Comments on: Off Topic — One year on solar power

By: Bill Harrer

Bill Harrer — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 22:36:08 +0000

It was really good to see how someone put real information into an easy to understand analysis. Have you thought about comparing how your system did compared to what your solar company estimated? Also, there are several good companies out there that have web monitoring so you don’t have to look at the LED screen. SMA America has a demo on their site.

Good luck and look forward to your further analysis.

Bill

By: Vikram Janardhan

Vikram Janardhan — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 00:32:57 +0000

John,

Terrific post! This post is one of the best articles I have read on PV payoff’s.

- Vikram

By: john

john — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:44:56 +0000

Thanks for the comment, Mark — I held off on replying until today, because I am in the process of refinancing my house, and I knew an appraisal would be part of that process. The appraiser came to my house today, so I pointed out the PV system to him and asked specifically how he treated them. As I thought, he said they do indeed give credit for PV systems in the value of the home; they have a “blue book” calculation they use, based on size and age of the system. So at least some local appraisers have moved beyond the “caveman” mentality.

By: Mark Schwab

Mark Schwab — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 19:45:12 +0000

Lots of great information on a “real life” solar project. There really isn’t all that much actual case study info regarding PV solar, so it is especially helpful. One comment on appraised value though-I have noticed that all the companies cite the same study by the Journal of Appraisers, where they claim a 20 to 1 increased home value for every energy dollar saved . After some research, I have yet to find an appraiser who puts much,if any value on a solar system.Speaking of a “caveman mentality”, they are stuck in the “comparable value” mode-if your neighbor doesn’t have it (solar) than yours isn’t worth much-nothing to compare it to.This hopefully will change over time, but I wouldn’t recommend installing a system if you are not staying in your home for at least 10 years.

By: john

john — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 23:08:13 +0000

Thanks Craig.
I looked at the lifecycle cost calculation page you suggested, and yeah, I could put in guesses for all those figures, then put in comparable guesses for a scenario where I just keep buying all my electricity from PG&E — but the uncertainty of many of these variables is quite high, so I don’t know how much I’d believe the results. Might try it for grins though — stay tuned.

By: Craig Peters

Craig Peters — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 22:16:34 +0000

Great analysis! Thanks! Have you thought about continuing this into a total life cycle cost analysis?
http://photovoltaics.sandia.gov/docs/LCcost.htm