Solar system ... price, duration, etc. from sales pitch

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Sep 14, 2022
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The solar panel people payed my a visit today. They said they would replace the roof, replace the electrical panel, replace the windows, and install solar panels all for $274 per month for the next 24 years. Adds up to $78,912 at the end of 24 years. They said that the PG&E power company is going to start raising the price of electricity and natural gas by 21% every year. Energy bills will eventually be as much as $700 per month. They also said that by the year 2032, all homes in California must be energy self sufficient or face heavy fines by the state. I asked the guy what would I do if I needed to sell the house before my contract ends in 24 years. He said to tack on the price of the contract to the selling price of the home. Hmm . . . .
 
Id likely never do it that way.

No way to tell what kind of deal that is without knowing what kind of roof material, window material, electrical panel, and solar set up.

To compare, my solar installer modeled out a 3% per year hike - nowhere near the 21% your guy is claiming.
 
@Soft Cars you are dealing with ripoff artists. Or at least a bozo sales rep.
It is likely energy prices are likely to rise and it is no secret I hate PG&E. But they are feeding you a line. Bunch of BS.
I did a solar project almost 5 years ago. I talked to a lot of companies. You need to do the same!

If you have a Costco membership, talk to their Sunrun rep. Sunrun is one of the big companies and offers great prices and quality solar products.
I went with Infinity Solar out of Rocklin; they are not as big but I got a great deal.
 
@Soft Cars you are dealing with ripoff artists. It is likely energy prices are likely to rise and it is no secret I hate PG&E. But they are feeding you a line. Bunch of BS.
I did a solar project almost 5 years ago. I talked to a lot of companies.

If you have a Costco membership, talk to their Sunrun rep. Sunrun is one of the big companies and offers great prices and quality solar products.
I went with Infinity Solar out of Rocklin; they are not as big but I got a great deal.

Yes that seems like a lot of money at $78,912 and he said the price is only good for 3 days. He's coming back Saturday afternoon to get my decision.
 
The situation is very complex, and the utility companies have determined that solar has it's own set of problems. As it requires the use of inefficient natural gas powered peaker plants to cover solar intermittency.

So, the utilities are now, not paying homeowners as much (or maybe nothing) for the solar power homeowners produce.

Proceed with great caution.
 
Yes that seems like a lot of money at $78,912 and he said the price is only good for 3 days. He's coming back Saturday afternoon to get my decision.

I think you can give him your answer right now. Pack sand.

Get specialists in roofing, windows, and solar to give you independent quotes.

You have until end of May to get the solar done, or the deal radically changes.
 
Everyone’s power bill WILL be double what it is today before 2030.

Count on it.
In some locations, perhaps. Electricity prices in Ontario recently went down after we stopped pouring money into VRE. New nukes can be amortized over a long period of time (30+ years) to keep the per kWh (supply cost) low. Hopefully we keep a sane government that sticks to present, logical, policy.
 
The life of the solar panels is what?

My understanding is that over time they loose efficiency as they age. I'd want to know the specifics on this. You need them functioning for 24 years or you have a payment with nothing in return.

Our local school got "grant" money that was really a glorified loan to put solar on a bunch of the buildings. Within a year the system was causing problems, not sure it is even functioning now or wasn't last time I heard. Waste of taxpayer funds for a system that will never pay for itself.
 
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