- Thread starter
- #21
syscom3
Pacific Historian
The solar dealer can answer the hail question. Same for the winds. Mine are rated for gale force winds, the highest that have historically hit my zipcode.
I have solar power. Do you?
- Thread starter syscom3
- Start date
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I have it on my boat. 435 watts of panels and 1125 amp hours of T-105's. Makes a HUGE difference in the performance and longevity of the battery bank, as we rarely discharge it to less than 85% "State-of-Charge", and we can get the battery bank almost up to float charge. The battery bank is now 8 years old and still ticking. We spend long periods on our boat (not this year) and are enjoying the reliability of this system.
Would like to upgrade LFP batteries but haven't had the time this year to proceed.
Would like to upgrade LFP batteries but haven't had the time this year to proceed.
There is a reason my deductible is a low $500.
Wild_Bill_Kelso
Senior Master Sergeant
- 3,231
- Mar 18, 2022
The most important thing is storage, not panels. Lots of people have panels in my neighborhood, but one guy, across the street, has two Tesla power walls. After Hurricane Ida last year, everybody was hot and dark except that guy. He was able to run two AC's (one in his bedroom & one in a common area), his fridge & freezer, charge everyone's phones, and run another neighbors fridge (who needs insulin). Those things ain't cheap though. I have a small gas generator which was a life saver but a huge pain in the ass compared to his setup.
- Thread starter
- #25
syscom3
Pacific Historian
Exactly! Two batteries is a little to much for many peoples budget. But a single one is well worth it.
at6
1st Sergeant
Until California makes it worth my while I will continue on the old method of wires leading into the house. Sacramento wants us all to go solar and then they want to screw us for the utility company. I tell the door to door solar pusher to move on as it isn't cost effective for me under any circumstances.
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- #27
syscom3
Pacific Historian
So get a couple panels to act as "peakers". Supply enough power to keep you in the lower tiers.
- Thread starter
- #28
syscom3
Pacific Historian
Got my first electric bill. For a partial month of solar. Its only $12. I cant wait to see Junes bill for when It will be a full month.
Wild_Bill_Kelso
Senior Master Sergeant
- 3,231
- Mar 18, 2022
I don't know how the math works out exactly but I can tell you that with the power outage anywhere in the southern us or during the summer, you want power to run an air conditioner in a bedroom so you can sleep at night, and you need power to run your refrigerator and or freezer if you have one so your food doesn't rot (at a minimum). One powerwall might be enough for one small window unit and your refrigerator.
My neighbor also has an electric car so he was charging the car as well.
Wild_Bill_Kelso
Senior Master Sergeant
- 3,231
- Mar 18, 2022
That said, one thing you can do is run your AC at night and run power to your freezer during the day, that will keep the food from rottng. One power wall is probably enough for that.
That's what I did with my generator but the nice thing about the solar panels and the power walls you don't have to worry about oil or fuel, and you don't have to let it rest.
That's what I did with my generator but the nice thing about the solar panels and the power walls you don't have to worry about oil or fuel, and you don't have to let it rest.
- Thread starter
- #31
syscom3
Pacific Historian
I have a battery backup, so my house is protected against an outage. But ....... because of the moderate climate here in Orange County, I elected not to put the AC on battery and kept it on the utilities panel. When I do use the air con, I will be using utility power but its offset by the power I generate during the day.
Wild_Bill_Kelso
Senior Master Sergeant
- 3,231
- Mar 18, 2022
Yeah in OC you aren't going to really need the AC except about maybe one or two months out of the year, and even then you could tough it out. That's an unusual climate in the US though!
- Thread starter
- #33
syscom3
Pacific Historian
That's why Southern California weather is so popular. It's amazing how fast the temps drop each day when the sun sets. I could just open the windows and rely on the evening breeze to moderate the heat.
- Thread starter
- #34
syscom3
Pacific Historian
Here is the results for yesterday, June 21. The summer solstice. It wont get any better than this. I generated 40kw.
