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Installed larger system from another company since Tesla wouldn't change design
- Thread starter sunbear
- Start date
charlesj
Active Member
Obviously the installers were able to install the system so they can certainly take it apart or enough to get to a bad panel.
charlesj
Active Member
That is great a 1.24 DC to AC ratio, a higher ratio would be producing more unless that is the max size that would fit there.
Keep in mind that is the net cost.
I used the Tesla number to drive down the price. But Tesla were too scary for me to use.
I had several issues during my install that Tesla wouldn't have been able to remedy quickly give their lack of customer service.
You dont know that at all. You can speak to your experience getting a quote from tesla, but you did not use them, so you can not definitively speak to whether or not an installer on the ground would have been able to remedy your situation or not.
Lets not act like every tesla install is a dumpster fire (although people love to try to paint it as such) and every third party install is honey and cream.
They havent that I have heard of. They offered optimizers if the design called for it, at least till recently. A lot of people like the micro inverter design, and some dont, but thats a complete separate issue. With the money these systems tend to cost, if someone wants microinverters (or anything else that is reasonable with their install) they should get it, as long as they are willing to pay for it.
Ditto. They changed my layout at my request with my modified layout drawing of their original drawing.
There was another discovery on my adventure with Tesla Energy that might be of interest to people who live in states like NJ where you get TRECs - Transition Renewable Energy Credits. TRECs are paid in NJ to incentivize solar production at a rate of $91.20 for every 1000 kWh of solar production for the first 15 years.
Here was my original quote from Tesla for a 16.32 kW system with 2 power walls:
Now, the strange thing I noticed was that ($9893 / $49800) * 100 = 21.1% which is significantly lower than the Federal Tax Credit rate of 26%.
I eventually found out why I was not getting the full federal tax credit. Instead of allowing you to collect your TREC payments from the state, Tesla pockets all those TREC credits and in exchange gives you an upfront discount in the system purchase price. I'm not sure if Tesla allows customers to keep their TRECs and forgo the discount if customers ask for that. There's certainly no option to do so on the Tesla ordering website.
This is bad for the customer for 2 reasons:
1) It decreases the initial cost of the system and therefore decreases the federal tax credit by $3,055
2) It increases the total cost of the system because Tesla only pays about 50% of the fair (present) value of the future TREC payments ($11,750 vs $21,500)
A lot of customers probably just look at the "Price After Incentives" number and think - "wow Tesla is so cheap compared to my other solar quotes". However for the system configuration above the real cost is around $13,000 more than the Tesla quoted price of $28,157.
In my case I found that Tesla quote total lifetime cost was still cheaper (but not significantly so) compared with competitor quotes. And since I could find a competitor that offered a larger system and better tailored service I went with them instead of Tesla.
Here was my original quote from Tesla for a 16.32 kW system with 2 power walls:
Now, the strange thing I noticed was that ($9893 / $49800) * 100 = 21.1% which is significantly lower than the Federal Tax Credit rate of 26%.
I eventually found out why I was not getting the full federal tax credit. Instead of allowing you to collect your TREC payments from the state, Tesla pockets all those TREC credits and in exchange gives you an upfront discount in the system purchase price. I'm not sure if Tesla allows customers to keep their TRECs and forgo the discount if customers ask for that. There's certainly no option to do so on the Tesla ordering website.
This is bad for the customer for 2 reasons:
1) It decreases the initial cost of the system and therefore decreases the federal tax credit by $3,055
2) It increases the total cost of the system because Tesla only pays about 50% of the fair (present) value of the future TREC payments ($11,750 vs $21,500)
A lot of customers probably just look at the "Price After Incentives" number and think - "wow Tesla is so cheap compared to my other solar quotes". However for the system configuration above the real cost is around $13,000 more than the Tesla quoted price of $28,157.
In my case I found that Tesla quote total lifetime cost was still cheaper (but not significantly so) compared with competitor quotes. And since I could find a competitor that offered a larger system and better tailored service I went with them instead of Tesla.
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This information regarding RECs has a few threads in this section on it already:
Tesla now keeps all the SRECs [SREC = Solar Renewable Energy Credits]
Recently got a solar quote from Tesla for a 8.16 kW system + 2 Powerwalls . Disappointed to learn that they now keep all the solar renewable energy credits (SRECs) and do not allow the owner to retain them, which some customers in this forum were able to do in earlier threads. The price Tesla...
teslamotorsclub.com
Does Tesla no longer let you keep the TREC?
Hi Everyone, I just kick started the process of getting solar panels with TESLA. During my initial discussion I told them that I would like to keep the TRECs but my project advisor told me that TESLA is not longer offering that choice. He says the policy was changed as recently as this month...
teslamotorsclub.com
I would disagree with your analysis for the simple reason that it was close to impossible to contact my adviser. It was also very hard to change my design. Also I see Tesla now breaking contracts on Solar roofs. Now we are seeing they only want to sell solar with power walls.
I appreciate Tesla solar because they are driving down solar prices. But at the same time as a solar company they aren't really much good.
My main panel shorted during the site survey. It was fixed immediately. I wanted a consumption meter. It was installed the next day for free. One of my panels was cracked during transportation. It was fixed in a week. I can get through to my adviser directly and immediately. The difference between Tesla and my local company is night and day in terms of trustworthiness and responsiveness.
I had bad experiences with all the national companies actually. They were double the price of tesla and made the whole thing uneconomical.
I just got lucky when I found a good local company.
Yet some had no issues at all with their PA. I'm not saying there isn't work to be done in this area but everyone didn't have issues in this space. Solar roof contracts and Powerwall sales strategy again wont impact everyone. Especially those that are just seeking a basic solar panel install (me). Wishing all those working through issues the best however. Net, its not all bad.
I totally disagree with that because driving down pricing alone makes them a relevant player as a solar company. I've had my share of issues with them but I would certainly select them again. Odds of them being around in 10-15yrs was key in the decision process and the cookie cutter approach work for me just fine. It can't be denied that they are changing the game and making an impact.
I think in the end, you will find that it doesn't make a major tax impact either way (it may actually hurt you,) but I believe the proper way to handle this (and you definitely need to talk to an actual tax expert) would be to claim the ITC on the full amount. However, the TREC payment should actually be treated as income, because you are being paid for the sale of the renewable attributes of your production.
Especially factoring in the potential for state taxes on the TRECs (I do not know if state law might exempt them,) you might find you would actually be better off if you could include the TREC payment as an offset to the ITC. However, just because Tesla shows it this way does not mean it is correct, and it really is something that would need to be reviewed by a tax expert.
I think we actually agree. I am glad they are around just because of the pricing. It was the deciding factor for me. Any more then a 5 year payback wouldn't work for me. I had quotes over double Tesla.
However your roof and electrical system are a major part of your home and I simply don't trust tesla to respond quickly and effectively to problems.
Also I was disgusted with what they did to their solar roof contracts.
No worries, I’m glad it worked out for you. I just don’t think they are worthless or not much good. I had zero issues with my roof or electrical. My problems all revolve around home consumption/monitoring which at the end of the day is a nice to have. It doesn’t really impact the solution or the reason I went solar.
I can’t speak to the solar roof issues. I just don’t know enough about what’s going on there so I don’t want to speculate either way.
solarAddict
Member
Typical way to install gutters in New England - apparently "nobody likes that gutter's butt end would be sticking out beyond roof edge. Sometimes the fascia board extended to cover it. I think it's ridiculous design. Same goes to gable end without any overhang...
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