What is preventing this solar + PW system from garage installation? (NorCal, PG&E)

[jjrandorin]

I have an existing solar system (non-Tesla) and I'm considering a Powerwall, probably next year.
I'm curious about the pros and cons of putting it inside my garage or outside on an east facing wall.
Inside I have a wood shop that sometimes gets very dusty and I have limited wall space.
Outside I have my existing solar inverter, meter/breaker box and some bushes I can remove.

Temps should not be a problem in Silicon Valley area

Thoughts from current owners?

Thanks

I merged this into this thread because, for the most part, if you want it in the garage you are going to need to jump through A LOT of hoops, given new codes. All the posts you read about people having them in the garage (in CA) pretty much pre date the 2020 code update that is in effect now.

You will likely find anyone you engage tells you "we dont do that anymore (put them in the garage", or at a minimum "are you prepared to lose a garage parking space to bollards, and put in specific Detection devices?"

This thread and the one I am about to link can give you a bit more info on the discussion. Note that the one I am about to link is an older one about "retroactively applying" but its my understanding that the codes that were in discussion in that thread as "not enforced yet but being retroactively applied' are now enforced everywhere.

Santa Clara County retroactively Changing ESS Rules

I am dealing with a significant rule change in Santa Clara County Fire jurisdiction, which is effecting our ability to get permits for Powerwall installations. SCC has retroactively applied new rules to our existing permits and is rejecting our other new permits based on their rules. These new...

teslamotorsclub.com

 

[h2ofun]

I have an existing solar system (non-Tesla) and I'm considering a Powerwall, probably next year.
I'm curious about the pros and cons of putting it inside my garage or outside on an east facing wall.
Inside I have a wood shop that sometimes gets very dusty and I have limited wall space.
Outside I have my existing solar inverter, meter/breaker box and some bushes I can remove.

Temps should not be a problem in Silicon Valley area

Thoughts from current owners?

Thanks

Not worth the money, IMO

 

[sunwarriors]

If you go in without expecting an ROI, it's fine. It's sorta like insurance, you don't miss it when you don't need it, but if you suddenly had a big disaster (fire, earthquake, issues with N. Korea, etc...who knows), I'm sure people would be glad that IF some perfect storm hits when you have power and none of your neighbors do, it could be life saving.

I think with how the weather has been (seems to be getting more crazy/worst), if you can afford it (or just care more), it's a very nice to have.

h2ofun has 7 PWs. But like folks with lots and lots of $$ who say $$ is not everything (tell that to struggling/starving folks). Folks with lots of PWs say not worth and it's not everything.

 

[h2ofun]

If you go in without expecting an ROI, it's fine. It's sorta like insurance, you don't miss it when you don't need it, but if you suddenly had a big disaster (fire, earthquake, issues with N. Korea, etc...who knows), I'm sure people would be glad that IF some perfect storm hits when you have power and none of your neighbors do, it could be life saving.

I think with how the weather has been (seems to be getting more crazy/worst), if you can afford it (or just care more), it's a very nice to have.

h2ofun has 7 PWs. But like folks with lots and lots of $$ who say $$ is not everything (tell that to struggling/starving folks). Folks with lots of PWs say not worth and it's not everything.

When we had lots of fires or snow in my area, many lost power for lots and days!! Many thought but I have solar, why is the power out?
Some had PW(s), but they drained so quickly again they asked what happened. But the ones with generators, which ran for weeks, they had power the entire time.

So, one just needs to know the limitations of each solution. If I lose power, I still do not run everything like I had power. Just never know how long an outage, and what the cloud cover, might be like.

 

[BGbreeder]

I have an existing solar system (non-Tesla) and I'm considering a Powerwall, probably next year.
I'm curious about the pros and cons of putting it inside my garage or outside on an east facing wall.
Inside I have a wood shop that sometimes gets very dusty and I have limited wall space.
Outside I have my existing solar inverter, meter/breaker box and some bushes I can remove.

Temps should not be a problem in Silicon Valley area

Thoughts from current owners?

Thanks

In Silicon Valley, as a general rule I would not even try to put Powerwalls iin a garage. Too many hoops and questionable upside(s) in my view.

With a wood shop, I would consider putting a Powerwall in my garage only if I wanted to test how good my fire insurance was. Wood dust and heat/power electronics are not good bedfellows. I think that you would struggle to keep the radiator in the powerwalls clean enough to function well. In my opinion, the Powerwall's internal radiator is not designed to handle large dust loads. (I have similar equipment in a different application, and there it takes frequent cleaning with high pressure air from both sides and periodic, e.g. annual power washing. I'm not sure that the latter is even possible, much less advisable on a Powerwall.)

I would put the Powerwall(s) on the outside and get back to the fun of the woodworking.

All the best,

BG