Hi,
I'm new to this forum and right now in a planning phase for an on-roof 10 kw system. I have few questions -
1. My daily consumption is 32 kwh with peak sunhours of 4-4.5 hrs; I'm getting the size of the system as 9.6 kw (lower end of the sunhours are taken into account with the system efficiency factor of 20% i.e. 32/4 times 1.2). Are my calculations ok?
2. For an immediate and better ROI, I'm considering to divide the project into 3 phases -
Phase 1 - Grid tied system. I would prefer to put one inverter to keep the cost down for now, unless I can get an inverter with a comparable cost to handle 9600w.
Phase 2 - Add Battery backup (off-grid option) and add more panels. Potentially add the second inverter unless Phase 1 already has a bigger invertor.
Phase 3 - Continue to add battereis until self sufficient (very long term and depends on the results of Phase 1 and Phase 2).
Can somebody please recommend the inverter that can fit into this phased approach? I think I need a hybrid inverter for this approach rathan than just a tie-down or a off-grid invertor.
3. Approximate material cost for the Phase 1 is coming between 6K-8K (including permits etc). Can somebody share your experience how much labor should cost for the similar size of the system? I'm very comfortable with Electric overall but I want to avoid hooking up the panels on the top of the roof if possible and also I will hire a master electrician (for couple of hours) after the basic setup of invertor etc is finshed in the basement.
4. Has anybody seen the panels installed on roof dormers? According to the shade report, I have more sunlight on the roof dormers which means if I install 4-5 panels on each dormer than the overall need for the panels will reduce to almost half and therefore it will reduce the size of the system to 6.5 kw. Please see attached picture for more information.
Looking forward for your response. Please know that I'm still novice in the Solar area so please go easy on me if I'm asking anything unreasonable or if it does not make sense. Thank you!
EmVee
I'm new to this forum and right now in a planning phase for an on-roof 10 kw system. I have few questions -
1. My daily consumption is 32 kwh with peak sunhours of 4-4.5 hrs; I'm getting the size of the system as 9.6 kw (lower end of the sunhours are taken into account with the system efficiency factor of 20% i.e. 32/4 times 1.2). Are my calculations ok?
2. For an immediate and better ROI, I'm considering to divide the project into 3 phases -
Phase 1 - Grid tied system. I would prefer to put one inverter to keep the cost down for now, unless I can get an inverter with a comparable cost to handle 9600w.
Phase 2 - Add Battery backup (off-grid option) and add more panels. Potentially add the second inverter unless Phase 1 already has a bigger invertor.
Phase 3 - Continue to add battereis until self sufficient (very long term and depends on the results of Phase 1 and Phase 2).
Can somebody please recommend the inverter that can fit into this phased approach? I think I need a hybrid inverter for this approach rathan than just a tie-down or a off-grid invertor.
3. Approximate material cost for the Phase 1 is coming between 6K-8K (including permits etc). Can somebody share your experience how much labor should cost for the similar size of the system? I'm very comfortable with Electric overall but I want to avoid hooking up the panels on the top of the roof if possible and also I will hire a master electrician (for couple of hours) after the basic setup of invertor etc is finshed in the basement.
4. Has anybody seen the panels installed on roof dormers? According to the shade report, I have more sunlight on the roof dormers which means if I install 4-5 panels on each dormer than the overall need for the panels will reduce to almost half and therefore it will reduce the size of the system to 6.5 kw. Please see attached picture for more information.
Looking forward for your response. Please know that I'm still novice in the Solar area so please go easy on me if I'm asking anything unreasonable or if it does not make sense. Thank you!
EmVee
