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  • Solar leasing

    From Jikey@9:91/30 to All on Sun Aug 6 08:08:29 2017

    People in my area seem to be going crazy with solar leasing these days. We enquired about it but it would have been around $280 a month, plus the cost
    of electricity overage costs. We were looking at around 125% of requirements but it seems more like we either give the money to the solar leasing company, or give it to the electric company. Total savings for the year would have
    been around $300. We are pretty conservative with electricity.

    So overall, I'm not sure what the attraction is. Buying for a house this
    size (3500sqf) would be in the region of $40-50k so that's not really in our ball park right now.

    On top of the monthly rate, a 20 year contract, stuck with the same panels
    for 20 years, regardless of advancements in technology, no real ability to break a contract in Arizona (so I've heard), plus if the house is sold, the
    new buyer needs to assume the contract.

    Is it really worth it, am I missing something? Or are people just following the herd mentality and convincing themselves it's a great thing?

    Would appreciate any/all opinions..

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  • From Zero Reader@9:91/18 to Jikey on Sun Aug 6 14:06:25 2017
    On 08/06/17, Jikey said the following...

    Is it really worth it, am I missing something? Or are people just following the herd mentality and convincing themselves it's a great
    thing?

    I'm curious about the same thing because many houses in my neighborhood have installed panels recently. These are small houses, in some cases, with very
    few panels on the roof. I haven't done the math, nor do I have the knowledge
    to properly calculate something like that, but the whole thing seems a bit scammy.

    Maybe it's not a scam, but it seems like the price of the install, the recurring fees, the long ramp-up to savings, just wouldn't be worth the
    hassle for a lot of these folks.

    I'd be much more interested in doing some sort of battery system as a backup
    in case of a power loss. Maybe these folks are?

    Good questions you bring up. I've been wondering a lot about it myself as I
    go on walks around the neighborhood and see more and more houses with solar panels.

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  • From Orbitman@9:91/8 to Zero Reader on Sun Aug 6 19:57:24 2017
    I've been looking at a solar panel kit to get familiar with how it all works. My plan is to get a 200 hundred watt panel kit (w/charge controller and 1500 watt inverter) and add a couple of batteries to power the storage shed/shop.

    For what I do in the shed/shop, that will be more than enough. I'm one of
    those "get more than you need" guys so I'll have enough and a little extra in case I need it. I could certainly power the ham station with it.

    Sure I could pull a 120v line down there and power it up like that, BUT I wouldn't learn anything or get the satisfaction of doing it myself and seeing my effort actually work.

    A friend of mine has a 400 watt set up at his house and he runs a few lights (LED bulbs), the tv (big screen) and the satellite receiver with no trouble.
    He has two batteries that power a pure sine wave inverter.

    In the event of a SHTF situation, I'll have another source of aux power to go along with my 5700 watt generator.

    Reminder, if you have a generator, make sure it's in good service and try to run it (with a load) at least once every couple of months or more.

    Thanks!
    Orbitman (Allen)
    telnet://orbitbbs.ddns.net:7210
    Opp, Alabama, USA

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  • From poindexter FORTRAN@9:91/4 to Orbitman on Mon Aug 7 08:53:30 2017
    Re: Re: Solar leasing
    By: Orbitman to Zero Reader on Sun Aug 06 2017 07:57 pm

    In the event of a SHTF situation, I'll have another source of aux power to go along with my 5700 watt generator.

    Reminder, if you have a generator, make sure it's in good service and try to run it (with a load) at least once every couple of months or more.

    Thanks for the reminder. My mother moved into a house with a generator tied into the house wiring, it needs to be run out to make sure all is well.
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  • From Orbitman@9:91/8 to poindexter FORTRAN on Tue Aug 8 06:52:14 2017
    On 08/07/17, poindexter FORTRAN said the following...

    Re: Re: Solar leasing
    By: Orbitman to Zero Reader on Sun Aug 06 2017 07:57 pm

    In the event of a SHTF situation, I'll have another source of aux powe go along with my 5700 watt generator.

    Reminder, if you have a generator, make sure it's in good service and to run it (with a load) at least once every couple of months or more.

    Thanks for the reminder. My mother moved into a house with a generator tied into the house wiring, it needs to be run out to make sure all is well.

    No problem. I'm on vacation all next week (8/14-18) and servicing the
    generator is on my list....along with a few other things.

    Thanks!
    Orbitman (Allen)
    telnet://orbitbbs.ddns.net:7210
    Opp, Alabama, USA

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