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Much of this is so wrong. 36 state specifically exempt solar installation from inclusion in property assessment.
Impact on homeowners insurance will be very small compared to the financial savings.
All solar installers here will remove and replace the system at no cost to you when a roof is replaced.
I'm not sure when the poster chooses to post information that is intentionally false, but do your own due diligence for a system. Don't rely on internet posters.
"36 state specifically exempt solar installation from inclusion in property assessment."
According to your information 14 states DO tax solar upgrades. I live in one of them. Do those 36 states forbid individual counties and municipalities from taxing solar upgrades? Because my solar upgrade is taxed by the county. And there is nothing to stop the states that exempt them from taxing them in the future, much like they are currently jacking up the registration fees for electric vehicles when they were previously taxed at the fossil-fuel rate. And there are 7.5 billion people on this planet. Most of them don't live in the 36 states you reference. (This forum has a wider audience than the 50 US states, all of these bullet points are good to consider regardless of where one is).
"All solar installers here will remove and replace the system at no cost to you when a roof is replaced."
Also not the case where I live. Considering the rate that these installers are going out of business, I wouldn't trust a claim like that regardless.
"Don't rely on internet posters."
Absolutely agree, 100%. Especially anybody that hasn't been through the process.
"Impact on homeowners insurance will be very small compared to the financial savings."
Exactly how much more does the insurance cost, say... in a region known for high winds? If you don't know, then don't make claims like that, especially when considering the "savings" from PV installs aren't really known when amortized over the lifespan of the panels which are largely unknown due to mostly Chinese / Asian manufacture. I've personally had an Asian solar panel fail just after the defect warranty expired but long before the "solar output" warranty. I'm a big proponent of solar power, but there is a huge canyon between the pipe dreams and the reality.
Last edited by terracore; 09-02-2019 at 08:49 PM..
Don't generalize from Hawaii as your sole example. Electricity rates in Hawaii are over double that of the continental US (27.5 cents/kWh). Making solar work financially in Hawaii is trivial. To not implement solar in Hawaii isn't very smart.
Now I just learned that the solar power would be shut off in case of an electric company power outage. Why? Because they're afraid of people's solar feeding power back onto the grid and electrocuting the repair guys.
I guess that's a reasonable fear, but why not a little switchbox that turns off that feature in the event of a power outage?
What's the point of having solar power if you can't use it when there's a power outage? Ridiculous.
There is a grid tie unit that allows you to use some solar during a blackout. I think it's just a single outlet limited to 1800 watts, but it's better than nothing. If your installer doesn't offer something like that, keep looking. A creative electrician could setup a transfer switch directing the 1800 watts to the entire house but it would be a manual process for you to switch it over (plus your whole house would be limited to 1800 watts so you couldn't, for example, run the microwave and refrigeration at the same time).
"I guess that's a reasonable fear, but why not a little switchbox that turns off that feature in the event of a power outage?"
Yes, it's called a transfer switch. Any home equipped with a gas generator that feeds the panel directly has one. The most basic models are only a few dollars. But the larger answer is that grid tie systems are engineered from the grid provider's point of view.
"What's the point of having solar power if you can't use it when there's a power outage?"
As pointed out before the power grid is a 19th century invention engineered to transmit power in 1 direction. There are other options. I have solar power and I have grid, but I do not have a grid tie system. When there is sufficient sunlight I'm on solar and when there isn't it uses grid. I don't sell the electric company anything, and my costs were only a few thousand because I don't need a gigantic solar array to bank credits for use at night. During the summer I use my "extra" power to run air conditioning when the solar power is available. During the winter I use the extra power on LED lights to grow romaine. There are other ways to "store" power than just batteries. Because we raise or hunt most of our meat we have to run freezers, but they only run during the day when the sun is out. They usually only get up to about 12 degrees when the solar power comes back on kicks them on again, the energy is effective stored thermally as they get down to about -10 in the evening just before they shut off.
Last edited by terracore; 09-03-2019 at 08:10 PM..
Reason: Where does all the extra whitespace from from?
There is a grid tie unit that allows you to use some solar during a blackout. I think it's just a single outlet limited to 1800 watts, but it's better than nothing. If your installer doesn't offer something like that, keep looking. A creative electrician could setup a transfer switch directing the 1800 watts to the entire house but it would be a manual process for you to switch it over (plus your whole house would be limited to 1800 watts so you couldn't, for example, run the microwave and refrigeration at the same time).
