Solar power

[icyclops]

…

 

[rocketman4h]

solar hours by state
Before you plan on adding solar do get an idea on how many peak solar day you state has and county get. Where I live in Michigan, is one of the worst in the country. Yet is is overly advertised here. of course the more sun the quicker your Return on Investment. Also don't skimp in the Battery Bank

 

[Donnager]

solar hours by state
Before you plan on adding solar do get an idea on how many peak solar day you state has and county get. Where I live in Michigan, is one of the worst in the country. Yet is is overly advertised here. of course the more sun the quicker your Return on Investment. Also don't skimp in the Battery Bank

Here in FL, the salespeople will ask you to buy panels to put on your property to put on the utility side of the grid. Not for your use, primarily, but for grid backup. You can use the electricity if you like, and save money, but the catch is the electricity generated isn't yours first. This is not how they are described by the sales agents. In this case, you are simply supporting a distributed generation model.

If I ever get interested, I'll buy my own panels and distribution system and sell power back.

 

[boatgeek]

Here in FL, the salespeople will ask you to buy panels to put on your property to put on the utility side of the grid. Not for your use, primarily, but for grid backup. You can use the electricity if you like, and save money, but the catch is the electricity generated isn't yours first. This is not how they are described by the sales agents. In this case, you are simply supporting a distributed generation model.

If I ever get interested, I'll buy my own panels and distribution system and sell power back.

While it's possible those kinds of deals aren't snake oil, I'm skeptical. I'm a solar enthusiast, and I wouldn't pay money to have solar connected on the utility's side of the meter. They can pay me for renting my roof space if they want to use it.

 

[jderimig]

Meanwhile in our neighbors to the north..

https://globalnews.ca/news/9875106/alberta-pause-renewable-energy-citing-rural-concerns/amp/

 

[boatgeek]

Maybe Randall Munroe is on to something:

Hover text: Getting the utility people to run transmission lines to Earth is expensive, but it will pay for itself in no time.

 

[kuririn]

Reminds me of a joke.
A scientist calls a news conference to announce a manned mission to land a rocket ship on the sun.
A reporter says "But sir, what about the extreme temperature?"
The scientist replies "No problem, I've got it all figured out. We're going to go at night".

(Probably told this before, but IDC).

 

[OzHybrid]

Maybe Randall Munroe is on to something:
View attachment 596989
Hover text: Getting the utility people to run transmission lines to Earth is expensive, but it will pay for itself in no time.

Temperature at corona 1000000 degC failure point for silicon 150. We have a properties mismatch. Cable insulation next, Aluminium frame,
Is there any data on the anti-gravity blue tack they're being held in place with

 

[boatgeek]

Temperature at corona 1000000 degC failure point for silicon 150. We have a properties mismatch. Cable insulation next, Aluminium frame,
Is there any data on the anti-gravity blue tack they're being held in place with

Those are all just little details that will be resolved by the installer. Sign here.

 

[kuririn]

Those are all just little details that will be resolved by the installer. Sign here.

Aren't I supposed to sign this after it's installed?
And how come all the "Excellent" boxes are already checked off?
(Actually happened to me)

 

[bjphoenix]

Reminds me of a joke.
A scientist calls a news conference to announce a manned mission to land a rocket ship on the sun.
A reporter says "But sir, what about the extreme temperature?"
The scientist replies "No problem, I've got it all figured out. We're going to go at night".

(Probably told this before, but IDC).

I heard that as a blonde joke.

Here is my brief brush with solar electricity generation- My son in law bought a fold-up solar panel that came with a charge controller. He was trying to connect to a Jackery and get it working for camping trips. He couldn't get it to work so asked me to help. I was searching the net for error codes and one blurb said the error message meant wrong polarity, about that time my daughter thought the + and - wires were reversed on the controller so we went to switch them. The panels were picking up enough sun that I got a small shock when I touched the wrong thing. I couldn't get it to cooperate with the Jackery so as a last resort I turned to youtube. I actually found that the Jackery has its own charge controller so didn't need the one that came with the solar panel. Once I bypassed that it started charging the Jackery. This youtube source said the solar panels would achieve around 50 watts of power, which would take about 6 hours to charge the little Jackery 300.

 

[OzHybrid]

I heard that as a blonde joke.

Here is my brief brush with solar electricity generation- My son in law bought a fold-up solar panel that came with a charge controller. He was trying to connect to a Jackery and get it working for camping trips. He couldn't get it to work so asked me to help. I was searching the net for error codes and one blurb said the error message meant wrong polarity, about that time my daughter thought the + and - wires were reversed on the controller so we went to switch them. The panels were picking up enough sun that I got a small shock when I touched the wrong thing. I couldn't get it to cooperate with the Jackery so as a last resort I turned to youtube. I actually found that the Jackery has its own charge controller so didn't need the one that came with the solar panel. Once I bypassed that it started charging the Jackery. This youtube source said the solar panels would achieve around 50 watts of power, which would take about 6 hours to charge the little Jackery 300.

You're lucky that was a camping solar panel. The voltage on them is usually limited to 12 or 24v.
On a domestic installation, a string of panels can have up to 1000 volts. THAT VOLTAGE WILL KILL YOU. Now we could have a discussion about how it's not the voltage, it's the current that kills you. But, first the voltage breaks down the skin resistance, and that allows current to pass. If current can flow, it then becomes about how much current you have available to flow. If the sun is on the panels and you're touching the wires, at best, it's going to really hurt. At worst, you're dead.
With the lower voltage camping ones, the normal high resistance of your skin will generally protect you, but if a cable strand pierces into the wetter underskin parts, you can get a good shock. But could get you killed.

 

[Peartree]

That is nice. I want to electrify my off-grid shed with solar and batteries. If 100% of my electric bill went towards the cost, it take more than 5 years to pay it off, depending on the cost of a ground mount.

Don't forget, however, that in most places, your local electric utility is required to purchase your excess generated power. That may or may not make a difference, but I've thought about that in regard to our model railroad club that owns its own 100 year old Pennsylvania Railroad freight terminal. Our building is 80 or 90 feet long and runs east-west so one half of the roof faces south. Further, although its heated and air-conditioned, its only occupied a few hours each week, has no laundry or cooking equipment, and only enough hot water for the bathroom sink (if that). My suspicion is that if northern Ohio sunshine could generate power, we would benefit most from selling power to our utility than we would from what we use. Or at least our summer surplus would help to offset our high winter bills.

 

[boatgeek]

Don't forget, however, that in most places, your local electric utility is required to purchase your excess generated power.

This varies widely by state and utility, and depends a lot on the politics of your individual state and city. In Seattle, I don’t think you can force the city-owned utility to buy more power than you use. The best you can do is break even on kWh over a year. You might be able to set up a power sale agreement, but that is a lot more hassle.

 

[jderimig]

My suspicion is that if northern Ohio sunshine could generate power, we would benefit most from selling power to our utility than we would from what we use. Or at least our summer surplus would help to offset our high winter bills.

This varies widely by state and utility, and depends a lot on the politics of your individual state and city. In Seattle, I don’t think you can force the city-owned utility to buy more power than you use. The best you can do is break even on kWh over a year. You might be able to set up a power sale agreement, but that is a lot more hassle.

@Peartree, In Ohio you can only sell (and get credit for) 120% of your usage. And only the local utility is required to net meter the generation component. If you choose a third-party energy supplier they are not required to buy your excess power.

 

[jderimig]

Also I did the math in NE Ohio, at current levels of 3rd party electricity costs, interest rates, and incentives, investment in solar has a negative return.