Solar energy

[Nicolet]

Does anyone have solar panels on their home, and if so, can you share your thoughts on how effective or money saving (or not) they have been? Also, what company would you recommend to do the installation?
I'm sure I'll have a whole lot of other questions, but this is a start. I've done a little research, but I would trust the horses mouth before a company website.
Thanks!

[rogerdodger]

i think only 2 companies are trustworthy and i used Joule. no one will tell you exactly how much you will generate ... but if you have a very clear south and west facing roof - no obstructions, you should be capable of 5 kwh generation for an average of 6 hrs a day mostly year round. that's probably a max of 900 kwh a month on average.

depending on your provider - you're in Mandeville and may have CLECO - they are the most expensive so you generate the most savings.

don't lease/rent.

don't spend more that $25K on the system because that is the max allowed for tax savings - 50% state and 30% federal so that system will actually coat $5K out of pocket ...

if your kwh cost is .10 - on average you will generate $90 a month electricity. that is a 5 year payout to recoup your $5K investment.

[Nicolet]

It's much worse than that, I have Entergy!

[disilene]

How long though will the panels last without needing maintenance? How well do they retain their peak producing period? As the panels age, do they produce less each year? How much is maintenance and how often is it needed?

[Taylor Sims]

Thanks for the thread I can not wait to read more answers.

[rogerdodger]

according to the company I used, the panels are warrantied for 25 years. no maintenance is required although if is see them getting a little dusty I might get up there with windex LOL. I handled them during the install and the outer panel is very smooth, I can't imagine needing more than a little rain to clean them off.

one of my buddies works for joule and he won't BS me. they generally lose a slight bit of production per year based on the chemistry of the cells. should hold up 90% for 20 years. cell design got a bit of a breakthrough that hit production about 2 years ago so the current generation is good.

2 power designs exist for the panel transmission, individual or group ... meaning each panel has it's own inverter or it's a group inverter. the group inverter is slightly more efficient so if you have a position that has super full sun, that's the way to go. if you gradually hit shade, the individual inverter per panel is the way to go. I gradually hit shade ... so I have individual inverters. each panel is designed for one way or the other basically - some panels for group and some for individual.

obviously, your mileage may very. if someone is in the area and wants to talk about it, PM me and I would have no problem with that. I'm a little technical LOL so perhaps the description may need modification.