50ShadesOfDirt
Solar Enthusiast
- Joined
- Jan 8, 2021
- Messages
- 437
In the houston, tx area, there are two kinds of house foundations ... those that have cracked and need repair, and those that haven't cracked yet, but will. Not much else in-between, and lots of very heroic efforts to get to one or the other of these two states of being.
Solar, from house wiring & grounding all the way to the final actual solar components ... the entire system, will end up being in one of two states, either working but will fail, or not working and needing repair.
Initial installation, changes, expansion, new technology, backups/spares, etc. You'll end up with a "system" consisting of many pieces. You might even get it to the point where it's all seemingly working, and you attempt to call it "done".
But, it's now just in one of those two states:
- It's finally working, and it's sometimes quite the journey to get to "now it's working"; horror stories abound about getting into this state, or
- it's working but going to fail (in ways you just can't imagine); horror stories abound here as well, about how you were here and happy, and then ...
Those are the only two possible states ... everyone has different stories about the state their's is in, or about the time in between these two states, but we all end up at one of those two states ... and none of us get to stay there "forever". I see plenty of "heroic" efforts to remain in the good state of being, and I think these efforts are absolutely required.
Multiple vendors, myriads of products, warranties/quality, installations, old tech vs new tech, sales/marketing, local conditions ... it all goes into the many variables that say how long *your* installation will remain working, and nobody can predict them all.
So, I think what you really want is to at least *know* all the pieces involved, and to have "backups to the backups" ... when something fails, as inevitably it will and in a way that you never would have imagined, you can quickly work around it and get back into the good state. Or, you want to hand off the responsibility to someone who not only will install it for you, but will maintain it for you ... this is a hard one, because everyone wants to make their money and move on. There is no one who will do this for you, even if they start off saying they will, and/or sell you something saying they will.
Ultimately, I think we all have to get to the point where:
- we know how to do it all
- we have backups to the backups
If you're on-grid, there's an army of folks & systems/services trying to keep it together for you (and we see every day how that goes). If you're off-grid, that army is no longer there. It's incredibly possible these days to get to off-grid, but you have to simulate the functions of that army & systems/services if you want to *remain* there ... pure DIY.
We haven't even discussed choices and trade-offs, as everyone does these differently. Which is why you'll want at minimum two sources of power: solar, and grid (or grid-like) ... along with all the backups you care about implementing, and why you would or wouldn't want to do them (more choices, trade-offs).
I love forums ... just when I think I know it all, someone comes along with their story and shows me the horror, 'er, error of my ways. Take any story on this forum ... pick it apart (in a non-biased and analytical fashion). You'll see that the foundation is cracked, or going to crack, and you'll see a bunch of heroic efforts to be in one state, or get out of the other one.
Good luck on your journey ... to one of the two states of solar "being". I've enjoyed my journey to being off-grid, and I'll do everything in my power to remain there!
Bonus poll:
1. my (off-grid or other) system is finished
2. it will never break
3. I never have to touch it
4. none of the above
5. all of the above
(6. an EMP is imminent, and I'll no longer have to deal with this stuff)
Solar, from house wiring & grounding all the way to the final actual solar components ... the entire system, will end up being in one of two states, either working but will fail, or not working and needing repair.
Initial installation, changes, expansion, new technology, backups/spares, etc. You'll end up with a "system" consisting of many pieces. You might even get it to the point where it's all seemingly working, and you attempt to call it "done".
But, it's now just in one of those two states:
- It's finally working, and it's sometimes quite the journey to get to "now it's working"; horror stories abound about getting into this state, or
- it's working but going to fail (in ways you just can't imagine); horror stories abound here as well, about how you were here and happy, and then ...
Those are the only two possible states ... everyone has different stories about the state their's is in, or about the time in between these two states, but we all end up at one of those two states ... and none of us get to stay there "forever". I see plenty of "heroic" efforts to remain in the good state of being, and I think these efforts are absolutely required.
Multiple vendors, myriads of products, warranties/quality, installations, old tech vs new tech, sales/marketing, local conditions ... it all goes into the many variables that say how long *your* installation will remain working, and nobody can predict them all.
So, I think what you really want is to at least *know* all the pieces involved, and to have "backups to the backups" ... when something fails, as inevitably it will and in a way that you never would have imagined, you can quickly work around it and get back into the good state. Or, you want to hand off the responsibility to someone who not only will install it for you, but will maintain it for you ... this is a hard one, because everyone wants to make their money and move on. There is no one who will do this for you, even if they start off saying they will, and/or sell you something saying they will.
Ultimately, I think we all have to get to the point where:
- we know how to do it all
- we have backups to the backups
If you're on-grid, there's an army of folks & systems/services trying to keep it together for you (and we see every day how that goes). If you're off-grid, that army is no longer there. It's incredibly possible these days to get to off-grid, but you have to simulate the functions of that army & systems/services if you want to *remain* there ... pure DIY.
We haven't even discussed choices and trade-offs, as everyone does these differently. Which is why you'll want at minimum two sources of power: solar, and grid (or grid-like) ... along with all the backups you care about implementing, and why you would or wouldn't want to do them (more choices, trade-offs).
I love forums ... just when I think I know it all, someone comes along with their story and shows me the horror, 'er, error of my ways. Take any story on this forum ... pick it apart (in a non-biased and analytical fashion). You'll see that the foundation is cracked, or going to crack, and you'll see a bunch of heroic efforts to be in one state, or get out of the other one.
Good luck on your journey ... to one of the two states of solar "being". I've enjoyed my journey to being off-grid, and I'll do everything in my power to remain there!
Bonus poll:
1. my (off-grid or other) system is finished
2. it will never break
3. I never have to touch it
4. none of the above
5. all of the above
(6. an EMP is imminent, and I'll no longer have to deal with this stuff)
