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Here is my contribution and I'm hoping for some feedback. The front and rear of my house are the same size (as confirmed by the Tesla Energy tech), but they put 3 portrait rows on the front/North, but only 2 portrait rows on the rear/South. I'm guessing it would help my production to have the rear be 3 portrait rows, but not sure if it's worth a change request.

upload_2020-7-26_22-42-54.png
 
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i would shift the sw facing upper portrait row to be flush at both outer edges...

what is the pitch on your roof?

run the production thru PVwatts, see what the difference in production would be...

My roof pitch is roughly 30 degrees.

I took a shot a PVwatts, but left most settings default. If I'm in the right ballpark, moving a panel from the front/North'ish side to the back/South'ish side would increase production by ~50%.

South'ish for an arbitrary 1KW
upload_2020-7-27_12-32-28.png


North'ish for the same 1KW
upload_2020-7-27_12-31-36.png
 
My roof pitch is roughly 30 degrees.

I took a shot a PVwatts, but left most settings default. If I'm in the right ballpark, moving a panel from the front/North'ish side to the back/South'ish side would increase production by ~50%.

Wow, I didn't realize pitch affected output by so much. Just performed the same experiment for my little square of Maryland with a 23 degree pitched roof and North panels underperform South panels by only 36%.
 
For those of you who have been asking for changes in the initial design they provide you, how have you been in contact, and what have you found is the best way to reach out to Tesla Solar to discuss the changes with them? Email, phone call, text?

Thanks
I asked for the west facing panels to be relocated/stuffed into my south array and they responded within a couple of days. I did not like that design. While I will lose around 300KwH from my XL installation, with the old layout, I still had them revert to the old layout. Looks much better.
 
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Been in the "We are reviewing your paperwork to file a permit. Please ensure that you have reviewed or signed all required documents to allow us to obtain your permit." stage for a few weeks now. I've had to upload my utility bill 3 times. Does this ever update to "We have submitted for the permits?"
 
Been in the "We are reviewing your paperwork to file a permit. Please ensure that you have reviewed or signed all required documents to allow us to obtain your permit." stage for a few weeks now. I've had to upload my utility bill 3 times. Does this ever update to "We have submitted for the permits?"

It does. For me that stage took about 2 weeks as I recall, but it can vary greatly depending on your locality. My city requires signed and sealed drawings, so it took a week and a half or so for tesla to get the drawings signed and sealed before they could submit the permit request. Once they got the request submitted it only took my city two business days to approve the permit.

Some cities don’t require the drawings to be signed and sealed, so there can be some time saved there, but I’ve also heard of cities taking one or two weeks or more to approve the permits once they are submitted. Additionally some power companies also require the plans to be submitted and approved for interconnection at this point which can add some additional time to the process. Other power companies don’t require this step here.
 
Been in the "We are reviewing your paperwork to file a permit. Please ensure that you have reviewed or signed all required documents to allow us to obtain your permit." stage for a few weeks now. I've had to upload my utility bill 3 times. Does this ever update to "We have submitted for the permits?"

Does your county allow you to look up permit applications by address? My Tesla account says reviewing paperwork, but when I check my county's online system it says the permit was filed by Tesla about 3 weeks ago. It's just that my county has a 4 week backlog of permits because of their COVID closures earlier in the year. So I'm crossing my fingers for next week.
 
Just wrapped up my install. Installers were incredible. Lead Installer noticed some spacing issues from layout and asked me if I was ok moving three panels from the North to the East. I couldn't say yes fast enough. He made a call to the engineer team and changes were approved. Here is the layout and finished product. If you are thinking about it, just pull the trigger.
Your actual installation looks way better than the original plan. LOL at the "couldn't say yes fast enough".
 
Here is my contribution and I'm hoping for some feedback. The front and rear of my house are the same size (as confirmed by the Tesla Energy tech), but they put 3 portrait rows on the front/North, but only 2 portrait rows on the rear/South. I'm guessing it would help my production to have the rear be 3 portrait rows, but not sure if it's worth a change request.

View attachment 569367

Have you been up on the roof to measure and confirm that you have the space for 3 portrait rows on the back? If so, then I would ask them to re-configure as you mentioned.

Just FYI, panel gap is 0.5" and the "skirt" is 6" wide, so factor that in.
 
Does your county allow you to look up permit applications by address? My Tesla account says reviewing paperwork, but when I check my county's online system it says the permit was filed by Tesla about 3 weeks ago. It's just that my county has a 4 week backlog of permits because of their COVID closures earlier in the year. So I'm crossing my fingers for next week.

Thanks! Looks like they applied for the permit on the 25th!
 
Have you been up on the roof to measure and confirm that you have the space for 3 portrait rows on the back? If so, then I would ask them to re-configure as you mentioned.

Just FYI, panel gap is 0.5" and the "skirt" is 6" wide, so factor that in.

Thanks for the feedback. I have not personally measured, but the Tesla tech did. He measured the rear roof at 19' 2" by 40' and the main area of the top front roof at 19' 2" by 19' 6"/30'.

It looks like they are using Q.Peak Duo BLK-G6+ panels with dimensions of 68.5" x 40.6". I believe it just fits ((68.5x3)+1+12=218.5 vs 230).

I went ahead and requested the redesign. The rep on the phone said redesigns are taking up to 4 weeks currently which wasn't encouraging, but I believe it is worth it based on the PVWatts predictions.
 
Thanks! Looks like they applied for the permit on the 25th!

I was in a similar state and called Tesla getting a scheduler. She was super helpful telling me when they expected the permit to be finished and how soon after they expected to be able to do the install. So if you are anxious, you might want to give Tesla a call.

The permit did get approved a bit earlier than she expected and Tesla is coming out on Monday :)
 
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what do you guys think?
Partial backup, but still backing up your car charging and AC? That looks like a win.


My status was also stuck on the reviewing stuff, but my permit was actually submitted and approved. My sales rep Amelia let me know that there was a connection change that required the permit to be modified. She is the best when I have stupid questions.
 
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I wasn't too happy with my proposed layout. Seems like they could use 4 instead of 6 roof sections to get the panels installed. Also, the electrical panel is on the SW side of the structure, so it doesn't make sense they would run power to the other side of the building instead of starting on the south side. I tried discussing this with Tesla on the phone and they ended up downsizing my system from the 12kW to 8kW offering. I had them revert back.

I figure the installers on Monday will want to adjust the layout to make their life easier. If they don't, then I figure I'm setup to add additional panels if I ever want to in the future.
Tesla-Layout.jpg

upload_2020-7-30_11-39-12.png
 
Partial backup, but still backing up your car charging and AC? That looks like a win.


My status was also stuck on the reviewing stuff, but my permit was actually submitted and approved. My sales rep Amelia let me know that there was a connection change that required the permit to be modified. She is the best when I have stupid questions.

From the Tesla website. It was chosen default for me by Tesla. I did not request it. Basically, in case of an outage I won't be planning to run all heavy appliances anyway so this seems like a win. And yes per list it seems Tesla car charging, AC is involved. I think this is great setup.

Did you chose WHOLE HOME backup?

Partial Home Backup
Partial home backup allows you to back up essential loads, such as lights and outlets, and leave out larger loads, such as air conditioners and washing machines.

You will be able to use and monitor all appliances when the grid is operational, but only the loads you deem essential will be usable when the grid is down.

In both cases, the combined power usage of the appliances cannot exceed the 5 kilowatts of continuous power per Powerwall, or your system will turn off. During a grid outage, it is always best to not run all appliances at once. Learn more about the typical power consumption of different appliances.