I get no deals in the "Sunshine State". Closest I get is a Net Meter that only costs me $7.57/mo (same as any other smart metered electric service). Considering I run my central A/C 10 months out of the year and my electric bill hasn't been more than $69 in 24 months (all electric house built in 1962), I'm still scratching my head wondering why I'm the only house on my street with a PV array? My projected bill for this month is $46, not bad when it's hitting 91°F every afternoon and only gets to a sticky 75°F at night (if I'm lucky). My A/C compressor is running 5-6 hours of actual run time per day, for a mere $46/mo!

I 100% agree with that. In the 2 1/2 years since my system came on line, there are 4 systems, total, through our local utility, mine included. I'm better than 48% paid off and these are long-life assets.

There are people who are scammed out of thousands that frequently make the TV news, crying after they bite on one of those too good to be true sales pitches. This is a contractually guaranteed deal! Oh well, who can tell what lurks.....

Here is a great use for solar power. Powering your car and saving buying gas. The savings really adds up.
Yes we still buy some gas but we are 81.60% EV driving.

We just hit 40,000 EV miles solar powered EV miles on our 2013 Chevy Volt.
We have a total 49,000 miles with only one oil change need so far.
The car is fun to drive and has been very dependable. There is someone out there with 90K EV miles so far on their 2012 Chevy Volt.

EV car is such a good use for solar power. A little over two years we have driven 40K miles just using the suns power. It is a amazing time we live in right now.

http://ecorenovator.org/forum/attach...1&d=1439926252

My August bill is in
 

Hi Guys,

Here's my August bill. It shows 186 KWH used but that's not really accurate as my 4.2Kw system feeds the house needs and sends the excess to my utility. In fact I've been welding and using power tools all month so I'd say there's easily another 150 to 200KWH over the 186 it shows.

Mark,
It looks like the new Volt is really going to be a great car (not that yours isn't), boy I'd love to be charging like you! Another thing I just found out is that the two most reliable car manufacturers are - get this - Toyota and GM! Now they have the Bolt concept car, they're talking about fully electric 200 mile range.

Rob

I posted about the new Bolt a while back.
http://ecorenovator.org/forum/conser...y-bolt-ev.html
I think it is great they are putting this out.

The Volt still works better for me we live too far out of town. I am sure it will work for a lot of people.
It looks like GM will get there Bolt to market before Tesla gets the model 3 to market.

The new Volt has potential to do very well. The base model 34K – 7.5K Fed – our state 2K = 24,500 that is a lot of car for that much money. Some states have a higher tax break.

The thing for me with tax breaks is that I'm retired so my income is SS and a pension which means I'll never save much. Doesn't it work that you get 7.5k off your income so if you're in a 25% tax bracket you get 25% off the 7.5k or about $1800.00? Am I doing it wrong?

I just looked at my electric bill for the last year as it's been building pretty well. Last Sept. I was $508 ahead on my bill this year it looks like I'll be about $100 ahead of that by next month. The interesting thing is that I was using electric heaters last year to supplement my house heat and I'm still ahead on the bill.

Rob

It is a tax credit not a rebate. (I think they should have made it a rebate)
If you owe the fed gov 7,500 or more that you will get full credit. You have to use it all in the year you buy the car. My state one can be carried forward.

If you lease the leasing CO gets the credit and they reduce your payment because of this.


I like to see all those negative numbers!

Me too! You can see where the brunt of my electric heater usage came into play. Last winter was a real bear up here so I may do better next winter, especially if the wind power is up.
Rob

Do you run that high a pressure all year long?

Yes it really helps EV miles. The OEM tires do not hold up well it you don't put that much air. I have replaced the OEM tires but it still helps to run 45 psi.
Tire pressure can really make a difference with EV miles.

August is done and my 12.5Kw array made 1.87 Mwh that is $187 here. We banked 355Kwh And covered all our usage.
Now we have 3,032 Kwh banked for the winter to heat with. 3,000 Kwh was what we used last winter to heat with so we should be close to what we need.
We are back to driving 80 EV miles a day and charging our car two or more times a day.

http://ecorenovator.org/forum/attach...1&d=1441080858

We are averaging making 55.456kWh a day so far this year but that will go down some over the winter.
Other solar guys show use your numbers when you have them.

