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Who's gone Solar

ThumperX said:
This thread is looooong. I am being lazy but do we have any Barfers that are involved with selling and consulting for solar projects?
Goal is to power the 5th wheel and pool, maybe a seperate system for the garage? We can supplememnt with generators but would prefer not to.
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Did you ever get any help on this? I'm happy to help you figure some things out if you'd like to DIY.
 
byke said:
Did you ever get any help on this? I'm happy to help you figure some things out if you'd like to DIY.
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Starpower came out and spent a day. What a fantastic and knowlageable man. He gave us a perhaps path for getting the PG&E switch flipped.
 
Paying about 1 cent per kwhr with solar; 17 cents if I amortize the cost of the system at $100/month which would be a 20 year amortization of the initial cost.

43 cents or so without solar is what I'm seeing as an average current cost/kwhr for PGE.

Even with a battery, which I don't have or need, it would make sense.
 
Current situation.

I have a total of eleven (weird but that's roof space I guess) of these panels: Sharp NE165U1 165W (link just for details)

I have this thingy on the side of my house: Sunny Boy SWR 2500U Grid Tie Inverter

This stuff is all just over 20 years old. It doesn't cover all my household electrical use, let alone potentially charging a vehicle.

Explain the best way to upgrade this like I'm stupid? (Because when it comes to electrical, I'm stupid)
 
If it were me and because everything is so old, I'd be really tempted to just replace the existing components with similar, or slightly better, specs. You could buy everything and install yourself and there'd be no point in pulling permits. Efficiency on everything is probably down by 20% due to the age, so just getting that efficiency back is worthwhile, imo. And if you wanted to add a little, you could try to find juuuust the right panel with the same voltage and like 10% more current, but in the same form factor (because energy density has improved a lot in the last 20 years) without having to rewire everything. Things get expensive beyond that, like starting over, which means you do it with a phone call, which means $$$.
 
if you replace or add solar be sure to check with your cpa so you get the 30% tax credit
 
byke said:
If it were me and because everything is so old, I'd be really tempted to just replace the existing components with similar, or slightly better, specs. You could buy everything and install yourself and there'd be no point in pulling permits. Efficiency on everything is probably down by 20% due to the age, so just getting that efficiency back is worthwhile, imo. And if you wanted to add a little, you could try to find juuuust the right panel with the same voltage and like 10% more current, but in the same form factor (because energy density has improved a lot in the last 20 years) without having to rewire everything. Things get expensive beyond that, like starting over, which means you do it with a phone call, which means $$$.
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So like could I find, I dunno, 250W panels instead of the old 175W that are there and just replace them?

I'm gonna be stupid again and assume that the panels themselves do NOT have a universal connector
 
I might try for less than that just because I'm paranoid, but I'd start by seeing what's out there that will physically fit. I assume your 11 panels are all side by side? If so the only thing that will matter is the width, unless there are pipes/vents really close by.

The panels kind of do have universal connectors by era/generation, MC4 connectors are the most common today. You can get connectors and crimp tool to update the wires your hypothetical new panels will connect to. For the most part this will likely be a non-issue.
 
Enphase is bomb, but it seems like elective spending has been dropping.
 
mikev said:
So like could I find, I dunno, 250W panels instead of the old 175W that are there and just replace them?

I'm gonna be stupid again and assume that the panels themselves do NOT have a universal connector
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You will have to start with physical size but then you will have to also check your inverter specs. Also check to see what wiring configuration are the existing panels in.

When adding solar panels in a string configuration they add voltage up. So say 10@400W panels in a string outputs 37.14VOC then the output of the string will be calculated at 371.4VOC. The same panels have an amperage rating of 10.77 amps or IMP.

When adding solar panels in parallel, the IMP adds up rather than the voltage. So say 10@400W panels split into 2 parallel strings of 5 will have an output of 185.7 VOC at 21.54 IMP.

The inverter specs are important.
 
blrmaker said:
You will have to start with physical size but then you will have to also check your inverter specs. Also check to see what wiring configuration are the existing panels in.

When adding solar panels in a string configuration they add voltage up. So say 10@400W panels in a string outputs 37.14VOC then the output of the string will be calculated at 371.4VOC. The same panels have an amperage rating of 10.77 amps or IMP.

When adding solar panels in parallel, the IMP adds up rather than the voltage. So say 10@400W panels split into 2 parallel strings of 5 will have an output of 185.7 VOC at 21.54 IMP.

The inverter specs are important.
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good-burger.gif
 
How are the 11 panels physically setup on your roof, all side by side right next to each other?
 
2 stacked rows. 6 and then 5

Most the other houses have 12, 2 rows of 6, I think my roof was just weird and couldn't support that amount.
 
"BoilerMaker's DIY Solar Build"

I am certainly interested in how it can be done :Popcorn
 
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