Solar, revisited | Page 2 | The Boneyard

Solar, revisited

I want to get them but my wife does not want to because she says they look ugly. This is what I am dealing with.
 
Yankees32123 said:
I work for a solar advocacy organization in DC and would just recommend getting several quotes and doing your homework. The tax credit was just extended at 26% for this year and next year, so there's time to consider this as we get back into our normal routines post-COVID. Happy to answer any questions, and we have some resources here that include a list of questions you should ask companies that you get quotes from: Solar Customer Resource Portal | SEIA
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can you suggest three or four solar installers for central New England?
 
Damon Weiss at JDsolarsolutions.com based out of New Jersey. Small but good company. They did mine 8 years ago.
 
Greathusky said:
I want to get them but my wife does not want to because she says they look ugly. This is what I am dealing with.
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I live in an HOA community. I wanted to get solar panels installed, but was denied by the association because "they look ugly". I subsequently joined the Board of Directors in hopes of changing the policy, but I have not had any luck so far. People are ridiculous.
 
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I moved into a new house on Friday - definitely going to look into it - but need to redo the roof first. Thinking about the Tesla roof - but I worry about the cost. When I looked at it when I did the roof on the last house, the payback was nearly forever.
 
Get a Job said:
I live in an HOA community. I wanted to get solar panels installed, but was denied by the association because "they look ugly". I subsequently joined the Board of Directors in hopes of changing the policy, but I have not had any luck so far. People are ridiculous.
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If it's an age restricted HOA, wait 'em out. As to them being ugly, I disagree, but won't put any panels on the front of my house. I live on a dead end private way with only two other houses. The front of my house is the only roof area visible by neighbors.
 
temery said:
If it's an age restricted HOA, wait 'em out. As to them being ugly, I disagree, but won't put any panels on the front of my house. I live on a dead end private way with only two other houses. The front of my house is the only roof area visible by neighbors.
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I suppose that's the courteous (and perhaps prudent, vís a vís resale) way to go about it, given that a lot of people seem to have a problem with the aesthetics.

Regarding the HOA, the other board members will definitely be there longer than me. I'm still fighting the good fight, but I've already given up hopes of getting solar on my current house. I'll be moving out within the next 5 years (definitely to a house that is not part of an HOA!).
 
Get a Job said:
I live in an HOA community. I wanted to get solar panels installed, but was denied by the association because "they look ugly". I subsequently joined the Board of Directors in hopes of changing the policy, but I have not had any luck so far. People are ridiculous.
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Some states have laws that prevent HOAs from restricting solar. I don't think Connecticut is one of them, but we have a guide that has a bunch of details that might be helpful: HOA Solar Action Guide | SEIA
 
As far as panels looking “ugly”, I have a black shingle roof and I had the panels installed flush to each other but they were totally black ones. The contractor told me that way they don’t stand out, it’s an option. They pretty much look like a large black square on a black roof, they don’t stand out. If you get the ones that have lines through them then you will see them more.
 
I scheduled a consultation for next week. What are some good questions that you guys would recommend I be sure to ask?
 
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UCDaveD said:
I scheduled a consultation for next week. What are some good questions that you guys would recommend I be sure to ask?
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financing
cost of adding panels now vs later
battery back up (likely not worth it)
Tax credits in state - fed is 26%
warrantee on parts and labor
any needed maintenance
down payment
ask to see layout
will the panels work during a nuclear winter?
 
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temery said:
financing
cost of adding panels now vs later
battery back up (likely not worth it)
Tax credits in state - fed is 26%
warrantee on parts and labor
any needed maintenance
down payment
ask to see layout
will the panels work during a nuclear winter?
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Who can answer the last point?
 
There is no state tax credit now? I guess so. It used to be 25% and the numbers worked much better. Fed was 30%, now 26. Taking that away makes it a tighter sell. Residential solar rebate is $2300. Low interest loans up to 25,000 also.
 
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UCDaveD said:
I scheduled a consultation for next week. What are some good questions that you guys would recommend I be sure to ask?
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Based on a few prior years of energy use or cost, documented installation cost (T&M), projected maintenance costs, and current tax deductions (Fed & state), how many years will likely be required to breakeven? Follow up, how is the estimate quantified? Get them to show you the #s, in writing.
 
When I did solar about 8 years ago they told me 7 years. I think it was probably a bit more. Now based on costs and tax credit reductions I bet it's more BUT, the cost of solar should be down. Make them give you a deal.
 
jibsey said:
When I did solar about 8 years ago they told me 7 years. I think it was probably a bit more. Now based on costs and tax credit reductions I bet it's more BUT, the cost of solar should be down. Make them give you a deal.
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Yeah, I’m going to get quotes from a few companies. An investment of this size necessitates it.

