I went to a buddy’s new house for Memorial Day. I noticed he had a lot of solar panels, which does interest me. He was very evasive about answering the cost. He had no problem telling me his last electric bill was 25 dollars.

What’s the startup cost for a solar home system.

How many square feet?

Tens of thousands of dollars. My sister got solar panels. Her monthly payments on the panels are about what her electricity bill used to be. But, she doesn't have an electric bill anymore. If I remember correctly, in 15 years they will own the panels and that's when it will really pay off.

Brothers was 37k last month, my problem is by the time the craps paid off and you might actually get some cheaper electricity the craps going to need to be replaced.

I would have full solar panels if we were younger. Just can't see electricity getting any cheaper in the future. Still pondering a small setup though.

You are basically pre-paying your electric bill for X number of years AND taking on the risk of running your own electricity generating system. When things break (they always do) you will be the one repairing your system. The real question is how long will it last before it breaks/wears out versus how long will it take to pay for itself.

How do those panels hold up to a hail storm dropping at least quarter sized pellets?
And maybe an insurance agent could answer the question “ How much would this add to my annual homeowners premium?”

My thoughts exactly, plus with them on a composition ( shingle) roof which I see many installed on, what do you do when you have to reshingle the roof???? I have a metal roof, but worry about leaks where they mount the panels to a roof. Screws are going to leak and cause issues eventually……. Plus we all know, living in Texas, we do get some big hail!!!!

I think there is a government program for them. I always see them in the poorest neighborhoods.

Read through this post.
https://texashuntingforum.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/7715187#Post7715187

Unless they are hail proof, I couldn't afford them. We built in 1994 and as of this spring we are on our 4th roof due to hail damage. The last roof was only 4 years old and beat to heck, I don't like the odds of solar panels living thru a good storm.

He has a pretty big house. Probably 4500 sq ft. Plus large pool.

Will you outlivethe cost savings?

Are you moving?

Does insurance cover it and any holes you poke in the roof?

Hoa?

Ordinance?

I didn’t figure it was 35k. I figured maybe 15 grand.

You sure are full of bad ideas today lol.

It’s probably not economically viable. If you ran some true cost/benefit analysis it might be a wash over time. But it depends on the long term volatility of energy prices.

He really needs to evaluate any tax benefits.

Solar panels are coming down in price, batteries are going up. The really nice LiFePO4 batteries are still painfully expensive but they are still the best overall longterm option. You need a lot more batteries than you think you would. I think it makes more sense for an RV or some other small scale use now than a house.

I know. Maybe I should start a gun control poll. lol

I would not touch PV systems. The cost is too high and if you finance it the system is not real property. They tell they increase your value by 40% but they do not. You are south so it is more common but their claims are sky high on value increase to what actual increase is. The tax thing is the only way this makes since. JMHO

What is the percentage of increase?

BIL makes some great points/questions.

Here’s what I will tell it will protect you from…skyrocketing energy costs because this (or any in the future) administration goes green and completely screws up the energy costs due to their dumbass policies. Hard to put a price on that potential because it will follow the stupidity level of the policy.

I bought solar panels last year and will run a analysis after a year. The best play is to get enough panels to produce what you consume. Your energy programs are limited. Green Mountain energy pays dollar for dollar if you consume enough. TXU for example charges 13.9 ct a kw you use and pays 10.9 ct fir what you produce. I keep my house at 66 degrees and it has been great April and May. In the wintertime you dont produce much due to shorter days and cloud cover. If yiu are going to live in your home forever it is a good play. If you have the money to pay cash you can negotiate on cost. Get the good panels if you do it. I dont remember the name but easily googleAble. As Beez says they will not improve the value of your house much.

Good thread. I've been pondering this myself. No go for me.

I'm kicking around a whole house generator, upgrade propane size, etc.

They robbed a coworker of mine in my opinion. He got 3000 sqft of panels for $100,000 financed. They told him he would get a tax credit for $25,000 the first year. Turns out that’s only kinda true. The tax credit is limited to your tax debt, which for him was $16,xxx leaving him a net cost of $84,000. He financed for 20 years and it has a 20 year warranty. Here’s the worst part, he is 61 years old. Door to door salesman.

Worse is he still has an $80-90 electric bill.

Walking salesmen been here twice in a week trying to sell. I was here the second time. They won't be back.

I keep waiting for first hand accounts of folks that have been through roof replacements, particularly under insurance claims.

I've run the numbers myself a couple of times and it does not make sense on dollars alone. Maybe if you just wanted to be greener, but I think there are long term expenses that are not being disclosed.

Having been over field operations with over 25,000 small panels, operating gas flow computers, cleaning is a thing, especially in dry climates. Clouding of the surface due to wind blown sand is an issue in areas.