My 4.4kW array produced: 489kWh in August. Averaging 17.5kWh a day, year to date.
My August electric bill was $50.20 for 508kWh, including the $9 credit for an A/C load interrupt. I don't think I've ever noticed the utility using the A/C disconnect, but the credit typically covers my base meter charge all summer. :thumbup: Unfortunately, the credit is only offered April-October.

My 2 arrays totalling 6810w made 993 kWh in Aug. The local utility offsets my electric bill at retail. Since I am grid tied though, I am forced to have 2 meters, so two base charges of $20.24. My $22.xx bill credit fell by $2.74 this month {it takes about 400 kWh production to cover both base charges}. The premium check I will get in October for August will be $119.16.

I feel like a McDonalds commercial, "I'm loving it!" :D

Mark

you guys crack me up. :)

I'm off grid so I can't sell my extras to anyone. therefore I try to use as many appliances as inefficiently as possible. i have a dishwasher. i heat the water with the dishwasher element. all electric. a/c. yup. if it's sunny. why not keep the studio at 24C.

as a result my 2 1kw arrays created and I used 120kw last month.

as my electrical generation varies wildly throughout the year (4 years and 3 months). I am just over 3 megawatts of production. Or less than two months of pinballlooking.

You used 120kw last month.

During the school months we charge our car 2 times a day sometimes more.

It is about 12Kw each charge. That is 80 EV miles a day or more 5 days a week. Just that alone is 580 Kwh + weekend is about 96Kwh total Kwh is 676 Kwh a month. This covers driving 2,253 miles in a month.
This is without using any power at our house at all. But the gas saving really adds up even at the gas prices now. It even adds more than power savings.

We are @ 2 years 5 months with 45.5 MWh produced this year we should have the system ½ paid off with just power savings. If you add in the gas savings it is paid off.:)

September my 12.5kw array made 1,475 Kwh right on the Est. we used all of that except 124 Kwh.
Keep in mind we now charge out car twice a day on week days. That is 24 Kwh a day for our car. 80 Ev miles a day. We now have 3,154 Kwh banked to use in the winter to heat with.
(Just like chopping wood but better)

we were ahead until the last few days we have had rain.

http://ecorenovator.org/forum/attach...1&d=1443710303


My solar gateway stopped sending data two days in a row. The first day GFCI tripped and the second day the GFCI tripped again. Ants were all through it. I sprayed them but they killed the outlet crazy ants.


Other solar producers post your Sept numbers when you have them.

For the calender month of September, our 6.810 kW arrays made 823 kWh. Several low-light days toward the end of the month.

Will edit to post our usage based on our power bill which is always from the 19th to the 19th when it gets here in the next couple of days. We were on vacation with most of the circuit breakers in the house turned off from 6am 9/6 to 5pm 9/12, so this month should be an unusually low usage month. I even unplugged my alarm clock (and removed the backup battery) to keep from having that miniscule load. My wife, of course, thinks I get carried away.... :rolleyes:

Our consumption for last month was 317 kWh. Just because I could, I divided the total production of 27317 {coincidence} since we went live by the 1019 days {almost 2.8 years} and got an average of 26.808 kWh daily average. Also checked the percentage paid back {including the 30% tax credit}, and we are 48.949% paid back. I expect full payback in just barely over 10 years. And yes, I include any repairs or replacement items I have to buy as part of the cost equation.

You are here with like-minded people. I don’t think that is crazy at all.
I even have my bedroom entertainment equipment connected to one of these.

http://ecorenovator.org/forum/attach...1&d=1443714609

I replaced my door bell with a battery powered one so the transformer was not running 24 x 7.
http://ecorenovator.org/forum/conser...receivers.html

I never even considered my door bell...Interesting.

My 4.4kW array generated 423kWh. It was cloudier than normal. Last year, same array collected 489kWh in September. The grass is growing well this year though...

My bill doesn't come in until the 17th but for Sept. my intertie system made 571.8 Kwh and my intertie/off grid made about 286Kwh so roughly I,m at ~860Kwh for the month. I did some welding and fabricating so it will be around 650 to 700 Kwh that I sold back to my coop. I'm ahead about $650 right now, I'll know better on the 17th. but that's should be close.