I’ll likely finance it as opposed to lease. The tax credits (26% fed, 25% NY) make it too good not to.

For those who’ve had systems installed, how much did your homeowner’s premium increase, if at all?
 
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UCDaveD said:
Yeah, I’m going to get quotes from a few companies. An investment of this size necessitates it.

I’ll likely finance it as opposed to lease. The tax credits (26% fed, 25% NY) make it too good not to.

For those who’ve had systems installed, how much did your homeowner’s premium increase, if at all?
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There's no town tax assessment increase BTW and I just told my insurer what it cost and he said it would be covered under my plan, probably wasn't much. NY has a better de than Ct. Now!
 
I'm personally not a fan of solar leasing. The magnitude of the savings will generally be smaller over time, and in a way that is "out of your control."

I think anyone considering solar should ask three questions. If "yes" to all three, then by all means go for it.

1. Do you have a roof geometry with the preferred characteristics? Preferably south or near-south facing, with minimal covering from tree shade?

2. Do you intend to stay in the house long enough to make back your money?

3. Can you afford to finance, or even better, pay upfront with cash? (Not relevant to the OP who said he was financing, but relevant in other cases)
 
iri10 said:
I'm personally not a fan of solar leasing. The magnitude of the savings will generally be smaller over time, and in a way that is "out of your control."

I think anyone considering solar should ask three questions. If "yes" to all three, then by all means go for it.

1. Do you have a roof geometry with the preferred characteristics? Preferably south or near-south facing, with minimal covering from tree shade?

2. Do you intend to stay in the house long enough to make back your money?

3. Can you afford to finance, or even better, pay upfront with cash? (Not relevant to the OP who said he was financing, but relevant in other cases)
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I would agree with you except:
my roofs are east west but because the slopes are not very steep (house design) they get great solar, production no issue. The dealer explained that slope is important in calculating it and he was right. If my roof was steep it would have been a no go.
 
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My biggest concern with the investment right now is that more government incentives may be on the way through Biden’s infrastructure/clean energy proposals. I’ll be annoyed if I do it and a year later I can save $12,000 on it.
 
Did anyone explore paying for their Solar panels through a home equity loan?

I’m running into an annoying issue with SUNation. My original quote was for a loan through NYSERDA (NY thing) at 3.49% for 15 years. Would’ve resulted in ~$100/mo or $18,000 total payments (after reinvesting tax incentives)

Approval for the loan comes back at 6.99% and I’m like uhhh what? Would’ve resulted in a total loan cost of ~$22,600. Well apparently this financing program is designed for lower/lower-middle class applicants and if you make over a certain percentage of your area’s median income, you actually get a higher rate. Annoying that this wasn’t brought up to me ahead of time by my salesperson, but whatever, I’m not accepting that loan.

The guy is apologetic and says he’s going to look at other financing options. Comes back to me with a 20 year loan at 1.99%. I do the math and the total payments are a little over $23,000, so basically a worse option than the ridiculous 6.99% loan.

I’ve gone back to the guy and was like dude, what are you doing here? He says he’ll talk to his managers tomorrow and see what we can do. I basically told him unless the financing program gets me around the original $18,000 total loan amount, the deal is likely dead.

But then I thought about using home equity to pay for the system and wondered if anyone went that route and the pros/cons.
 
Why not take the 1.99% loan and pay it off on a 15 year amortization schedule rather than the required 20? Best of both worlds. I’m drunk, so I apologize if I’m way off here.
 
Hoophound said:
Why not take the 1.99% loan and pay it off on a 15 year amortization schedule rather than the required 20? Best of both worlds. I’m drunk, so I apologize if I’m way off here.
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Or keep it and invest the cash which he would’ve used to pay it off. If you can’t out earn 1.99%, you aren’t really trying.
 
The system cost jumps up over $6k in price with the 1.99% loan. I questioned why and was told it’s because different financing programs require different origination fees. I said a 26% system cost increase due to origination fees sounds exorbitant.

Here’s the original proposal followed by the one I was sent a few days ago.
1622523740063.jpeg

1622523800754.jpeg
 
temery said:
I was told the Tesla batteries would be around $13k+. I have a generator and can't justify the expense for the two or three time a year I lose power. My gas generator is a pain, but it works.

Id be curious how Florida air conditioning costs compare to MA heating costs. My guess is heat costs more than cooling.
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I love my whole house generator. Sandy caused damage even though I live in Central PA. We spent 3 days without electricity. After retiring 21 years from the Army I vowed never to rough it again. Welcome Generac. I experienced a couple of outages in 5 years. Watching our pups play along with the Giants, any loss of power during a game is brutal. I am not up on Solar. Sounds expensive. I won't live long enough to find out if it is worth it costs whys.
 
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