"I guess that's a reasonable fear, but why not a little switchbox that turns off that feature in the event of a power outage?"
Yes, it's called a transfer switch. Any home equipped with a gas generator that feeds the panel directly has one. The most basic models are only a few dollars. But the larger answer is that grid tie systems are engineered from the grid provider's point of view.
"What's the point of having solar power if you can't use it when there's a power outage?"
As pointed out before the power grid is a 19th century invention engineered to transmit power in 1 direction. There are other options. I have solar power and I have grid, but I do not have a grid tie system. When there is sufficient sunlight I'm on solar and when there isn't it uses grid. I don't sell the electric company anything, and my costs were only a few thousand because I don't need a gigantic solar array to bank credits for use at night. During the summer I use my "extra" power to run air conditioning when the solar power is available. During the winter I use the extra power on LED lights to grow romaine. There are other ways to "store" power than just batteries. Because we raise or hunt most of our meat we have to run freezers, but they only run during the day when the sun is out. They usually only get up to about 12 degrees when the solar power comes back on kicks them on again, the energy is effective stored thermally as they get down to about -10 in the evening just before they shut off.
I've watched several Youtube channels where homesteaders set up their own solar systems for a fraction of the cost. This one family spent $14K, including a couple of second hand Tesla Model S e-car batteries for storage. They're completely off grid; there's no electrical hookup where they live, anyway, so this is all-or-nothing.
The whole borrow-and-install thing is a Ponzi scheme. No money down, full install, no offline power, and the system "pays for itself over time". The wife is dead set on doing it. I finally said, "Then get a job and pay for it. I'm up to my ears in two mortgages, two cars, and raising a kid." For me, solar will be an inconvenience, not an asset. And should we decide to move in the next 3-4 years, good luck to us! I'll let her pay for that hassle, too.
Now I just learned that the solar power would be shut off in case of an electric company power outage. Why? Because they're afraid of people's solar feeding power back onto the grid and electrocuting the repair guys.
I guess that's a reasonable fear, but why not a little switchbox that turns off that feature in the event of a power outage?
What's the point of having solar power if you can't use it when there's a power outage? Ridiculous.
You can have that. You just can't be connected to the grid. The electric company has the right to place restrictions based upon the safety of their workers.
You can have that. You just can't be connected to the grid. The electric company has the right to place restrictions based upon the safety of their workers.
Totally agree with the electric co.'s restrictions for safety reasons. I just want a way to use my $40K worth of solar panels, if the electric co. leaves me without power for 24 hours. Or three days.
Totally agree with the electric co.'s restrictions for safety reasons. I just want a way to use my $40K worth of solar panels, if the electric co. leaves me without power for 24 hours. Or three days.
Contact your installer and tell him you want an independent system.
Contact your installer and tell him you want an independent system.
Without the SMART (put power back on the grid) system, the solar install wouldn't be economically viable.
We inquired about installing a switch for offline use. They claimed it would void the warranty.
So if we want to use our solar power during an electrical company outage, we'd "void the warranty" meaning that 25 years of warranty would suddenly be invalid. I have to wonder why are the state & federal gov'ts subsidizing this kind of deal. It's a scam by the installers to lure millions of new customers who can't afford the product on their own. I wonder how many people actually realize the limitations of the system they have installed.
Without the SMART (put power back on the grid) system, the solar install wouldn't be economically viable.
We inquired about installing a switch for offline use. They claimed it would void the warranty.
So if we want to use our solar power during an electrical company outage, we'd "void the warranty" meaning that 25 years of warranty would suddenly be invalid. I have to wonder why are the state & federal gov'ts subsidizing this kind of deal. It's a scam by the installers to lure millions of new customers who can't afford the product on their own. I wonder how many people actually realize the limitations of the system they have installed.
Not getting your way isn't indication of a scam. The main question I have for you is how many hours a year are you out of power? You are probably "protecting" yourself against a very low probability event. I go years between outages and when they occur they are about an hour in duration.
With pv systems you have a choice: on-grid or off-grid. The costs of on-grid are lower and in many cases you can sell back power. You should just relax and enjoy the savings. In life "You can't always get what you want. But if you try sometime you might find you get what you need." Or so say the Stones.
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