U.S. Electric grid

[svetz]

This is from February last year, it was a surprise we're up to 20% nationally from last year.



Some states (e.g., Nevada, Oregon, South Dakota) are already over 50% mostly due to hydro, this data also from 2/21:

 

[Ozark Tinkering]

This is from February last year, it was a surprise we're up to 20% nationally from last year.

Residential solar provides less than 1% of total grid production with nearly 3 million homes now utilizing solar. We have a lot of room to grow! 1 million of those homes added solar in the last 2 years.

 

[MurphyGuy]

Residential solar provides less than 1% of total grid production with nearly 3 million homes now utilizing solar. We have a lot of room to grow! 1 million of those homes added solar in the last 2 years.

100% of my energy comes from my solar panels. In fact, its more like 130%, as I have to run electric space heaters in the winter to balance out my net metering bank.

I thought the total residential pv power for the USA would be higher than 1%. But I guess that makes sense.. Driving around in a non-scientific way, only about 1 out of 100 houses have solar.

 

[Ozark Tinkering]

100% of my energy comes from my solar panels. In fact, its more like 130%, as I have to run electric space heaters in the winter to balance out my net metering bank.

I thought the total residential pv power for the USA would be higher than 1%. But I guess that makes sense.. Driving around in a non-scientific way, only about 1 out of 100 houses have solar.

I'm not there yet. My 5kW Enphase system provides about 60% and I'm now all electric. However today was one of those perfect pre-fall days without a cloud in the sky and both my mini-splits just running the fan, I made 100% of what I used! 24.9kWh. I'm really close to pulling the trigger on another 5kW of panels at $0.40/watt for new panels, if my son in-law comes through. I want to do an off-grid DIY for my shop and half of my shack. Let the utility supply power for my well, water heater and stove/range so I can use a budget inverter for everything else and let my net metering recoup those utility charges. I'm torn right now as to whether I should wait just a little bit to buy batteries because American manufacturing will be ramping up and I see chemistries improving and prices going down. So that too has me procrastinating. I am the Great Procrastinator! I don't see China as a good bet.

 

[MurphyGuy]

I'm not there yet. My 5kW Enphase system provides about 60% and I'm now all electric. However today was one of those perfect pre-fall days without a cloud in the sky and both my mini-splits just running the fan, I made 100% of what I used! 24.9kWh. I'm really close to pulling the trigger on another 5kW of panels at $0.40/watt for new panels, if my son in-law comes through. I want to do an off-grid DIY for my shop and half of my shack. Let the utility supply power for my well, water heater and stove/range so I can use a budget inverter for everything else and let my net metering recoup those utility charges. I'm torn right now as to whether I should wait just a little bit to buy batteries because American manufacturing will be ramping up and I see chemistries improving and prices going down. So that too has me procrastinating. I am the Great Procrastinator! I don't see China as a good bet.

My solar has exceeded my expectations. We originally installed a 7.5kW system clipped by a 6kW inverter and it did exactly what the math said it would do to within a 1% tolerance. That PVWatts calculator is spot on.

Since I had over-engineered my ground mounting system, I had plenty of structural reserve to add some "wings" to the end of it, so I installed another 3600 watts worth of panels and a 2nd 6kW inverter. Then transferred part of the first inverter's panels to the second so no more clipping.

We went from generating 50kWh on a good day to just short of 80kWh. Our Michigan winters went from burning 10 to 15 facecords of firewood to just 3 or 4. From the end of summer to about Christmas, we're 100% electric heat. Then we fire up the wood stove for the January deep freeze, and by the 2nd week of February, we're back to just the electric heating.

Now I'm building a barn right next to the solar system and I'm making it tall enough so that I can put another 6kW of panels on the roof. I should be able to keep the barn from freezing in the winter, and easily air condition it in the summer.

We waste electricity around here like crazy and no one cares anymore.

We just had a 4 day power outage a couple weeks ago and we switched the grid-tied system into off-grid mode. We can continue living as if nothing was wrong.

My lithium batteries come from a Chevy BOLT EV. They were brand new and I was able to get them for $80/kWh with free shipping. I haven't seen anything close to that deal since I bought them in 2019. I think its going to be a while before prices come down, maybe another two or three years at least. The more EV's sold, the more they crash.

 

[Ozark Tinkering]

I've used wood heat as well as propane for my shack over the last 30 years, so I'm setup for either as backup or to augment my mini-splits. This will be my first winter with the mini-splits so I'm not sure how well they will perform. Considering that, I do have 350 gallons of propane in my 1000gallon tank left from last year and a rick of oak sitting next to the house for those really cold spells. I'm considerably further south than you so I'm hoping my mini-splits can keep up. February is our cold month.

We went from generating 50kWh on a good day to just short of 80kWh. Our Michigan winters went from burning 10 to 15 facecords of firewood to just 3 or 4. From the end of summer to about Christmas, we're 100% electric heat. Then we fire up the wood stove for the January deep freeze, and by the 2nd week of February, we're back to just the electric heating.

I agree with that and in 2020 I leased a Bolt as a place holder and then the traction battery recall happened. Back in March GM bought out the remainder of my 3 year lease and I took another 3 year lease on a 2022 Bolt with all the bells and whistles that my first one lacked. That carries me out to March of 2025 when I predict many new ev options will have begun hit the market.
I'm still hesitant to go deep on stationary storage right now because I believe we are in a chemistry transition period over the same period and by around '25 or '26 the pace of domestic production will be such that anything from China will come at a premium. I've got a 9000watt propane inverter for outages to cover me until I decide. The best part about being old is that time goes by quick. 3 years seems like 3 months now.
The legislation passed and signed over the last 18 months represents the biggest infrastructure improvement since Eisenhower and the Interstate highway system.

 

[Batvette]

The interstate highway system still exists some 70 years later.
Show me some of the pork, scams, and unrelated BS passed by the moron president in 70 years.

 

[Batvette]

Fraudsters Set to Pounce on Massive Infrastructure Money

“Monitoring is critical. You have to have somebody looking.”

www.pewtrusts.org

 

[Ozark Tinkering]

The interstate highway system still exists some 70 years later.
Show me some of the pork, scams, and unrelated BS passed by the moron president in 70 years.

Interstate 8 was largely completed by 1964. In 1976 Hurricane Kathleen took it out. Took til 1980 to repair it and reopen the west bound lane.

 

[Batvette]

"While the plan relies on the moderate and uncontroversial term “infrastructure,” less than 5% would actually go toward traditional road infrastructure projects. Rather, it will be spent on corporate welfare, tax credits, and the left's radical “green” agenda...

...most of that 5% of spending for roads and bridges is just going to go for maintenance of existing infrastructure that we already have. It's not going to be building new lanes of highway or helping to reduce congestion. It's just going to be simple maintenance."

"But rather, it would look more like just another slush fund set up for liberal priorities. "

 

[Ozark Tinkering]

"While the plan relies on the moderate and uncontroversial term “infrastructure,” less than 5% would actually go toward traditional road infrastructure projects. Rather, it will be spent on corporate welfare, tax credits, and the left's radical “green” agenda...

...most of that 5% of spending for roads and bridges is just going to go for maintenance of existing infrastructure that we already have. It's not going to be building new lanes of highway or helping to reduce congestion. It's just going to be simple maintenance."

"But rather, it would look more like just another slush fund set up for liberal priorities. "

I like green projects.