Wild_Bill_Kelso
Senior Master Sergeant
- 3,231
- Mar 18, 2022
Nice, your system seems very efficient
buffnut453
Captain
Ok...we've had our solar+battery system for about a month now. Still in something of a learning curve but so far am really pleased with it.
We have a neat app that shows our instantaneous status (how much energy we're generating, how much we're consuming, how much is going to the battery (and how full the battery is), and how much we're giving back to the grid). The app also gives an overview of any selected day, week or month so I can look at longer term statistics.
On average, we produce more energy than we consume but there are peaks and troughs which, depending on timing, can have a big impact on our energy independence. For example, turning on the dishwasher or washer/dryer overnight rapidly depletes the battery with no incoming solar energy. This has driven us to consider when we do certain activities so we can make best use of the solar energy we generate (e.g. running the dishwasher and washer/dryer during the afternoon).
It's also surprising how big an impact even modest changes can make. Increasing the temperature within the house by even a few degrees results in much lower energy consumption.
One lesson we learned very quickly was to use the energy we generate rather than striving to sell it back to the grid. The electricity company purchases our excess energy at a rate that's about 50% of our billing rate so it makes much more financial sense to use the energy we generate for our needs rather than striving to sell more back to the grid.
I don't want any of the above to sound like I'm starting to obsess over our energy usage. I'm certainly not. However, having the data available is helping us be much more efficient, and making maximum use of the free electricity we get from our solar system.
We have a neat app that shows our instantaneous status (how much energy we're generating, how much we're consuming, how much is going to the battery (and how full the battery is), and how much we're giving back to the grid). The app also gives an overview of any selected day, week or month so I can look at longer term statistics.
On average, we produce more energy than we consume but there are peaks and troughs which, depending on timing, can have a big impact on our energy independence. For example, turning on the dishwasher or washer/dryer overnight rapidly depletes the battery with no incoming solar energy. This has driven us to consider when we do certain activities so we can make best use of the solar energy we generate (e.g. running the dishwasher and washer/dryer during the afternoon).
It's also surprising how big an impact even modest changes can make. Increasing the temperature within the house by even a few degrees results in much lower energy consumption.
One lesson we learned very quickly was to use the energy we generate rather than striving to sell it back to the grid. The electricity company purchases our excess energy at a rate that's about 50% of our billing rate so it makes much more financial sense to use the energy we generate for our needs rather than striving to sell more back to the grid.
I don't want any of the above to sound like I'm starting to obsess over our energy usage. I'm certainly not. However, having the data available is helping us be much more efficient, and making maximum use of the free electricity we get from our solar system.
Wild_Bill_Kelso
Senior Master Sergeant
- 3,231
- Mar 18, 2022
One of the interesting things you learn when you start using solar power (or any power you are generating yourself) is how much power different appliances and machines actually use. The microwave for example draws a huge amount of juice.
- Thread starter
- #38
syscom3
Pacific Historian
My system leaves the AC on the utility grid. The cost of operating it will be way lower as I use my power export credits.
My drier is gas, and we dont use it very often. So the impact to my power budget is insignificant. The clothes washer is mostly used during the day so there is no drag on the battery.
What you might want to think of is to get an electrician to wire the outlets used by your appliances to be on the utility grid and not on your solar/battery. The cost to your electric bill would really be insignificant.
buffnut453
Captain
I'm not sure I'm following you. Where we live, the power company doesn't want us pushing all our solar energy back to the grid during daytime because they can't handle it and have nowhere to store it.
During the daytime when I'm generating electricity from my solar system, I'm using that to run everything in the house and then any excess goes to charging my battery first (but I'm still running everything else straight off the solar). If I need more energy than I can produce, my system then pulls from the battery to augment. I only draw from the grid if my battery gets depleted down to 20% and I still need more energy than my solar system provides.
Since the power company only pays me 50% of what they charge me for using grid power, it makes much more sense to power as many of my immediate needs by the solar system as possible, that way I'm saving myself the full retail price of the energy.
- Thread starter
- #40
syscom3
Pacific Historian
My first utility bill. I dont think I can afford it. LOL
All of the charges were mandatory.
All of the charges were mandatory.