PB, those are impressive numbers as usual! Is the 2016 Volt out yet? I didn't see it. I'm thinking I may be able to get a good price on an older one.

Rob

Rob

It is strange they are doing a limited release on the 2016

"Chevrolet has a shortened model year for the 2016 Chevy Volt," said GM in a statement. "As a result, we have limited distribution to our strongest EREV markets, of which California and other select states play a significant role (accounting for more than 45 percent of our overall sales volume). Dealers nationwide will be able to begin ordering 2017 Chevrolet Volts in December, just a few months after states with the largest initial demand.

2016 Chevrolet Volt Rolls Out in Limited Markets; 2017 Volt Debuts This Spring | Edmunds.com


They say they are going to add a couple surprises I hope it is 6.6 Kw charging this would be such a good add.
You could charge in just a little over 2 hours. I would love this feature.

Interesting, thanks for the link. I think that advancing technology plays such a significant role in cars and EV types, especially in battery geometries, that we will only benefit from the delay. My guess is that they see a window to an overall better car and they really want it to succeed. Me too! I think GM is really getting this car right and if they do it could really change the way we look at cars. I know the fully electric Leaf with it's 84 mileage range is suffering. I drove the Leaf and it was a big disappointment. When you can drive a hybrid that goes 53 miles on electric and then gives you 42 mpg for the rest of your ride that's hard to beat today.
There are a lot of people (the petro industry for one) that want to see this car fall on its face. I think they are afraid of it but like I've always said it's technology that will dictate the future and the nay sayers' days are numbered.

Rob

Yes I agree with you this car could be a game changer. We really like our and any EV combined with solar power is such a win. The new one is better is so many ways.

We have 42,637 solar powered EV miles and it is just amazing that you can capture the sun energy and drive your car that many miles in a little over two years.

I really think it beats everything out there except Tesla. It beats Tesla in price and range but not fastness and EV range. Tesla car is bigger but they are still so much money.

So far they seem to be winning to EV miles not going down over time. But they water cool the battery. I was not sure if the leafs air cooled simpler approach would be better. But looking at the leafs range that is left over time and a Volts range that is left the Volt is winner at this point.

I still think a Volt setup in a say Honda CRV body would be a huge hit if they can keep the price down.

The Volt got attacked so bad it is still hard for it to get past so many media lies and talk show bad PR.

PB,
It got attacked because big oil is scared to death of it. Here's the thing, a giant like GM can stand up to oil money.
I'm getting more and more people asking me about PV.
I was just at my local rural garage getting my old truck inspected (just missed driving a Volt, darn!) and they constantly talk about my minus several hundred dollar electric bill.
I always get the person who believes the negative hype about alternatives but they don't last long. When I told one woman that the sun shinning on the earth for one hour produces all the energy the planet uses in a year she came back with," Where did you get that info some pro solar panel site?" in a negative voice. I said, "How about the DOE!",. She crawled into her car and drove away!

Next is the payback time question but how do you argue with someone who made a thousand dollars installing a 6.44Kw PV system?

The good thing is that people are starting to change and I'm being asked more and more about PV. I think one of the reasons we're seeing such low fuel prices is that big oil is trying to starve out alternative, good luck with that!

It's so neat that you're driving on the sun, if I did more than 5 or 6k miles a year I'd own a Volt in a heartbeat, I think it's the best option out there.

Rob

What is the generation rate they pay out there in delhi NY?

My contract is good until 2020 or abouts, right now they pay me ~10.7 cents a KWh. I just got a survey from my coop asking members if they would favor a higher rate during the day and lower at night. That would be great for me, I would get more money from my sell power and at night when I pay for power rates would be lower.
In 1220 I think they will pay me what they pay for electricity, not what I pay. I'm planning on doing other things with my power then like setting up a charging station for EV's and heating my house in the winter, my microhydro and wind should be in by then and I'll be making power 24/7.

Rob

I just saw this deal and it is close to what I paid for my first 40 panels. (I was lucky and got free shipping on top of that.:eek:)

"New GigaWatt 255W modules with black frame at only $0.78 per Watt for a limited time. These high performance poly panels look sleek on rooftops and come with a full 25 year warranty. "

it still looks like a good deal to me.

