Mikedrives
Member
Is anybody doing this where you can sell the juice back to the utility? When do you get to the break-even point?
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Power from solar tiles seems crazy high
- Thread starter fehguy
- Start date
17,000 watt hours is 17kwh or 17 kilowatt hours. the next day is over 15kwh. This time of year is max for many on net metering because we have just started using ac a little. Depending on your houses orientation and shade issues, June 30 should be close to your max day and month for pure production. If you have or plan to get electric cars, I am wondering why you didn’t go for a larger system, and also think heat pump too.
navguy12
Active Member
Well, because of the reduced air pollution in our neck of the woods due to the lock-down, when the sun is out, the sky is really clear and blue.
Two days ago, I broke my all time power record on 30 panels that are turning 10 years old in two weeks:
My all time energy production record is 47.804 kWh on 11 May (2012), with 49 more minutes of daylight and the sun 4.5 degrees higher in the sky...I may just break that record in the next few weeks...
At 199 watts as shown, the inverters are clipping.
It is typical to see the panels on the south array clip for about 3.5 hours a day in late April.
I've never seen the panels on the west array clip at 199 watts, ever.
No smog, no contrails.
Two days ago, I broke my all time power record on 30 panels that are turning 10 years old in two weeks:
My all time energy production record is 47.804 kWh on 11 May (2012), with 49 more minutes of daylight and the sun 4.5 degrees higher in the sky...I may just break that record in the next few weeks...
At 199 watts as shown, the inverters are clipping.
It is typical to see the panels on the south array clip for about 3.5 hours a day in late April.
I've never seen the panels on the west array clip at 199 watts, ever.
No smog, no contrails.
Mikedrives
Member
So your panels literally got an Over-The-Air update and are now more efficient. Happened to my Model 3 a while ago.
The short answer in CA is: It depends.
The original version of the solar agreement forced a better sell-back price on SoCal Edison and a very small monthly fee ($4?). If you over produced, you got paid back at pretty much the retail rates.
I'm on the 2nd version of the power agreement - 2019 install. The match up for sell back isn't great and the minimum monthly to pay for the grid is more like $12. Do I expect to break even? Excluding the upfront costs of $17,000 net of tax credit, the monthly costs should a few bucks back to us, depending on how much we drive the M3 (not much during the stay-at-home orders).
BTW, our 8.25kW rated system did about 52kWh each of the last 2 days in SoCal.
In CA, PG&E rates are out of site high. For example, summer peak rate is $.53/kWh. Currently I can credit 100% of my peak production back to PG&E. Will see how it is in the summer with A/C. (This is my 1st summer with Powerwalls.} Last year, with solar only I over produced in summer and credited a large portion during peak. We get a "Net Annual Bill". My net bill was $50. Before solar, I was paying $600/mo just for electricity in the summer months
My ROI is 4 years, maybe less.
2 things:
1. Be careful with enabling a system if your meter hasn't been swapped. If it doesn't know about bi-directional flow, anything you generate will be sent to the grid but the meter won't know which direction its going, so you will be charged for all the power you use, and all the power you send to the grid.
2. Does tesla roof have a local mode? On my enphase iq7x, its setup for local-only mode while I wait for interconnection approval, which means the pv system generates enough power to meet live demand, and no more. So during the day its able to make much more than I can consume. 17kW system.
1. Be careful with enabling a system if your meter hasn't been swapped. If it doesn't know about bi-directional flow, anything you generate will be sent to the grid but the meter won't know which direction its going, so you will be charged for all the power you use, and all the power you send to the grid.
2. Does tesla roof have a local mode? On my enphase iq7x, its setup for local-only mode while I wait for interconnection approval, which means the pv system generates enough power to meet live demand, and no more. So during the day its able to make much more than I can consume. 17kW system.
PDACPA
Member
Can you post some more pictures of the roof? I am just starting on my Solar Roof and the shingles look like there is quite a glare or shine on them and curious if it is just the sun hitting that section or they have that look all the time.
They are glass so the roof is quite reflective. Mine can be almost blinding at certain times and angles.
Tam
Well-Known Member
The tile is held down in 2 ways. On the top there is a series of plastic clips receivers permanently connected. And in the lower part of the underside of the tile is a metal clip.
The plastic clip receiver serves 2 purposes. First. it has holes they can drive a screw through into the underlayment and decking boards. Second, has an opening where the metal clip from the overlaying tile clips into the tile below's plastic clip. The result is a very solid connection. So much so that if you try to pull the tile up you may have to use so much force it shatters the glass.
Here are some pictures.
Standalone version of clip they use at the edges. This shows it screwed into the underlayment and decking.
Clip connected on tile, but not yet nailed/screwed down. All of the panels come out of the box with the clip permanently attached.
Shatter tile that was removed
I have more images of the roof under construction in this document. Solarglass Roof installation
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Exactly. A similar sized solar panel system is going to out perform a solar roof. A bunch of the solar roof is probably north facing so not as ideal.
In our case we only had enough roof and clearances for a standard 8 KW system south facing because the panel dimension. Because the smaller tile size and non-rectangular pattern in which the solarglass tiles can be installed we ended up at 12 KW. Some of the active tiles are north facing, so not producing as much as the active tiles on the South facing section of the roof, but they are there. Also we have active tiles in areas where regular panels would have been hard to fit.
No. Only certain sections are "active" tiles. The remainder are "inactive". Appearance is almost identical. Only in bright light looking straight on can you see the wires for the solar matrix. Small trivia. The active tiles are all one size, 45" wide. The inactive comes in 5 sizes. Size 5 is the 45" wide, sizes 4-1 get shorter and shorter to fill areas. Edges are done with sheet metal.
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