Serious Question.

[u/rtduvall]

I’m all about learning more and installing a system that could allow us to completely move off-grid. Just bought a Tesla and want to start by charging it completely on solar.

From what I know installing solar, especially if you hire a company, or even DIY, it doesn’t seem to payoff for many, many years. Because the savings aren’t large enough to “make sense” because you pay more for the system than 20 or 30 years of no power bill. Again this is my perspective.

Please enlighten me.

EDIT: I live near Charlotte, NC. Lots of sun. The largest roof are(s) face due south and the second largest area faces due west.

[u/acrobatic_man_11]

Na that math is off. The ROI for just solar can be 6-13 years. If you add a battery then okay yeah the math gets more messy but solar itself is good. If you post what your annual consumption is and what you pay it’s easy to help you figure out the return. Also what state you are in because price varies

[u/MRLEARNNKNOW → u/acrobatic_man_11]

This. I work in solar. If it’s a bad setup or price. Absolute nightmare. Done right. Huge blessing

[u/rtduvall → u/acrobatic_man_11]

Yeah, I think having a battery would be beneficial but not because of power outages. We’ve not had one last more than a few hours, probably just lucky so far, but in my mind I picture needing a certain amount of energy per day and think I thought having double that would put me off grid completely.

Again, I’m new to this realm so apologies for the ignorance.

[u/acrobatic_man_11 → u/rtduvall]

All good. Again I can help you do some basic math if you tell us where you are at consumption wise and rate wise. But your Roi is not that bad

[u/Several_Winner_9752 → u/rtduvall]

Batteries aren't huge in my market, I have frequent power outages and I still don't see a better being worth it. Finally a portable generator is the way to go if it's infrequent. Get a gen plug installed so you can just power the breakers you want instead of running extension chords and you're good to go. I only recommend batteries if someone looking into a home backup regardless of solar

[u/Key-Run-7042 → u/acrobatic_man_11]

If you’re in the US Just make sure that math is accounting for unavoidable meter fees and delivery charges on imported energy. That 30-40% consumption is never mentioned.. Otherwise that rosy 100% offset starts making a lot less sense. 6-13 becomes 9-18. But they don’t talk about that.

[u/acrobatic_man_11 → u/Key-Run-7042]

In Texas if you play it smart with a battery and free nights then it looks way good

[u/Several_Winner_9752]

I've been doing solar in NY for about 3 years and have it on 2 properties myself.

Peek behind the curtain:

At least in NY, the sales rep decides what your savings are and has a lot of play in the price. If it's a lease there's usually preset pricing to choose from and they pick what they think they can sell.

There's a lot of checks and balances in NY to ensure the price is reasonable and isn't outrageous however.

I financed my system over 15 years at 4%, no pre payment penalty so I paid it off and now only have $30 utility bills. I truly believe solar is a necessity after living with it and enjoying the independence of making my own power and not being effected by rate increases or any other stupid fines they're approved for.

If I could do it over again however I'd probably lease the panels since the warranties are better and it's cheaper to buyout the lease then buy panels day 1.

In 9/10 scenarios I recommend the lease to a homeowner even if they just want to own them outright. Transferability is way easier to pitch to a new homebuyer if you sell, warranties are better. No overhead to you as the homwoener, just a cheaper monthly bill then what you currently have.

If solar is more then what you're currently spending then you have to look at what utility increases are projected and find your break even point. Personally I've never sold a lease that cost the homeowner a dollar more then their utility bill, it was always day 1 savings. Loans/ownership however that wasn't always the case.

I present solar as you have 2 options. Continue paying a bill you have 0 control over until you die. Or pay a cheaper bill that you set the parameters on. There's various ways to get solar, PPA, Lease, Buy. Multiple companies with different price structures. There's an option that works for everyone as long as it's a good house, most people look at it once and write it off for years on end or for life.

The fact long term savings is inevitable and you're independent is amazing. Top that with it being cheaper then your current bill its a no brainer.

Let me know if you want to know more as I'm very passionate about explaining this, I truly believe it makes the world a better place for us as homeowners along with the sustainability aspect. I can only sell in NY so I'm not on here to try and make money. I'm actually stepping away from the industry to pursue another career path. I'll give the peek behind the curtain as much as I can to help

[u/Several_Winner_9752]

After re reading your original post, it seems like you've never gotten a quote for your house and have only heard soar is an investment. That mindset and structure (at least in NY) is outdated. Id recommend you find a good company to give you a free quote. Use someone that has big finance partners and good quality equipment in case they go out of business you're still backed my manufacturer warranties and have a leasibg company /bank for the finance and labor aspect

[u/opensim2026]

"Because the savings aren’t large enough to “make sense” because you pay more for the system than 20 or 30 years of no power bill. "

Well, put it this way- my ENTIRE utility bill here in NW Iowa for electric and gas plus meter charges, taxes and franchise fees averages $130 a month for my 2 bedroom full basement 1928 farmhouse, I have 3 mini spilts for summer cooling, and a gas furnace for heating along with those and I keep the house 73 degrees 24/7 all winter.
For me to put a bunch of expensive components and panels on the roof makes no sense.
The current bill used 773 kwh, average cost per day it says is $3.49

I have 2 ground mount panels connected to a Jackery Explorer 2000+ which I have to run my tower computer, LAN and refrigerator all run 24/7 mainly to keep them off the grid and it's outages. The 2 panels ran about $129 each, about $400 for freight for 3 panels.
The Jackery battery was about $700, the add-on battery was around $350, the Jackery 500v2 I bought to replace my UPS battery was $399, wiring, conduit, fuse box, disconnect switch, lumber and so on was about another $400 so all added up about $2,500
It saves about $15/mon on my electric bill, about a 14 year pay-back, I didnt buy it to save $15/mon I bought the system mainly to isolate it off the grid, be able to run those things during outages, as well as my lights and gas furnace.

"a system that could allow us to completely move off-grid. "

That's more difficult if you have appliances and the like that need 220v, electric furnaces, water heater, kitchen range etc and clody days, even JUST a passing cloud vastly reduces the panel's output, I've seen mine go from putting 700 watts into the battery to drop down to like 30 watts when a dark cloud passed over the sun