05 and then sells it back to me at night for .13...when I get batteries they are going to be paying me at the end of the year!
 
frankblade said:
I have a friend out by Lake livinston and he has a windmill man its like 175 ft up and big
it powers his place plus like you said they pay him some back but his is like 20 years old
and he say he don't know how much longer it will last. That's a good deal !
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Yea, 20 years is a little old. My Solar is guaranteed for 20 years. I'll be damned near 80 by then.

I'll tell you one thing I'm going to be cool this summer and warm this winter!
 
Congratulations, we have a 9.5kw system.
Been in service about 6 years now.
Love it beyond words. Plenty of capacity to bank tons of credits to use up on overcast days.
Even got a check from the power company one year.
We went from a $200+ power bill each month down to $30 per month, which is basically meter rental & line usage fees.
It truly is a grand feeling indeed to watch that meter spin backwards.
 
O>K> I been looking at these a bit----- Can ya'll tell me what the (Real--not the salesmans HYPE) systems cost you initially????

My power bill runs 160-170.00 a month. (and I am a cheap bastard) sure Id like to do away with it......but the systems I see to run a whole house + are in the 15-20K range and up ---which is essentially like a adding a car pmt and totally offsets or costs MORE than just paying the power bill.
You then have maintenance (which I dont have paying the power co) battery failure replacement repair etc. Panels that can be damaged and need repair etc. etc. ad nausea --- AND once I invest the $ I have to stay here 10-15 + years---to get my $$$ back......

THoughts?
 
I looked into it a long time time before I jumped in. And $20,000.00 is not off by far, but I'm getting $8500 back in Tax Credits. That will come right off the top of what I owe this year.
My system is under full warranty for 20 years and I was in the position to pay outright for it.

The leasing option is a problem IMHO. You still pay a bill damn near your monthly electric bill. You have to have a potential buyer of your house agree to take over the payments if you sell
and the solar company who does the install gets your $8500 in tax credits.

Out here in the high desert there is blazing sun with little clouds year round. We can easily generate more than we use. I'd say at least 50% of the homes have solar popping up on them.
The only negative thing I see right now is buying power at night because there are no batteries with my system. I can add them later, but I'm not impressed with current battery technology.

One other benefit that I couldn't use was the electric car charging station. If you have an electric the solar company can install a charging station along with your system.
There are additional clean energy credits for that, but I'm not an electric car guy quite yet...
 
I see,

Thank you --- yes.....again...I would LIKE to do it---- but its just not to the point of being practical. And though we do not INTEND to relocate anytime soon.........ya never know....I have moved on average of 3/4 times every 10 years.....so I dont see me ever getting the positive $$$ back out of the investment.
 
How does this system tap into your current electrical system there Sp8ctre ? The electric company hook it up ? before or after the Meter ?
 
The solar company hooked it up. It feeds into the meter and the grid. If I generate extra it goes out on the grid and the electric company has to buy it
from me. If I use electricity off the grid I have to buy it from the electric company. With my panel location and the fact we have massive amounts of sun
and rarely any clouds I'm generating from 7am until 8pm right now. With very little use at night we will be ahead of the game.

The electric company actually complained that I installed more panels than I needed to keep up with my current use. I had to sign a form stating I planned
on increasing my consumption after going on the solar...
 
environmental-issues-static_electricity-alternative_energy-power_stations-electric-utility-tmcn3071_low.jpg



;>)/
 
Cool deal, for you sp8ctre. Sounds like your the perfect candidate for that set up. Thanks for the explanation on cost, that clears up some of my questions too.

Oh well, looks like I'm going to be 100% on the grid for a while. But Now, I continue my quest to tell the cable company, to hit the high hard one.
 
Bocc69 said:
Cool deal, for you sp8ctre. Sounds like your the perfect candidate for that set up. Thanks for the explanation on cost, that clears up some of my questions too.

Oh well, looks like I'm going to be 100% on the grid for a while. But Now, I continue my quest to tell the cable company, to hit the high hard one.
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You are always on the grid BocceBall69er...always!


;>)/
 
Just be careful read the fine print some companys will screw u


The guy who lives around the block from me had these installed in 08 and hes made his money back he also has an electric lawn mower lol and electric blower lol
 
eSGEe said:
O>K> I been looking at these a bit----- Can ya'll tell me what the (Real--not the salesmans HYPE) systems cost you initially????

My power bill runs 160-170.00 a month. (and I am a cheap bastard) sure Id like to do away with it......but the systems I see to run a whole house + are in the 15-20K range and up ---which is essentially like a adding a car pmt and totally offsets or costs MORE than just paying the power bill.
You then have maintenance (which I dont have paying the power co) battery failure replacement repair etc. Panels that can be damaged and need repair etc. etc. ad nausea --- AND once I invest the $ I have to stay here 10-15 + years---to get my $$$ back......

THoughts?
Click to expand...

Ours was right in that 20k range pricewise, but we got the tax credits the first year like Sp8ctre.
We also got the same 20 year warranty. We figured about 8 years till we hit the break even point, so we're almost there.
We're grid dependant, so no batteries. That also means if the power is out, no generating solar either.
That's why we have the Generac 25kw whole house generator fueled by a 250# underground L/P tank.
We had been powerless due to storms for several days. The generator keeps the air on & the tempers cool.
Maintenance has been minimal. Just a good cleaning of the panels every couple of months to remove the dust & bird poop that doesn't wash off with the rain.
We look it as a value added investment, like the pool.
 
Sp8ctre said:
...there are no batteries with my system. I can add them later, but I'm not impressed with current battery technology.
Click to expand...

I hear ya. Last year they had to replace the batteries in the UPS that supports the IT racks at work. All told, I think the company dropped a couple grand on batteries just for the UPS.
 
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