Plug and Play Home Solar coming to the USA

[alarmguy]

Im looking forward to this. (I'm almost positive)
Some time back I posted in this forum the desire for just a couple panels that could be mounted to SUPPLEMENT power to our home when the sun shines. I posted about this for a fun project. I in no way wanted a big bunch of panels and the associated cost. I would never re-coup the cost.

Anyway, little did I know what I want always existed overseas. 4 panels, 1200 watts complete with inverter and all you do is plug an electric cord into an electric plug in your home.

Very cool, Im not concerned per se' about saving some huge amount of money on my electric but it would be cool on sunny days to have fun watching the sun pump some electricity into the house that I dont pay for. Though now that we will be going demand usage next summer, this would kick in some free electricity during those peak summer hours 2PM to 6PM

The cost is really nothing. The ONLY thing for me is I would most likely put the 4 panels on the roof. Dont think anything else would work aesthetically.

SO far only approved in UTAH. Now that the cat is out of the bag I can see the flood gates opening. I'll seriously look into this once all my other projects are done on our new home.

https://www.theverge.com/news/661640/ecoflow-stream-us-plug-in-solar-specs-price





I dont know, I get the ebee jeebe's about having something mounted on the roof, but 4 panels should take a professional maybe a couple hours? I can do the rest or even the whole thing.

Another company -
https://craftstrom.com/product/1200-watt-plugplay-solar/

It would be nice to see some big names get into this.

 

[JeffKeryk]

I love my solar... For those considering a solar project, make sure your roof is in good condition.

 

[mk378]

The panels themselves are actually nowhere near the majority cost of a solar project. Hardware and labor to mount panels on the roof is likely to cost more than the panels do. Then you need wiring, a converter, and if going off-grid, batteries.

 

[JeffKeryk]

The panels themselves are actually nowhere near the majority cost of a solar project. Hardware and labor to mount panels on the roof is likely to cost more than the panels do. Then you need wiring, a converter, and if going off-grid, batteries.

And management selling costs....

 

[SC Maintenance]

I would like a couple panels. No way I would attach them to the roof. I would put them on a stand and track the sun.

Can't have them in my HOA - roof or stand. Maybe the next place?

 

[KrisZ]

Without a dedicated circuit for these, you’re just asking for trouble. That’s like plugging in a generator into the 240v outlet.

 

[UncleDave]

My prime roof space is way too valuable for this, but it would be perfect for an outbuilding like my pump house/ lawn garage.

 

[DirtMover]

Without a dedicated circuit for these, you’re just asking for trouble. That’s like plugging in a generator into the 240v outlet.

That is exactly what it is.
However, the risk level is not at all the same--unless your Generator has a built-in transfer switch and integrated phase matching.

The micro-inverters' normal behavior is to only put power on the line if they detect power from the power company, and to match the power company's frequency in the process.
If the outside power goes down, the solar generator stops applying power to the house.

This is nothing new; I recall reading about grid-tie microinverters over 20 years ago (I had to stop typing and find it: https://guerrilla.solar/). It was utterly safe then, but power companies and government regulators were against it then and most still seem to be.

 

[Astro_Guy]

At about 5:00 in the video he says "no permits." I cannot speak for Utah but I think that is total BS for most of the USA. Local permits for putting solar on your roof are a significant cost factor in the ROI. Because of this you want to average that cost across as much capacity as possible.

Yesterday was nice and sunny in my neck of the woods. Here's a quick summary of how we did with a 14 kW rooftop array: