New Tesla 15.12kW Solar / 4 Powerwall order in Orlando

[BrettS]

I got an email early this morning stating that my application is complete. I was hoping that complete meant that I had PTO, but I suspected that was not the case. I called to see where I stood and discovered that complete just means that my application has made it through the project manager review part of the process. They will now send someone out to do a field inspection sometime within the next 10 business days and after that send someone out to replace the meter.

It seems to me that it would be considerably more efficient to have the people doing the field inspection also replace the meter, since they will be here on site anyway, but I’m, just a lowly customer. What do I know?

The good news is that they said this project manager review stage could take up to 10 business days, but it was actually only done in like one. Hopefully the field inspection will also be done within a few days.

 

[zƬesla]

Wow, @BrettS, that's quite the road to get PTO. Glad I'm in a town/state that requires no inspection and getting PTO is pretty much a matter of paperwork then waiting 1-2 weeks for utility to switch out the meter. Of course if something goes wrong down the road from the lack of eyes on the install I may regret that.

 

[BrettS]

Honestly, even after all that I’m not sure my city’s inspection really meant much. My city appears to be very strict on the documentation required for the permit. They wanted signed and sealed plans that included the exact panel layout. The panel layout changed slightly on install day (one panel wasn’t able to fit where it was shown on the plans and had to be moved to another location). So this meant that they needed new signed and sealed documents showing the new panel layout before they could request the inspection.

When the inspector finally came to do the inspection he was literally here for 5 minutes. He looked at the electrical boxes and opened the outside covers on most of them (although he didn’t actually unscrew anything to look at the inside of the boxes), then he rang my doorbell so I could open the garage so he could see the powerwalls, then he walked around the house to look at the panels from the ground, then he signed off on the install and left. I actually went to check my cameras to see if he did a more detailed inspection before he rang my doorbell, but he didn’t. It was just a quick walk around the property and then a sign off.

 

[jboy210]

Honestly, even after all that I’m not sure my city’s inspection really meant much. My city appears to be very strict on the documentation required for the permit. They wanted signed and sealed plans that included the exact panel layout. The panel layout changed slightly on install day (one panel wasn’t able to fit where it was shown on the plans and had to be moved to another location). So this meant that they needed new signed and sealed documents showing the new panel layout before they could request the inspection.

When the inspector finally came to do the inspection he was literally here for 5 minutes. He looked at the electrical boxes and opened the outside covers on most of them (although he didn’t actually unscrew anything to look at the inside of the boxes), then he rang my doorbell so I could open the garage so he could see the powerwalls, then he walked around the house to look at the panels from the ground, then he signed off on the install and left. I actually went to check my cameras to see if he did a more detailed inspection before he rang my doorbell, but he didn’t. It was just a quick walk around the property and then a sign off.

Our inspection was very much like this, but was run by a Tesla inspection coordinator. He had all the panels opened up and all the Tesla documents he had spread out for the inspectors to review. The inspector checked each electrical box had the connections and nothing was hanging, but mostly he made sure his papers and Tesla's matched. The only reason he went into the garage was to count the number of Powerwalls. Never went on the roof, but signed off on both roof and electrical/solar inspections. 10 minutes or so and he was gone.

My feeling is the City Inspectors know when they see something obvious, but the contractor is responsible for seeing to the details. So unless something is obviously wrong the inspector will not catch it. We have at least 5 other inspections in the last 5 years as we remodel the home, and I had the same feeling about the previous building inspectors.

 

[wjgjr]

Our inspection was very much like this, but was run by a Tesla inspection coordinator. He had all the panels opened up and all the Tesla documents he had spread out for the inspectors to review. The inspector checked each electrical box had the connections and nothing was hanging, but mostly he made sure his papers and Tesla's matched. The only reason he went into the garage was to count the number of Powerwalls. Never went on the roof, but signed off on both roof and electrical/solar inspections. 10 minutes or so and he was gone.

My feeling is the City Inspectors know when they see something obvious, but the contractor is responsible for seeing to the details. So unless something is obviously wrong the inspector will not catch it. We have at least 5 other inspections in the last 5 years as we remodel the home, and I had the same feeling about the previous building inspectors.

I think a lot of this varies by jurisdiction and by inspector. For me, I think the pandemic was a big change. Prior inspections I've had them spend a long time and be very detailed (had one fail in part because the inspector said the ground was not green enough in color.) This one, however, was quick - with the inspector outside and the Tesla rep inside, it seemed like it was mostly a paperwork exercise, just confirming the stated equipment was installed.

Also is interesting how it is done in different places - sounds like some have no inspections, others get inspections from multiple places (city, possibly fire department, and utility.) In our case, everything seems to rely on the county inspection - the utility does not come out but requires proof of passed inspection.

 

[jboy210]

I think a lot of this varies by jurisdiction and by inspector. For me, I think the pandemic was a big change. Prior inspections I've had them spend a long time and be very detailed (had one fail in part because the inspector said the ground was not green enough in color.) This one, however, was quick - with the inspector outside and the Tesla rep inside, it seemed like it was mostly a paperwork exercise, just confirming the stated equipment was installed.

Also is interesting how it is done in different places - sounds like some have no inspections, others get inspections from multiple places (city, possibly fire department, and utility.) In our case, everything seems to rely on the county inspection - the utility does not come out but requires proof of passed inspection.

We also did not get a visit from the utility company. Our Smart Meter was already capable of measuring energy pushed back to the grid. PTO I assume requires proof of inspection but mainly required paying Tesla. Once the final payment was made Tesla sent PTO request to PG&E. And within 30 minutes of making payment PG&E emailed us confirmation of the request and a request ID.

 

[BrettS]

Things are continuing to progress. I happened to see a truck park in front of my house a few minutes ago with a Duke Energy logo on it. I went out to talk to the guy and he confirmed that he was here for my field inspection. He put another sticker on my disconnect, because apparently I still didn’t have enough stickers (although this one was green and not red), then he took a quick look around and said that he’ll release my account for the new meter to be installed.

They said that it’s up to 10 business days from this point to get the new meter, but so far Duke has been pretty quick, so I think there’s at least a chance that I could have the new meter and PTO before the end of the week.

 

[darhall993]

Things are continuing to progress. I happened to see a truck park in front of my house a few minutes ago with a Duke Energy logo on it. I went out to talk to the guy and he confirmed that he was here for my field inspection. He put another sticker on my disconnect, because apparently I still didn’t have enough stickers (although this one was green and not red), then he took a quick look around and said that he’ll release my account for the new meter to be installed.

View attachment 583589

They said that it’s up to 10 business days from this point to get the new meter, but so far Duke has been pretty quick, so I think there’s at least a chance that I could have the new meter and PTO before the end of the week.

BrettS has been extremely patient with a very long set of red tape flaming hoops, sounds like you are in the last mile! Thank goodness you've been able to run off-grid all of this time!

 

[BrettS]

It’s here... It’s here... My shiny new bidirectional meter arrived today

It’s showing a fresh start of 00000 kWh and the guy who installed it told me that I’m good to officially turn the system on

 

[BrettS]

So here’s my timeline for those interested:

5/12/20 - Order placed
5/29/20 - Tesla applied for the permit
6/2/20 - Permit was approved
6/3/20 - Tesla called to scheduled the install for 6/22 and 6/23
6/22/20 - Install started
6/23/20 - Install finished
8/17/20 - City inspection scheduled for 8/19
8/19/20 - City inspection passsed
8/27/19 - Tesla requested PTO from Duke Energy
9/3/20 - New meter installed and PTO granted

 

[SoCal Dave]

Congrats @BrettS !!!!

 

[BrettS]

And here are some interesting numbers from the time I was operating off grid:

From the time the system was installed until I got PTO:

4161kWh was generated by the solar panels (worth around $550 at my electricity rates)
4555kWh was used by my house
668kWh was pulled from the grid. (I believe that the numbers don’t add up because of the efficiency loss in the powerwalls)
1918kWh was pulled from the powerwalls

I spent a total of 1524 hours off grid (but not continually). My longest continuous time off grid was 228 hours and 33 minutes.

 

[zƬesla]

Congrats @BrettS !

Just for fun, decided to look at my #s from 6/23 to now:
5286 solar
2594 house
352 from grid, 2895 to grid
723 from powerwall, 874 to pw

This is for a 17.5 array with 7.0 and 7.7 inverters.

I think your winter #s will be much better than mine though

 

[jjrandorin]

And here are some interesting numbers from the time I was operating off grid:

From the time the system was installed until I got PTO:

4161kWh was generated by the solar panels (worth around $550 at my electricity rates)
4555kWh was used by my house
668kWh was pulled from the grid. (I believe that the numbers don’t add up because of the efficiency loss in the powerwalls)
1918kWh was pulled from the powerwalls

I spent a total of 1524 hours off grid (but not continually). My longest continuous time off grid was 228 hours and 33 minutes.

One thing is for SURE... you have a great idea of the operation of your system, and what you can sustain in case of an outage, at least during spring / summer.

I feel happy like its my own system, even though its not (lol). Really enjoyed taking this journey with you, thanks for sharing it.

 

[BrettS]

One thing is for SURE... you have a great idea of the operation of your system, and what you can sustain in case of an outage, at least during spring / summer.

This is true. I actually just posted another thread about the benefits of doing a test like this. (Although maybe not for quite so long). It would be interesting to do another off grid test in the winter. I spent some time looking at the PVWatts numbers for my system last night and it looks like November-February will be my lowest production times, with December being the worst. And March-August should be the best months with May being the peak.

I feel happy like its my own system, even though its not (lol).

I’m quote happy about it too, although it honestly feels a little anticlimactic. I turned my service disconnect back on after the meter was installed, but other than that not much really changed. For the most part I’ve just been able to run the house the way I normally do even though I’ve been off grid.

Really enjoyed taking this journey with you, thanks for sharing it.

Yeah, It’s been fun to follow along with all of the folks who are getting systems installed

 

[BrettS]

Congrats @BrettS !

Just for fun, decided to look at my #s from 6/23 to now:
5286 solar
2594 house
352 from grid, 2895 to grid
723 from powerwall, 874 to pw

This is for a 17.5 array with 7.0 and 7.7 inverters.

I think your winter #s will be much better than mine though

Yeah, one thing I discovered is that the clouds really kill my production. I have literally had one single day that was almost entirely cloudless for the whole day and on that day I generated about 82kWh. However, this time of year I tend to get a lot of clouds, especially in the afternoon and my average production was 60kWh in July and 54kWh in August. I think the production in august is starting to drop off due to the days getting shorter, but I imagine that I’m losing around 15 to 20kWh per day to the clouds.

 

[Southpasfan]

And here are some interesting numbers from the time I was operating off grid:

From the time the system was installed until I got PTO:

4161kWh was generated by the solar panels (worth around $550 at my electricity rates)
4555kWh was used by my house
668kWh was pulled from the grid. (I believe that the numbers don’t add up because of the efficiency loss in the powerwalls)
1918kWh was pulled from the powerwalls

I spent a total of 1524 hours off grid (but not continually). My longest continuous time off grid was 228 hours and 33 minutes.

Congrats!

Now, with respect to these numbers.

1. It seemed you were "off grid" for some number of hours (or maybe days).

2. Putting aside the 668 from the grid. Interestingly it looks like the ratio of power generated by panes to power used from the powerwalls was 4.5 to 1.9. Now, the 4.5 probably includes the 1.9, yes? I don't have my install nor app yet. In other words, does the 4555 include use by the house plus kwh's used to charge the powerwalls, which was ultimately pulled from the powerwalls to the tune of 1918.

 

[BrettS]

2. Putting aside the 668 from the grid. Interestingly it looks like the ratio of power generated by panes to power used from the powerwalls was 4.5 to 1.9. Now, the 4.5 probably includes the 1.9, yes? I don't have my install nor app yet. In other words, does the 4555 include use by the house plus kwh's used to charge the powerwalls, which was ultimately pulled from the powerwalls to the tune of 1918.

The 4161kWh generated by the solar includes the power used to power the house during the days, as well as the power to charge the powerwalls so they could power the house during the evenings. The 4555kWh used by the house does not include power used to charge the powerwalls... that was just used by the house.

 

[Southpasfan]

The 4161kWh generated by the solar includes the power used to power the house during the days, as well as the power to charge the powerwalls so they could power the house during the evenings. The 4555kWh used by the house does not include power used to charge the powerwalls... that was just used by the house.

Got it, so the ratio is about 1 to 1.

What I mean is, without powerwalls approximately 2k of the approximately 4k would not have gone to charge powerwalls, but back to the grid.

This ratio is important both for figuring out how the system behaves in an actual outage, and for people on the other threads trying to figure out the economics of powerwalls.

For you, it would have been the delta between what the utility would have paid for the 2k and what they would have charged you for the 2k at night had you only had solar.

 

[BrettS]

Got it, so the ratio is about 1 to 1.

What I mean is, without powerwalls approximately 2k of the approximately 4k would not have gone to charge powerwalls, but back to the grid.

This ratio is important both for figuring out how the system behaves in an actual outage, and for people on the other threads trying to figure out the economics of powerwalls.

For you, it would have been the delta between what the utility would have paid for the 2k and what they would have charged you for the 2k at night had you only had solar.

Yes, that’s true. And in my case it’s easy to figure out because I have no TOU rates and my utility offers 1:1 net metering, so for each 1 kWh I give the utility during the day I can pull back 1 kWh at night.