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0 pointsskhameneh2y ago0 comments

I would recommend getting quotes for solar from EnergySage and consider going without a battery.

Incentives and prices will vary over time. While there is new "tech" for solar in the pipeline, it will take time to reach market. As prices decrease, incentives will as well. Be mindful of how incentives and financing may stack, EnergySage will provide all the info you need to make an informed decision.

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rootusrootus2y ago

> EnergySage

I love it. Went there, and it gave me two options. One with a 17.2 year payback, and a second where I get a loan and my 20 year savings are -$27K. Ha! Seems like they should just replace that second option with "we calculated this one and it turns out you'd lose a bunch of money, it's not feasible."

Alas, 17.2 years is longer than my current roof has left before replacement, and almost certainly longer than I'll live here. Maybe the next house. Especially since I'm thinking of moving somewhere with enough open land that I can just DIY a nice ground-mount setup instead of mucking about with holes in the roof.

jandrese2y ago

"Solar Loans" are pretty much always a bad idea. Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) are even worse.

If you can't buy the system outright consider getting a Home Equity loan. This is exactly the sort of thing they are designed for and have much less overhead than any other option.

In the US we suffer from high demand in a small market allowing installers to inflate the system prices considerably. We should be paying less than $2/watt installed, but you see quotes for like $4-$8/watt all the time because these companies get to pick their customers.

danans2y ago

> In the US we suffer from high demand in a small market allowing installers to inflate the system prices considerably. We should be paying less than $2/watt installed, but you see quotes for like $4-$8/watt all the time because these companies get to pick their customers.

While I agree in general, your numbers seem off. In expensive Northern California I regularly see systems running $3-4/watt, not $4-8.

PaulDavisThe1st2y ago

> We should be paying less than $2/watt installed

Hmm, not sure how much prices have changed, but I installed my own ground mount 7kW array(s) back in 2020, and that was right around $2/watt with me doing all the work except a concrete mixer dump session for the footings.

skhamenehOP2y ago

Yeah, it'll vary a lot by location and time of year (end of year demand is highest for incentives).

Unfortunately, loans aren't quite what they were when I got solar over a year ago, 0.99% APR was one of my offers with the lowest cost quote. >10 year payback is quite high, mine is 4-5 years (not accounting for inflation or annual increases in electricity costs).

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