They are Positive power tolerance: guaranteed to produce up to an additional 5W of power.
I like that.

Wow! That's pretty cheap. I was excited when I bought two 240 watt modules for $304 plus $100.00 shipping.
Right now my old pole has 8 x 175 watts = 1400. Back in 2006 I paid over $800 apiece for them. Next year we may see 300 watt modules for these prices. If that happens I'll sell my old modules for 250 or 300 hundred dollars and go with 300 watters, that will bring my system up 1000 watts. We kept reading that PV prices were going to drop, I guess that's happened. The great thing is that now we're starting to see PV so cheap that it's taking a bite out of the fossil fuel industry. I think they know that, between EV's and low PV prices things won't last long for oil. Look at oil prices now, they give us lots of reasons why they are low but they see the world going to alternatives, suddenly they are no longer a monopoly! My coop is talking about going 100% alternatives. In order to compete energy suppliers have to employ alternatives now.


Did you see my post about NY?


http://ecorenovator.org/forum/solar-...s-pv-anti.html

Rob

This is correct but people are often confused by tax liability Vs tax owed.

The EV non-refundable tax credit applies to the first $7500 of tax liability. If your liability is less than $7500, the tax credit will zero the amount.

Tax_owed = Tax_liability - tax_payed.

I paid $161 230 watt panel’s free shipping 40 panels
I paid $177 a panel for my 240 watt panels. 14 panels
That is great news for your state!

I am glad I installed solar when I did the prices were right.
I do wish I had power CO. rebate like you did.

Hi,

How did you figure your payback ? My arithmetic says faster but I may be off in my assumptions how much the panels are generating.

Addendum: Second thought -- it makes sense at 1.6 kWh/watt*year since your panels are not at optimal tilt. Still -- fantastic!

Right, I'm retired so it's basically meaningless for me. If it wasn't I'd buy an EV tomorrow.

Rob

If you buy used the prices are decreased by this amount with extra depreciation.
If you lease the leasing company gets this money and they discount your payment to reflect it.
That all being said I wish it was a rebate and not a credit.

I'm looking into used Volts now, I think once the 2016's hit the road I'll get a really good deal. I'd like to get a 2014 or a 2015, I should be able to get one coming off lease, maybe next spring.

Rob

I'm sure you know your tax situation well, but being retired does not necessarily mean no tax liability. Even SS is taxed above a threshold amount.

I'm in your situation. No tax liability to take advantage of the tax credit. Even though I work and am paid quite well, most of my income is sent to retirement savings so the end result is the same.

The follow-up comment though is exactly right: a used car should pass most of the credit on to the secondary buyer.

ELGo,
Thanks but for the last several years I have paid little to no tax. Things might change, I'm doing more magazine articles now and will be starting to sell circuit boards again. I'm just rebuilding my web site:

www.dsgnspec.com

Rob

all you guys with your fancy charts. I had to try it. So after some labourious lamenting of libre office calc. I get a total of 317,120 watts over the last 82 days. Ignore the 0 watts day. I loaded new firmware for my controllers that day and it left me with an extra day at 0 watts.

I'm off grid. So the chart outlines the power I created and used. The days I run the dishwasher are pretty easy to spot. ;)

http://creektreat.ca/wp-content/uplo...utput2015a.jpg

and also for comparison: In the spring of 2011 I paid $500 each for 4 250 watt mono panels (red: Panel set A). I then bought 2 more at $425 ea. I later found 2 more at $200 each (Blue: Panel set B). All the panels were used.

I run two 1kw arrays. One fixed (B) at 60 degrees. And the other is adjustable (A). Here I set 30 summer; 45 (my latitude) spring/fall; 60 winter. It makes quite a difference to the power output. Something not fully reflected in the stats as, of course, I could be making considerably more power if I had a place to put it.

That's about 1.4 Mwh a year. Pretty good!

Rob

thx. I'm over 3 megawatts now. Only took me 5 years. ha ha ha.

still. 3.8kw/day sure makes off grid easier. Can't wait to get the new battery pack.