Solar Panels in 2020

The "temporarily free" download has me wondering who has looked at solar panels in the more modern climate (post-2017 tariffs and technological changes).  If anyone is in Washington State even better!

I live in town, not going off-grid anytime before my 2nd kid graduates in 5 years and likely not on this property.  But making steps to becoming self-sufficient for years now.

I have had two solar panel quotes done - both have me installing 8+ kW systems costing $20K+ and having the system "break even" in 17 years (You know, after ALL my kids are out of the house.)  I look at the amount of money they want me to invest and cringe, because in 17 years that money would have more than doubled in stocks and raising four kids right now takes a lot of time and money. . . but I digress.  

I am wondering if I can actually build Ben Peterson's 2kW system for around $5000 and pay to have it "plugged in" to my house somehow.  I was told it is "not possible to build a shed for panels" and that they'd have to go onto my roof (which I can't imagine it being okay for the 17 years it will take to recoup the investment.)  

Might I actually be in a place where it doesn't make sense to get solar panels?

That quote seems really high.  We just installed a big system right before Christmas and it's paying for itself already.  Our "break even" is immediate: we're paying less a month now than we were before when we were hooked to the grid (in California, is Edison).

The entire system will be paid for, free and clear, in 8 years, after which we'll have free power for as long as the system lives -- and they give it a 30 year warranty.  

Perhaps this is because power is so expensive in California, but your quote seems really out of line.  We went with Vivant Solar, and I'd go with them again in a heartbeat.  We saved money from the first day it was hooked up.

I'm not sure what you can build that system for - but I'll point out in my recent research for a free-standing solar system that the solar panels are relatively inexpensive but the ancillaries - inverters, racking, chargers, etc - are really pricey.  There's also definitely a large scale effect - and so an 8kw system is still on the low end and thus relatively expensive.

In terms of the quote, it may need to be adjusted to consider state and federal incentives (I think those have gone away...) and possibly from your electric provider.  That said, that still seems really steep.

A few things to consider as you navigate this project:
1) the shed thing - installers (and assorted regulators?) may insist that the panels are installed on permanent and/or "inspected/approved" buildings.  You can see the logic in this - if someone else is providing some funds they want to know that the system is installed on something that will actually be there for 15+ years and isn't easily moved away.

2) The grid-tie portion is just plain expensive.  It involves boat loads of inspections, fancier equipment and skilled electrician time.

3) I found - and have heard from others - that solar install companies are expensive, and largely exist as sales & marketing organizations.  Getting an electrician directly can save big $$.  My electrician is regularly sub-contracting to the big solar names.  I get all of his expertise without the overhead, and I am directly employing a person in town.

Edit: A Benji points out, the ancillaries for an off-grid system are even more complicated and expensive than a grid-tie.  I didn't make the point well - that solar panels have gotten really cheap, but the extras make it really costly - so a $5k system (before the shed) is $1500 for the panels and $3500 for the parts that actually make it work.

How much energy do you use per month or per day?
Lets go with 900kWH per month and 30kWH per day.
So you need to generate 30kWH per day aka 8kW x 4Hr = 32KWH.

Currently I only use 4KWH per day so I could survive off a 1KW solar panel array vs the 8KW that you need. So conservation is a big part of the picture.

The reason why your 8KW array cant fit on a 200sqft shed is because each panel is around 6ft by 3ft, so you could only fit 10 panels on such a roof aka 1.5KW vs the 8KW(32 panels) that you need.


Another thing to consider is the cost for grid-tied vs off-grid for a 8KW system
Grid-Tied, charge controller + inverter only cost $3,000 and no battery cost
Off-Grid, charge controller + inverter cost $13,000 and additional battery cost

I am going to assume that the $20,000 price tag is for the cheaper 8KW grid tied setup.
You can get all the material delivered to your house for just $11,000, shipping & electrical design for a permit included
https://www.wholesalesolar.com/1892014/wholesale-solar/complete-systems/solar-sky-8.28-kw-grid-tied-solar-system-with-sma-and-24x-astronergy-solar-345-panels
There will still be labor, financing cost and tax credits to consider.

As for a $5,000 system off grid system
$1500 Solar Panel 2000W and 8KWH/day https://www.wholesalesolar.com/1977433/astronergy-solar/solar-panels/astronergy-chsm6612p-hv-345-silver-poly-solar-panel
$350 Charge Controller 50A https://www.wholesalesolar.com/2940165/victron-energy/charge-controllers/victron-energy-smartsolar-mppt-100-50-charge-controller
$2000 Battery 4000W https://www.batteryspace.com/lifepo4-rechargeable-battery-12-8v-100ah-1269-7wh-100a-rate-with-bluetooth-option---un38-3-passed.aspx
$1100 Inverter 4000W  https://www.wholesalesolar.com/2923536/cotek/inverters/cotek-sp4000-148-inverter
Total Cost = $4950

Brianna,

I am not certain where you live, but a cloudier place than LA might not get you as much bang for your buck.  Years ago I got a similar quote and was extremely put off--$30k to replace half the load, with a payoff time in 25 years!  Prices have come down on the panels themselves, but Eliot makes some great points--all the ancillary equipment does add up.  Also, if you go grid-tie, there is some extra costs involves, but for very good reason.  Solar panels can't ever turn off unless they are in a very dark situation (nighttime).  Even on cloudy days, they still produce surprisingly high voltage.  If this is a grid tie system and there is a power outage, linemen need to be able to reliably disconnect your system from the larger grid.  Otherwise, the lineman could turn off one of the main breakers (to a neighborhood or local region, not to your house specifically) and this would normally kill power to the line he has to work on.  But if one had solar panels still generating electricity and back-feeding power to the grid, he could get a nasty, potentially fatal jolt of electricity.

On a parallel note, some people wire a gasoline generator into their house by making a cord with 2 male ends, turning off the main breaker to the house, and plugging the generator into a convenient wall outlet.  This is illegal.  Should that homeowner flip the breaker back on while the generator is still running, he could kill a lineman working on a broken line that was dead just a minute ago and suddenly and without warning turned live.  The same principle applies to solar power.

My point being that there is a lot more to solar systems than solar panels, and much of that is still expensive.  There is a lot of equipment that is easy to overlook.  I think Eliot pointed these issues out very well.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news,

Eric

Just adding to Eric's comments about grid-tie and what happens in a power outage...

The standard for solar grid-tie requires that the system always sense line voltage - without it they shut down. When the power comes back on there's a 5 minute wait before they can send power to the grid.

In case of a power outage, my inverters have a dedicated outlet that the solar output can be sent to.

So ... expensive.

Also, I don't think there is any code reason you can't mount the panels on anything you want and still grid-tie.  That's a restriction the installer has - perhaps to normalize the type of install or to please funders.  One company wouldn't install on my barn b/c it was an ag building and not inspected.  Another wouldn't install because I had a corrugated  (not standing seam) roof.  My electrician's response - "What's their problem?  Code allows it"  So try an electrician and see what happens...