h2ofun
Active Member
If you have the money, go for itI have taken the advise on-board and gone with the 17k system the only query I had was regarding either going for 2 or 3 PW's, is it really worth plucking me plucking up the extra $ for this?
You can install our site as a web app on your iOS device by utilizing the Add to Home Screen feature in Safari. Please see this thread for more details on this.
Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.
If you have the money, go for itI have taken the advise on-board and gone with the 17k system the only query I had was regarding either going for 2 or 3 PW's, is it really worth plucking me plucking up the extra $ for this?
I have taken the advise on-board and gone with the 17k system the only query I had was regarding either going for 2 or 3 PW's, is it really worth plucking me plucking up the extra $ for this?
Nobody can advise you well on how many Powerwalls you really need or which rate plan you should choose without detailed information about your usage pattern. If you are truly only generating 40% of the kWh that you consume over the course of a year, then you will have a substantial bill due at true-up and any TOU shifting that you can do will save you real cash. If you are a significant net energy consumer with solar and Powerwalls, you should evaluate how many unavoidable kWh you consume during Peak and Part-Peak hours. Unavoidable usage is things like lighting and cooking and air conditioning that are not practical (or popular with the family) to shift to other hours. Things like pool pumps, EV charging, laundry, and dishwasher usage can be shifted out of the Peak hours with relative convenience. You want the Powerwalls to have enough energy capacity in kWh to supply your unavoidable Peak usage. If it can cover the Part-Peak usage then that is even better. You should also consider how much energy you need to reserve for backup in case of grid outage too.I am getting my install in December, not sure which version Powerwall they will provide. adding a third PW will likely add $7k cost. Seeing as I never charge my EV at home, which rate plan should I move to?
Considering my system is already sized for a 40% offset of my current usage, is it advisable to add a 3rd PW, if I do will i be able to power my whole home during peak times and sell excess energy for a decent return?
You should ask Tesla about the off-grid performance of the 17kW solar system with 2 Powerwalls. If they clearly tell you that it will gracefully modulate the solar when the grid is down, then that is a reasonable way to go.My current annual usage is 16500 kWh, by adding a pool which comes with its own solar system and electrical features (fountains etc) I am expecting my usage to go up, no idea what to but I am guessing upto 20000 kWh.
The Tesla 12k System should still cover my needs however I am opting for the 17k system based on the advice received on this forum.
As for the Powerwalls, I was thinking purchase two to obtain better economies of scale (install fees, gateway etc).
From the sounds of it I am better of going with the 12K system and 2PW rather than that 17K system with 2PW due to the ROI. Or to add another PW (3 total) to 17K system.
Is my thinking correct?
Nah, if you have the money, I would do the 17K system and 3 PW's. Adding the stuff after is basically impossible. And as codes change, you may not be even able to do it at all. And once folks have solar, batteries, it is amazing how we end up finding ways to use more electricity.My current annual usage is 16500 kWh, by adding a pool which comes with its own solar system and electrical features (fountains etc) I am expecting my usage to go up, no idea what to but I am guessing upto 20000 kWh.
The Tesla 12k System should still cover my needs (21000 kWh) however I am opting for the 17k system (27000 kWh) based on the advice received on this forum.
As for the Powerwalls, I was thinking purchase two to obtain better economies of scale (install fees, gateway etc).
From the sounds of it I am better of going with the 12K system and 2PW rather than that 17K system with 2PW due to the ROI. Or to add another PW (3 total) to 17K system.
Is my thinking correct?
Personally, ROI was the most important to me so I ended up going with 8kW (already had existing 3kW) and 2PW. ROI on powerwalls isn’t great and the warranty is only good for 10 years, so something I took into consideration. I would have went with just a single PW but wanted whole house backup so had to go with two. In the rare event that I have an outage I can easily manage my loads to last a day with just batteries. I am also assuming that solar and batteries will get cheaper over time and appliances/EV will become more efficient, but I agree it will probably be harder to get more installed in the future. With the system I purchased I think it will take 10+ years for me to break even, but there is some value knowing that my house will have power if there is an outage.My current annual usage is 16500 kWh, by adding a pool which comes with its own solar system and electrical features (fountains etc) I am expecting my usage to go up, no idea what to but I am guessing upto 20000 kWh.
