Installation finally started.

[Mike90250]

Congrats ! finally. I don't know why utilities don't like small solar, other than it takes $$ out of their pockets

[silverhorsefarm]

Congrats ! finally. I don't know why utilities don't like small solar, other than it takes $$ out of their pockets

On the other hand, I am helping them meet their renewable quota, so I would expect to be feeling a little more love than I am from the utility.

[Uechi Kid]

Man, that is so cool. Just wondering, what is the reason you need kw? Do you run a business that requires that much power?

[silverhorsefarm]

Nah, it's my residence. But it supplies me with almost 100% of my needs, so no bills!

[Steve]

That's really a nice setup.
@ $70,000 it would take me roughly 25-30 years to break even, not counting any payback from the electric company.

I wish I had a crystal ball to find out how much the U.S. government is going to raise energy taxes in the near future. "Necessarily sky rocketing" electric bills, as some in the Washington Federal class have enthusiastically mentioned is truly chilling.

silverhorsefarm, you are already ahead of them. Bravo!

[solar_dave]

It's NOT. Utility is weeks away from connecting to the GRID! sucks.

Yeah that waiting time is a bitch, the code guys hung mine up for about 3 weeks with the changes they wanted, then I made the electrician show up when the utility came to the final interconnect. Good thing they wanted a couple minor changes as well.

Looks like you got a pretty fair price while using microinverters.

[Mike90250]

..... out how much the U.S. government is going to raise energy taxes in the near future. "Necessarily sky rocketing" electric bills,........

When oil and natural gas get scarce, and regulations like carbon tax and stuff get added in, I can easily see electric rates going to 2x current rates, in 2-3 years, if the power is on at all.

[Vandergraaff]

Looks Great! I'll be putting panels on a steel roof too, but the roof ribbing will be more like your walls. What kind of mounts are you using? How are the penetrations sealed?

Thanks!

[silverhorsefarm]

Looks Great! I'll be putting panels on a steel roof too, but the roof ribbing will be more like your walls. What kind of mounts are you using? How are the penetrations sealed?

Thanks!

The fasteners and racking are all UNIRAC. The fasteners are called Hangar Bolts. They are screwed into the purlins and sealed with some type of silicon caulking/sealant.

[silverhorsefarm]

PV Array Update

Well, it's been about three months, so I thought I would post some stats for the forum. My 11.34 Kw array has been averaging about 60 KwH/day. To date (since June 19th), I have generated 4.5 MwH. My last electricity bill, which included 32 days of consistently 95 degree days, was $28.

No maintenance issues aside from 1 balky panel which the installer promptly replaced. It must have been a Friday afternoon lemon. I love the on-line monitoring from Enphase. I will probably buy some Enphase stock if/when they go public.

I've already gotten the solar grant from the state, I am actually looking forward to filing my federal tax return this year, and I won't owe any property tax for 2011 to my county. I haven't gotten around to registering my SREC's yet and I am still a little unclear about how all that works.

All said, I am very satisfied. I was surprised at how easy it was for this Goldwater republican to accept the tax largess, but I'll live.

[Vandergraaff]

Silver Horse,

It's been another year. Can you give us an update?

How has the system performed? Did you get the SREC's worked out?

Art

[silverhorsefarm]

Update

Well, I just passed 10 months and 13 MWh of harvest. I have sold 7 SRECs at $320/ea and have banked an additional 5. I plan to wait out the high harvest season and watch the auctions to see where Maryland prices are going. They have been bid up to as high as $360. Overall, I am very pleased. I saw low double-digit electricity bills in the dead of winter, and none all fall.

[Vandergraaff]

Metal Roof Flashing

Silverhorse,

It sounds as though no flashing was used in your installation; holes and washers were simply sealed with caulk. Can you tell me what the pitch of your roof is?

My roof is ribbed steel (not a standing seam, simply ribs formed into the sheet) on a 6/12 pitch. I'm not sure if any traditional flashing is necessary, or even available. Anyone know? Any of you have experience with butyl tape placed between a standoff and steel?

BTW, I just had an incredibly productive phone call with a Unirac Tech Person. Once I described my roof, she was able to tell me exactly how to proceed, and why.
(No affiliation)

Thanks

[silverhorsefarm]

My barn roof is a corrugated product called Ondura. It is 33 degrees. I am pretty sure no flashing was needed. The installation spec for the fasteners is below:

http://dcpower-systems.com/uploads/documents/HangerBoltAssembly-InstallManual.pdf

Silverhorse,

It sounds as though no flashing was used in your installation; holes and washers were simply sealed with caulk. Can you tell me what the pitch of your roof is?

My roof is ribbed steel (not a standing seam, simply ribs formed into the sheet) on a 6/12 pitch. I'm not sure if any traditional flashing is necessary, or even available. Anyone know? Any of you have experience with butyl tape placed between a standoff and steel?

BTW, I just had an incredibly productive phone call with a Unirac Tech Person. Once I described my roof, she was able to tell me exactly how to proceed, and why.
(No affiliation)

Thanks

[Chris @ EcoFasten Solar]

I work for a company that manufactures mounting hardware, and we do offer a solution for ribbed metal roofing that some of you may find suitable for your projects. We call it the Simple Seal, and it is a cone shaped EPDM rubber bushing that fits in to a similar cone shape that we mill in to the bottom of our brackets. When you tighten a fastener in to your structural member these cones nest tightly together and force the base of the bushing against the roof surface making a seal.
You can find more information on our site, including a full product guide.
(Mods- if this counts as advertising please do not hesitate to modify and/or delete this post)