Was just quoted $36,496 for a 14 panel 4.83KWH System....

[AlohaTim]

Hello,
I am purchasing a home here in Hawaii and getting quotes for solar. The most recent quote I received was $36k for 14 panel SunPower system with power optimizers and 1 Tesla Powerwall, does this sound like a decent price or a ripoff?

Thanks

 

[Craig]

Whats the storage capacity with the powerwall

 

[AlohaTim]

Whats the storage capacity with the powerwall

13.5 kWh

 

[Craig]

I bet one could do a DIY system for under 20k but this wouldnt include labor as its DIY. Honestly I just added up the system I would build and it would cost 17500. Again its DIY and 100% off grid. who knows what bells and whistles they include but as far as having things professionally done that seems reasonable since it includes storage. Do you get any rebates?

 

[AlohaTim]

I bet one could do a DIY system for under 20k but this wouldnt include labor as its DIY. Honestly I just added up the system I would build and it would cost 17500. Again its DIY and 100% off grid. who knows what bells and whistles they include but as far as having things professionally done that seems reasonable since it includes storage. Do you get any rebates?

Yes this is before the Federal and State rebates that will total to about $14k

 

[Craig]

I do not know how the rebates work but that's a big consideration

 

[Craig]

What Island you on?

 

[AlohaTim]

What Island you on?

Kauai

 

[litleboy]

Check wholesalesolar.com kits. That will give you a good idea of how much solar companies are marking up. My experience with couple of them is too much mark up. Basically 20 years ROI vs 3 to 5 years ROI on a DIY with permits.

 

[Rolee]

My original system was 17 panels (6.12kw) with 1 battery (lg chem 9.8kw) and my quotes were between 29-34k. Northern California. Knee-jerk reaction yours sounds a bit high but could be labor/shipping is more out there? Perhaps a couple more quotes might help.

 

[Cranium]

To me, the price is high.

Let's assume $10k is just for the Powerwall (including installation). That leaves the cost of 14 panels to be $26k installed. I paid $0.50/Watt for installation of my solar array. If we double yours to be $1/Watt, the installation would be $4830 bringing the remainder down to $21k.

If we mark up the cost of inverters and panels by ~50% with some rounding up, ($300 for each panel and $200 for each micro-inverter), this is $7k. Roof mount system would be <$2k. Combiner box and disconnect should be <$1k.

So you are paying $11k in costs for engineering drawings, pulling the permit, scheduling the inspection, and whatever warranty service the company is providing.

With this quote, how long would is it anticipated to take for the system to pay for itself?

 

[bulrush]

Labor on house stuff will typically add 80-100% to your cost so the price sounds about right for Hawaii, where everything is much more expensive anyway.

 

[Steve_S]

I want to share my story here as it's an experience many are having. When I first wanted solar, I went to local & regional suppliers with my list as I knew exactly what I wanted & needed. The FIT (Feed in tariff) dealers who hooked you up to grid all wanted MSRP+ for the products and that is with me doing the install ! NOT THEM. They hedged that Joe Customer would be okay with that because they got XXX$ Rebates from here - there etc. plus a monthly cheque from Power Co. and people buy into it and way over pay.

My system is small and offgrid (power poles are a mile away) BUT the FIT dealers wanted $22,000 (cheapest) all in ! I went to a wholesaler retailer (local as well) https://www.solacity.com/ and walked out of there for 11K all said & done (with FLA Batteries too) + Inverter (I got that somewhere else) and ALL products are Tier-1 not seconds or rejects sold at discount. BE AWARE OF THAT !!!

Currently best bang for buck on Panels are the 315 & 345 Q-Cells around here and they perform !