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  • Own it, Lease it, or Power Purchase Agrement???

    Newb here.

    Hello all you wise solar owners! Can you share some thoughts on buying out right, prepaid leasing, or prepaid PPA? We own our home outright, (no mortgage), and have a 2nd line of credit to pay off the solar that is currently at around 5%. The problem I have run into is warranties. The big issue, is, How long will the company really be in business? Solar World looks to be on the ropes, what of Rec Solar, or Solar City? What of the panel's they use??? Or, even, what of Sunrun leasing? I really like the idea of a 20 year "guarantee" with "free maintenance", yet, will the companies last that long? Or is it just better to wing it, hope for the best, buy it outright, and pay for repairs??? (I read the inverters usually last 12 - 15 years then need replacing, a + for lease program)..

    I have bids from Rec solar, Sungevity, Solar City, & Pacific Energy, (who swears by Solar World panels). Solar City has the lowest "pre-paid" lease / PPA bid by near $800, yet, seems to want / need to put up 12 panels to make 2.94 kwh (or even a stated 2.55 kwh on another part of their bid), where as Rec Solar says they only need to put up 10 panels to make 3.06 kwh! It looks like Solar City is either way over building, or way under rating the amount of sunny days we have here.

    The more I read these threads, the more confused I get, so sorry for the dumb questions, but can anyone sort this out for me??

    Thank you

    Beachnut

  • #2
    Originally posted by Beachnut View Post
    Newb here.

    Hello all you wise solar owners! Can you share some thoughts on buying out right, prepaid leasing, or prepaid PPA? We own our home outright, (no mortgage), and have a 2nd line of credit to pay off the solar that is currently at around 5%. The problem I have run into is warranties. The big issue, is, How long will the company really be in business? Solar World looks to be on the ropes, what of Rec Solar, or Solar City? What of the panel's they use??? Or, even, what of Sunrun leasing? I really like the idea of a 20 year "guarantee" with "free maintenance", yet, will the companies last that long? Or is it just better to wing it, hope for the best, buy it outright, and pay for repairs??? (I read the inverters usually last 12 - 15 years then need replacing, a + for lease program)..

    I have bids from Rec solar, Sungevity, Solar City, & Pacific Energy, (who swears by Solar World panels). Solar City has the lowest "pre-paid" lease / PPA bid by near $800, yet, seems to want / need to put up 12 panels to make 2.94 kwh (or even a stated 2.55 kwh on another part of their bid), where as Rec Solar says they only need to put up 10 panels to make 3.06 kwh! It looks like Solar City is either way over building, or way under rating the amount of sunny days we have here.

    The more I read these threads, the more confused I get, so sorry for the dumb questions, but can anyone sort this out for me??

    Thank you

    Beachnut
    It is hard to compare two systems from their kWh output due to the panel wattage that is being used. I can install a 12 panel system at 235 watt per panel (2820 watt total) or put up a 10 panel system at 300 watt per panel (3000 watt total).

    Find out what type panels each is quoting and compare the total DC wattage of the system. They should both be using the same insolation value (kWh/m^2/day of useable sunlight) to calculate the yearly kWh output of their systems. You should also be able to compare the $/installed wattage for each system. Hope that helps you.

    Comment


    • #3
      Thanks for the reply, I will do that.

      What of Ownership, Vs. Lease / PPA??

      Do these solar systems require much maintenance?

      I live 3 blocks up on a hill from the Pacific Ocean,, (Great View), what of the added corrosion potential???

      How long will the new inverters usually last?

      Is the "20 year warranty" through a leasing / PPA agreement worth it, or UN-nessarry??

      Comment


      • #4
        Originally posted by Beachnut View Post
        Thanks for the reply, I will do that.

        What of Ownership, Vs. Lease / PPA??

        Do these solar systems require much maintenance?

        I live 3 blocks up on a hill from the Pacific Ocean,, (Great View), what of the added corrosion potential???

        How long will the new inverters usually last?

        Is the "20 year warranty" through a leasing / PPA agreement worth it, or UN-nessarry??
        All good questions. Unfortunately I can only say the answers will vary between solar companies, equipment and state. There will even be differences in the same state due to local Utilities and rebates.

        There are a lot of forum members from California that may be able to give you better feedback concerning their systems and experience. They will ask you for more specific details concerning the equipment and mounting arrangement.

        I can tell you that based on some of the systems I have read about, if I had the choice I would go with a leased style system that covered all maintenance. That way I would not need to pay a large amount up front and then wait for any rebate or incentive dollars to come back.

        Where I live there are no lease type systems available due to State law. Also the amount of incentives and rebates are small, the electric costs are about $0.11/kwh which makes any payback long.

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by Beachnut View Post
          Thanks for the reply, I will do that.

          What of Ownership, Vs. Lease / PPA??

          Do these solar systems require much maintenance?

          I live 3 blocks up on a hill from the Pacific Ocean,, (Great View), what of the added corrosion potential???

          How long will the new inverters usually last?

          Is the "20 year warranty" through a leasing / PPA agreement worth it, or UN-nessarry??
          Unless there is no other way, I think I'd avoid a lease with monthly payments. As for a prepaid, you just have to compare its cost and hassle with outright purchase. With a purchase, you have to apply for and wait on the rebates/tax credits and it's probably going to be you that runs around to get warranty repairs done. Almost certainly there will be less hassle with a prepaid lease but after 20 years, you still don't own the system unless the lessor abandons it - which is actually fairly likely IMHO. In theory, a prepaid lease should be less than purchasing but that doesn't seem to hold necessarily anymore but you just have to look into it.

          As for string inverters, they are probably getting better but I doubt they will last much more than 15 years. It probably will depend on ambient conditions to some extent - I suspect my inverter here in Phoenix isn't going to last as long as it would have if I lived in Flagstaff which is about 25F cooler on average.

          Comment

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