The Tesla 12k System should still cover my needs (21000 kWh) however I am opting for the 17k system (27000 kWh) based on the advice received on this forum.
As for the Powerwalls, I was thinking purchase two to obtain better economies of scale (install fees, gateway etc).
From the sounds of it I am better of going with the 12K system and 2PW rather than that 17K system with 2PW due to the ROI. Or to add another PW (3 total) to 17K system.
Is my thinking correct?
I received the same letter an posted about it in the SVCE thread in the California sub-forum.For @cciesingh and others looking to oversize in SVCE/PGE territory, I just received a mailer from SVCE this week - starting May 2022, they will no longer be paying full retail rates for excess generation. Instead, they'll be paying 2X "net surplus compensation" rate, which they said works out to about $0.06/kwh. Significantly reduces the benefit of oversizing and overproducing, esp if you were counting on any banking summer peak overproduction on EV-2A or E-TOU-C. "Only" a 30-40% hit if overproducing primarily during non-Summer off-peak though.
It was probably too generous for SVCE to sustain NEM full retail credits, good while it lasted for those who could take advantage...
For @cciesingh and others looking to oversize in SVCE/PGE territory, I just received a mailer from SVCE this week - starting May 2022, they will no longer be paying full retail rates for excess generation. Instead, they'll be paying 2X "net surplus compensation" rate, which they said works out to about $0.06/kwh. Significantly reduces the benefit of oversizing and overproducing, esp if you were counting on any banking summer peak overproduction on EV-2A or E-TOU-C. "Only" a 30-40% hit if overproducing primarily during non-Summer off-peak though.
It was probably too generous for SVCE to sustain NEM full retail credits, good while it lasted for those who could take advantage...
Perhaps. IMHO it makes sense to include EV charging as part of your usage.I am guessing a 12.75 KW system with 2 Powerwalls should suffice for my needs then, especially since I use Gas for heating and live near a supercharger for EV charging
I am guessing a 12.75 KW system with 2 Powerwalls should suffice for my needs then, especially since I use Gas for heating and live near a supercharger for EV charging
Yep, thats exactly what I have done. Will find out if I was super smart, or super dumb soon.PG&E wants to increase natural gas rates by 50% over the next half-decade. I'm afraid anyone relying on gas for heating is about to get a swift kick in the nuts. The only pro-active solution TMC has discovered (at normal income levels) is to up-size the solar a ton; install electric heat pump units; and get in under NEM 2.0 with some batteries to boot. Basically run @h2ofun's playbook.
Yep, thats exactly what I have done. Will find out if I was super smart, or super dumb soon.
I thought I heard that the grandfathering stays with the system and house, not person owning.Nah you're good. There is like zero push to abolish grandfathering under NEM 1.0 or 2.0 now. I think that abolishment was just bluster so it seems like the IOU's gave up on something in the negotiation. But removing grandfathering never should have been in scope anyway.
But, when your NEM 2.0 does expire, your solar array is going to get super duper expensive. Not sure how long you plan on owning the house haha.
Actually this raises an interesting point. If Janet sells a house to Bob that has solar on it, does Bob inherit Janet's NEM grandfathering, or does Bob automatically get pushed to a new NEM and reset the clock?
Because under NEM 3.0, Janet's solar system could easily become a liability if it were mis-sized.
I thought I heard that the grandfathering stays with the system and house, not person owning.
PG&E wants to increase natural gas rates by 50% over the next half-decade. I'm afraid anyone relying on gas for heating is about to get a swift kick in the nuts. The only pro-active solution TMC has discovered (at normal income levels) is to up-size the solar a ton; install electric heat pump units; and get in under NEM 2.0 with some batteries to boot. Basically run @h2ofun's playbook.
Do you really think any energy source isn’t going to increase greatly down the road under current companies? It will be like water rates in EBMD from what I’ve heard over last few years: everyone conserve water and we’re increasing rates as a deterent; done great job conserving but now due to lower billing revenue (less water sold) we need to increase rates again. On top of the already raised rates. They’re going to get you regardless. I’m sure if they can they will raise the monthly $10 rate for solar accounts to some exorbitant amount and you’ll be using more electricity switching over to everything (plus people only have so much roof to place panels on).