6Kw going in soon in Aliso Viejo

[s_man]

Dave is easy to deal with, adding these things shoulnt be a problem

Thanks Bob! I figured my homework didn't go much beyond the review and prices

[Alisobob]

Do I need to ask him for these .... Yup, like everything in life, you only get what you ask for.

Were the additional warranty above or beyond the mfg provided to you on paper? Yup


The license check from the contractor board showed they registered from 2010, I think thats when the owner became the license qualifier. I didnt dig any further than that.

Dave is easy to deal with, adding these things shoulnt be a problem

[s_man]

So much more goes into a price, than chasing the bottom line.

1.Is a quality racking system used?
2. Is all the conduit attic run?
3. Are they moving roof vents for better panel placement?'
4. Are they adding a garage panel for a EV?
5. Are they upsizing the wiring for high efficiency and future system growth?
6. Are all permits and fee's included?
7. Are they providing any additional warranty coverage above or beyond the mfg?
8. Are they providing a roof inspection and leak free installation warranty?
9. Do you have a exotic roof situation?
10. Maintenance contract for 2x year panel cleaning.
11. Performance monitoring system with web access
etc..etc...etc..

Hi Bob,
I have contacted the same vendor you went with but some of these items were not mentioned. Did they specify them for you before signing the contract or after? On the contract he show me it just shows these as items as in ""
1.Is a quality racking system used? "SOLAR MOUNTING HARDWARE"
2. Is all the conduit attic run? "CONDUIT FROM ROOF TO ELECTRIC PANEL"
3. Are they moving roof vents for better panel placement?' "Not mentioned"
4. Are they adding a garage panel for a EV? "Not mentioned"
5. Are they upsizing the wiring for high efficiency and future system growth? "not mentioned"
7. Are they providing any additional warranty coverage above or beyond the mfg? "25 year manufacturer warranty on part and 25 year warranty on labor"
8. Are they providing a roof inspection and leak free installation warranty? "Not mentioned"

Do I need to ask him for these and were the additional warranty above or beyond the mfg provided to you on paper?
Another thing, I think he told you and me they were on business for about 15 years, but license check from the contractor board showed they registered from 2010, so did you have another way to verify it?
Thanks for letting me know! I just need some more checking before I pull the trigger.

[J.P.M.]

So the $3.50/Watt is the going rate now for a good system? If so, I may need to negotiate a little better. And look at other vendors.

At the risk of sounding like I'm talking out of both sides of my mouth, it's a target. Posters here have done it and I've seen good systems installed in my HOA by reputable installers for that and a bit less on contracts I've reviewed for the HOA approval process. Just remember it's terrible to pay too much but worse to pay too little. A good vendor is worth a premium. You don't get what you deserve - you get what you negotiate.

[Alisobob]

I'm in no way suggesting there is an easy, one line way to calc such costs, or that there is only one correct way to do it, but the way you suggest is misleading and much different, and probably lower than most any other informed method will estimate for a per kWh cost.

Understood J.P.M. Thats why my final statement suggests he should save about 50% over grid based power.

Salesman often over promise, and under deliver.

We should be better than that.

[rwb1921]

Good, then buy and know if you pay more than ~ $3.50/Watt for the system you're paying more than necessary.

So the $3.50/Watt is the going rate now for a good system? If so, I may need to negotiate a little better. And look at other vendors.

[J.P.M.]

This is on a buy. There are so many charts and graphs that it is hard to tell really what you are saving. I an just going with what I use now and pay compared to what it will cost for the system and what it should produce. May not be the best, but I know I will save money, just not sure when the break even point will be. I am thinking by looking at it around 5-6 years. Unless rates really change for the better with the new tiers they are proposing.

Good, then buy and know if you pay more than ~ $3.50/Watt for the system you're paying more than necessary.

[rwb1921]

I am also trying to add in what my use will be when I use the AC more. That is one of my main reasons since I work from home and it gets quite warm in my office here with computers running all the time. I was being very conservative with the AC in past 2 years because of the cost. I want to be a little more comfortable without going broke.

[rwb1921]

Without looking at them, I'd guess mostly phony verbiage, smoke and mirrors. That type of misuse is common with leases.

This is on a buy. There are so many charts and graphs that it is hard to tell really what you are saving. I an just going with what I use now and pay compared to what it will cost for the system and what it should produce. May not be the best, but I know I will save money, just not sure when the break even point will be. I am thinking by looking at it around 5-6 years. Unless rates really change for the better with the new tiers they are proposing.

[J.P.M.]

I wonder if that is why in one of my proposals I am looking at closely the cost is listed at $0.11 for the cost of the Solar provided power?

Without looking at them, I'd guess mostly phony verbiage, smoke and mirrors. That type of misuse is common with leases.

