That’s my stumbling block…I want solar/“off grid” power but my rates are $0.12/kwh so the math is tough
EV lots getting cleaned out.
- Thread starter Snagglefoot
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That’s my stumbling block…I want solar/“off grid” power but my rates are $0.12/kwh so the math is tough
I bought a 330 watt panel over a decade ago for $40 as a science experiment (charges a string of 6v Fla), could have bought pallets of them at that price but local laws make diy solar basically impossible .
The cost of solar could be near zero but .gov harassment to ensure you overpay 10x+ is very real.
Well, that’s what we thought, but it’s hard to know the impact. The couple who is under contract don’t own an EV, so while it may, theoretically, improve the value, I don’t believe that it made any difference to them.
Agree, we are on a rural Co-Op and it's 10-11 cents a KWH. The math is not really mathing for ROI.
However, what makes it increasingly attractive is the grid outages. We just got back from Oregon but while we were there, there were storms in Central Texas and the power was off for 7 hours. When we arrived from the airport the next day the dumb (as in not WiFi) thermostats were waiting for me to re-input the date and time before switching on the system. The house was hot. So frustrating. Thankfully we left the fridge basically empty so there wasn't any problems there, and the frozen food hasn't made me sick yet!
Plus we get ice storms, floods, hurricanes, etc. I'd prefer not to be 100% reliant on the grid.
Solar+battery seems like a way to avoid all that.
At your prices, just battery seems a way to avoid all that. The installed price of a Powerwall runs about $14,000. Your price may vary, of course. That’s about the installed price of our Generac, but the Powerwall doesn’t require a propane tank in the yard, nor does it require annual maintenance. It might be worth pricing out the options for standby power.
This is a case where the capability is desired, and not a cost question. If you add up the likelihood of having to throw out all your food, and the cost of that food, then, standby power has insufficient ROI, based solely on total costs on both sides of the equation. Take the chance, throw out the food if it happens, and you’ll be spending less.
But if you value the convenience, the lack of worry, or other good reasons, outside of cost, to have standby power where power is unreliable, then this isn’t a money discussion - it’s a capability discussion - and comparing battery with ICE generator is where the money can be examined.
Yes two neighbors have them, one claims it wasn't worth it, the other I didn't ask. One has squirrels under his, the other pigeons. One found them useless for a few days while buried under snow this winter, the other I didn't ask. In fact the neighbor with the squirrels under his panels was up on his roof pushing snow off them this winter. It's a ranch, he's young, and I shut my snowblower off asking why he was pushing the snow off the panels.
What do you think about the Powerwall alternatives that are out there? Seems the prices are coming down, and I like the modularity of simply adding batteries and inverter/controllers.
Something like this?
I am fascinated by the technology, but I am hardly well-versed.
As long as we have net metering, we have no need for a battery.
Our battery is the utility’s own billing system - if you will.
But it does make for an interesting option for standby power for those in an area with inexpensive electricity, and more frequent outages. Certainly if I were coastal, back in hurricane country like Virginia Beach, this would be pretty high on my list of potential options.
The prices on used F-150 Lightning trucks has gone up $10k or more here in the last 6 months.
I researched solar for over 3 years before writing that big check. Again, around here with our filthy energy costs and where I was in my life, the numbers were compelling.
Do the arithmetic. In business analysis we add in a hedge value; what are costs likely to do going forward? Hard to quantify, but a critical decision point. A solar project is 100% a bet on the future. Each location, each use case is different.
I love my solar and the planets were in alignment in 2018; I got lucky. The deals are different now.
Do the arithmetic. In business analysis we add in a hedge value; what are costs likely to do going forward? Hard to quantify, but a critical decision point. A solar project is 100% a bet on the future. Each location, each use case is different.
I love my solar and the planets were in alignment in 2018; I got lucky. The deals are different now.
https://insideevs.com/news/798417/bmw-ix3-500-miles-real-world-range-test/
- A BMW iX3 drove over 500 miles on a single charge.
- The long-wheelbase electric SUV drove on China’s Qinghai Lake grand loop.
- It got to the destination with 2% battery capacity remaining.
Using the device in the manner depicted in the video seems to require a panel replacement with Ecoflow's smart panel.
Putting a transfer switch in front of the main panel would seem to be a simpler solution that doesn't require complete panel replacement. It's a fairly labor intensive project.
That said I like the battery product.
A rat in the house might eat the ice cream.
Is how I learned to spell arithmetic back in 3rd grade or whatever it was.
