JustinChase
New Member
- Joined
- Feb 10, 2022
- Messages
- 3
I know enough about electricity to replace an outlet or switch and not to stick my hand in the breaker panel with the door off, but not much more.
I’m preparing to build a new house and would like to make solar part of that, but have no confidence in my ability to learn enough quickly enough to feel comfortable doing much or any of it myself. However, I’ve been watching YouTube videos on the subject and the ideas an concepts make sense to me enough to consider maybe doing at least part of this work. With that said, I’ve obtained a few quotes from solar installers and the prices seem way higher than I think they should be. I also don’t know if the components they suggest are good, are overkill, redundant, incomplete or anything really.
So, I thought I’d ask here if anyone might want to have a look and give me any feedback as to whether their systems are good, terrible, reasonable or just outright taking advantage of the illiterate.
I really do like the idea of hiring professionals to do some things, and get a warranty for that extra cost, but it’s not worth it to spend 3x for said warranty.
My main goal of solar is to help offset or eliminate my utility bill, but more importantly, to have power through the occasional power outage. I don’t really know how much power this new house would use in a year, so sizing a system is guesswork at this point. I’d also like the ability to charge an EV or 2 with a system, depending on cost to do so. I realize a battery system will be required to handle power outages, and the prices they give for battery systems seem insane, based on what I’ve seen in Will (and others’) videos.
I don’t know if I’d want 24V or 48V, and I also don’t know what these systems are providing. My understanding is that 48V is not considered low voltage, but that a well-designed system will use smaller (and cheaper) cabling and is generally more efficient than 12V or 24V systems.
Anyway, below is the information from a few quotes I’ve received so far.
Quote 1 – 10.36 kW system using (28) Tital Solar SIL-370 NX panels and a SolarEdge SE1000H-USRGM inverter, for a total installed cost of $25,882
Quote 2 – 7.03kW system using (19) Silfab Solar SIL-370 BK BC Series panels and an Enphase Energy IQ7A-72-2-US-240 inverter, for a total installed cost of $20, 598
Quote 3 – 7.04 kW system using (22) REC REC320NP Black panels and an Enphase Energy IQ7PLUS-72-x-US-208 inverter, for a total installed cost of $20,064
All of these prices are before any tax rebates. I’m not sure if I would qualify for these rebates if I did some/all of this myself, and didn’t use a licensed company to do the work.
All companies offer a 25 year labor warranty (for whatever that’s worth). The Tital and silfab panels have a 30 year warranty, the REC offer 25 year output warranty.
With whatever option I choose, I plan to DIY my own battery backup system, unless it's obviously a stupid idea, given my current ignorance of this topic, and feel free to tell me so if that's the case
I’d love any feedback, including places to learn more about this for myself. Thanks in advance for your help!
I’m preparing to build a new house and would like to make solar part of that, but have no confidence in my ability to learn enough quickly enough to feel comfortable doing much or any of it myself. However, I’ve been watching YouTube videos on the subject and the ideas an concepts make sense to me enough to consider maybe doing at least part of this work. With that said, I’ve obtained a few quotes from solar installers and the prices seem way higher than I think they should be. I also don’t know if the components they suggest are good, are overkill, redundant, incomplete or anything really.
So, I thought I’d ask here if anyone might want to have a look and give me any feedback as to whether their systems are good, terrible, reasonable or just outright taking advantage of the illiterate.
I really do like the idea of hiring professionals to do some things, and get a warranty for that extra cost, but it’s not worth it to spend 3x for said warranty.
My main goal of solar is to help offset or eliminate my utility bill, but more importantly, to have power through the occasional power outage. I don’t really know how much power this new house would use in a year, so sizing a system is guesswork at this point. I’d also like the ability to charge an EV or 2 with a system, depending on cost to do so. I realize a battery system will be required to handle power outages, and the prices they give for battery systems seem insane, based on what I’ve seen in Will (and others’) videos.
I don’t know if I’d want 24V or 48V, and I also don’t know what these systems are providing. My understanding is that 48V is not considered low voltage, but that a well-designed system will use smaller (and cheaper) cabling and is generally more efficient than 12V or 24V systems.
Anyway, below is the information from a few quotes I’ve received so far.
Quote 1 – 10.36 kW system using (28) Tital Solar SIL-370 NX panels and a SolarEdge SE1000H-USRGM inverter, for a total installed cost of $25,882
Quote 2 – 7.03kW system using (19) Silfab Solar SIL-370 BK BC Series panels and an Enphase Energy IQ7A-72-2-US-240 inverter, for a total installed cost of $20, 598
Quote 3 – 7.04 kW system using (22) REC REC320NP Black panels and an Enphase Energy IQ7PLUS-72-x-US-208 inverter, for a total installed cost of $20,064
All of these prices are before any tax rebates. I’m not sure if I would qualify for these rebates if I did some/all of this myself, and didn’t use a licensed company to do the work.
All companies offer a 25 year labor warranty (for whatever that’s worth). The Tital and silfab panels have a 30 year warranty, the REC offer 25 year output warranty.
With whatever option I choose, I plan to DIY my own battery backup system, unless it's obviously a stupid idea, given my current ignorance of this topic, and feel free to tell me so if that's the case
I’d love any feedback, including places to learn more about this for myself. Thanks in advance for your help!