[rwb1921]

Bob: that method may make some sense to compare different systems, but it can be very misleading when trying to determine the true, long term costs of buying and maintaining a PV system and expressing those costs on the same basis as the long term costs of providing the same amount of electricity via other means (such as POCO supplied electricity). What you suggest doing usually leads to unrealistically low solar elec. costs which is one reason why solar peddlers love it. That method has the advantage of simplicity. The big disadvantage is that using it will lead to incorrect conclusions about the true costs of PV provided power.

I'm in no way suggesting there is an easy, one line way to calc such costs, or that there is only one correct way to do it, but the way you suggest is misleading and much different, and probably lower than most any other informed method will estimate for a per kWh cost.

I wonder if that is why in one of my proposals I am looking at closely the cost is listed at $0.11 for the cost of the Solar provided power?

[J.P.M.]

If you take the 20 year output of a well designed solar system, and divide that by the cost , assuming it was correctly priced at purchase... you get a number close to $0.07 a KwH, for those 20 years.

SCE will never be that cheap,no matter what they do to the pricing or tier system... and it only go up in time.

I would say a safe bet would be a minimum of 50% savings, over the life of the system.

Bob: that method may make some sense to compare different systems, but it can be very misleading when trying to determine the true, long term costs of buying and maintaining a PV system and expressing those costs on the same basis as the long term costs of providing the same amount of electricity via other means (such as POCO supplied electricity). What you suggest doing usually leads to unrealistically low solar elec. costs which is one reason why solar peddlers love it. That method has the advantage of simplicity. The big disadvantage is that using it will lead to incorrect conclusions about the true costs of PV provided power.

I'm in no way suggesting there is an easy, one line way to calc such costs, or that there is only one correct way to do it, but the way you suggest is misleading and much different, and probably lower than most any other informed method will estimate for a per kWh cost.

[rwb1921]

If you take the 20 year output of a well designed solar system, and divide that by the cost , assuming it was correctly priced at purchase... you get a number close to $0.07 a KwH, for those 20 years.

SCE will never be that cheap,no matter what they do to the pricing or tier system... and it only go up in time.

I would say a safe bet would be a minimum of 50% savings, over the life of the system.

That makes sense. I am with SDGE and from what I heard they are one of the most expensive of the companies also. So that .07 does sound good.

[Alisobob]

Not sure how much will really save with the changing landscape here in California (Tiers changing, etc).

If you take the 20 year output of a well designed solar system, and divide that by the cost , assuming it was correctly priced at purchase... you get a number close to $0.07 a KwH, for those 20 years.

SCE will never be that cheap,no matter what they do to the pricing or tier system... and it only go up in time.

I would say a safe bet would be a minimum of 50% savings, over the life of the system.

[rwb1921]

So much more goes into a price, than chasing the bottom line.

1.Is a quality racking system used?
2. Is all the conduit attic run?
3. Are they moving roof vents for better panel placement?'
4. Are they adding a garage panel for a EV?
5. Are they upsizing the wiring for high efficiency and future system growth?
6. Are all permits and fee's included?
7. Are they providing any additional warranty coverage above or beyond the mfg?
8. Are they providing a roof inspection and leak free installation warranty?
9. Do you have a exotic roof situation?
10. Maintenance contract for 2x year panel cleaning.
11. Performance monitoring system with web access
etc..etc...etc..

$3.95 seems high for a basic install, without any of the items I listed.

Every solar install is so unique, only you know for sure if the price is fair or not... by doing your homework first.

If you read my whole thread, I got most everything I listed, plus repapering my whole south side roof, for much less than $3.95.

I sent you my installer info.... but you still need to do your homework first, and make your home as efficient as possible, pre-solar.

Thanks Alisobob for the quick reply and PM. I cannot PM back due to not having enough posts.

I am not locked into anything yet, but I have a good local installer who is very knowledgeable and is offering most of what you have. My setup is almost like yours in that it will be the Solar World panels (285 model) and Enphase inverters (250 model). I also will need roof done due to some leaks. So will need roofer or someone to do that. I can only have 21 panels due to the size of our roof, so going with the 285 panels to get the most in my price range. It will be producing at 10,182 kWh/Year he said with that configuration. Our roof faces south also. I have also done the all LED/Flourescent lights over time to help out. So hopefully with whoever we go with it will work out good like yours.

I will call who you used to compare and see if I can save money. Thanks for all the info that you put in this forum, along with the others who have chimed in. This is all new to me and I believe I will learn a lot from reading some of the posts here. Not sure how much will really save with the changing landscape here in California (Tiers changing, etc). But hopefully will be able to use the AC like you a lot more often as I work from home.

Thanks also sensij for your info. I will let you know if I follow up on it.