Any situation where this is a good idea?

My wife did this, but with some pest control bull***** I was pissed.

Enjoy your year of free weekly sales calls

Not really...

In all likelihood, you'll be somewhere in the 12-15 year timeframe to break even. They will try to sell you on how much you are saving on your electric bill since you can sell power back to the grid. But they leave out whatever your monthly payment is for the equipment.

If you want to do it for other reasons like you like the tech or want some battery backup on the house, by all means, go for it. But just remember you're not saving money despite what they say.

My wife is to nice to say no. She agreed to one of these with the power company (not solar panels). However she told them that I make those decisions so to come back when I was at home. Normally I will close the door in their face while they are still talking however since the kid came back I decided to hear him out.

He talked about how much money it would save me if I switched. He even wrote it out on one of my old bills (I had him date and sign this). His "calculations" had me saving a lot each month so I switched. Well when my first bill came through it was way higher. I called them and since I had proof of what the kid had said they ended up giving me the cheapest deal I have ever had. Of course it ended so they jacked up my rates and I went with a different company.

Moral of the story if they present something that has you saving a bunch have them sign & date it. I know a decent # of people that went with solar panels but I don't know of anyone that have found it beneficial yet (most are 5-8 years into it).

One of my neighbors that has solar had to replace their roof because of hail damage. The roofing company didn't want any part of the panels so they had to call the solar company that originally installed their panels. Their home owners insurance wouldn't cover the cost (the panels weren't damaged, they just needed to be removed & reinstalled). The solar company charged them close to 10k to do this. They were furious but neither the insurance or the solar company would compromise.

If residential solar was legit, they wouldn't be putting up industrial solar farms in west Texas. Stay away.

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If residential solar was legit, they wouldn't be putting up industrial solar farms in west Texas. Stay away.

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federal subsidies result in all kinds of things that don't make economic sense.

sam callahan said:

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If residential solar was legit, they wouldn't be putting up industrial solar farms in west Texas. Stay away.

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federal subsidies result in all kinds of things that don't make economic sense.

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Amen!

Agthatbuilds said:

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Enjoy your year of free weekly sales calls

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and your 40 subscriptions to Vibe

Cramp00 said:

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Any situation where this is a good idea?

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If you're living off generators and don't want to pay $60k per mile to have a transmission line installed, solar was made for you.

If you want to show your neighbors how green you are, go buy a Tesla.

If you're trying to save on power, add another 12 inches of insulation in your attic, caulk your windows, and upgrade your air conditioner.

Cramp00 said:

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Any situation where this is a good idea?

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If they try to throw 'green' energy costs extra at you, just know that Gexa has a 100% renewable plan for 8.9 cents (total) per kwh.

There is no way you are coming out ahead by installing your own solar.

There is a case to be made at the community level. But individually? Doesn't work out.

I'm going to preface by saying I agree with the overwhelming majority on this thread, you won't come out ahead with solar. I don't have solar plans and have absolutely no plans to get them.

However, when these threads pop up we're always talking in terms of current energy rates. It is possible that energy comes from far different sources in 10 years. It's also possible that energy rates skyrocket because of that. If this does happen I'd imagine the price of getting solar panels will also increase because of demand.

I definitely don't know enough to speculate and install solar on this premise, but it's entirely possible that in 10 years we'll be looking back at those who had solar panels installed and kicking ourselves for not doing the same.

htxag09 said:

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I'm going to preface by saying I agree with the overwhelming majority on this thread, you won't come out ahead with solar. I don't have solar plans and have absolutely no plans to get them.

However, when these threads pop up we're always talking in terms of current energy rates. It is possible that energy comes from far different sources in 10 years. It's also possible that energy rates skyrocket because of that. If this does happen I'd imagine the price of getting solar panels will also increase because of demand.

I definitely don't know enough to speculate and install solar on this premise, but it's entirely possible that in 10 years we'll be looking back at those who had solar panels installed and kicking ourselves for not doing the same.

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Probably not because 10 years from now solar will be cheaper and several times more efficient than current panels. Just look at how far it has advanced over the last 10 years.

Sure, but it's still way more expensive than oil, coal, etc. Look at how much restrictions and public opinion on oil have changed the last 10 years, could just as easily continue down that road or even increase the next 10.

I'm not saying it'll happen. Also not saying it's the only aspect of this at play. Simply pointing out there are a lot of variables and a lot of them are heated topics so this could play out a multitude of ways.

I have a friend that works for a large residential solar company who straight up told me it makes zero economic sense here in Texas for regular residential consumer. If you are in high cost power areas in other parts of the country or world, lets dance, but not here and not now. Also as mentioned in a previous post the technology will be changing rapidly on this. Throw in issues with hail damage, moving and transferring to a new owner, repairs, insurance that he all mentioned "depend on whether it is a sale, lease and the structure and coverages within" I have better things to deal with. Not for me.

I would be interested in someone with a leasing experience. Haven't know/talked to anyone about it. IIRC they update from time to time.
We're considering doing it since we have a lot of roof space. We think it would be choice to not have electric bills when we're old.

Dr.Rumack said:

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I would be interested in someone with a leasing experience. Haven't know/talked to anyone about it. IIRC they update from time to time.
We're considering doing it since we have a lot of roof space. We think it would be choice to not have electric bills when we're old.

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But you still have a monthly payment for leasing the panels. Nothing is free in this world.

lb3 said:

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If you're trying to save on power, add another 12 inches of insulation in your attic, caulk your windows, and upgrade your air conditioner.

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Or just pay Energy Ogre or another broker ten bucks a month to find cut rate electricity for you.

My wife answered the door 1 time in our current house, like 7 years ago, and got stuck talking to a lady about Jesus for 30 minutes, and she hasn't answered it since.. luckily for me. I hate door to door people. I've legit seen them walk up with our door open, screen door shut, and just waive at them from my recliner and shake my head no lol.

double aught said:

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lb3 said:

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If you're trying to save on power, add another 12 inches of insulation in your attic, caulk your windows, and upgrade your air conditioner.

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Or just pay Energy Ogre or another broker ten bucks a month to find cut rate electricity for you.

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That's great if you're in a deregulated area. If you're served by a co-op or a muni, that doesn't help you much.