NDont really know - we didnt live in the house prior to putting in solar. But I think probably we would have saved 25K in 10-11 years or so.
Are you using $200/m average? Actually $231/m over 9 years is $25k
I just investigated a 9kw system.
It was $20k after rebate. I paid $27k for 5kw system in 2006
We have a 6.9kw system that I paid 25K for in 2009/2010. I dont know exactly how much we would have otherwise paid for the electricity bc we currently pay only $4 a month for the interconnect fee. But, as you can tell from our usage and production graphs, you can see than in Jan we produced about 650 kwhr and yet we still amassed $92 in electric āchargesā (to be settled at the end of the yr) ā¦ so I would guess we probably use what would be otherwise around $200/mo in electricity.
We basically pay $4 a month for the interconnect fee and then get about $200 check from PGE every May as a credit.
Whatās the lifetime of the solar system? 10 year pay back is pretty slow. If you bought a cheap condo in 2010, you can get your money back in 10 years as well.
If you install the same system in Nevada/Arizona where electricity is cheaper, you may need 20-30 years to get your money back from savings. All these was even helped by taxpayers through tax refund.
How much did the cost of solar system decrease in the last 10 years? They need to do a better job to reduce cost and improve efficiency
Prices have dropped about 50% in ten years. Systems should last 25 years
Financially, solar installation makes no sense even with taxpayer help. If solar industry can not decrease cost more, it wonāt work out.
With the outrageous cost of PGE, solar makes sense but only if your electrical bill is over $2500/year and only if you have the right kind of roof, exposure, orientation and weather. Current systems that meet the criteria can have a pay off in less than 5 years. Plus they add at least the cost to the valueā¦ a push at resale. Leased systems add no value.
The key is not to oversized your system.
Donāt give PGE free power. 5kw max is all most homes need. Unless there is a huge AC bill, pool and a monster home.
5kw with rebates costs between $10-15k
Iām not sure that 5KW is enough. As I mentioned, we have a 6.9KW system. We get a small check - ~$200 - back from PGE every year. That check will evaporate eventually when we get an electric car, but we havenāt bought an electric car yet ā Iām not done driving my current Toyota into the ground ā no need to replace it yet.
Anyways, we do not have a pool, and we do not even have air conditioning.
Solar Systems are pretty cheap ā I paid 25K about 10 years ago. And they are cheaper now. Whatās 25K really? Its the delta between a Toyota and an Audi. If you pile 25K on top of my 21K Toyota, you still canāt even buy a Tesla for that price(!).
I looked at that 25K as disposable income (as opposed to looking at it like I could invest in a cheap condo or something)ā¦ anyways, from a disposable income point of view, the 25K bought me a lot more happiness and piece of mind than an Audi or anything else would have given me. The freedom is turn on ALL THE LIGHTS just because it puts me in a better mood is not to be undervalued. 
I had the monster home pool guest house AC and my 5kw system was adequate. My bill went from $5k per year to $400. I am currently looking at a 9kw system for two houses pool AC and electric irrigation pump all on 5 acres.
Conservation is key. LED lights help.
Also time of use helps for things like washing and drying clothes
If 5KW works for you, you probably live in a sunnier area. I donāt think anyone can say āxyz KW should be enoughā without qualifying what kind of solar exposure that area gets.
Iām on the west side of SF ā more fog. Having all the lights on (all 167 recessed cans) is a great mood-booster when thereās fog. 
If you had a 5kw system I bet your bill would less than $100/m
Everyone has to make there own choice. But the solar sales people always want to oversell. I was told to use an 8kw system. But the 5kw system saved me thousands.
Last I checked, Time-of-Use rate plans for residential customers were phased out a few years ago by PGE because it gave solar customers too much $$$ back. My understanding is that new solar customers on PGEās grid can no longer get into a Time of Use rate plan.
We were grandfathered in, so we are still on a TOU rate plan.
I purposely oversized my system in order to prepare for electric vehicle chargingā¦ I pushed my solar guys to go bigger, actually.
Yeah your are right. PGE is trying to screw everyone. Now with their bankruptcy they are trying to renege on their solar agreements. I have decided to wait on going solar on my farm. May go totally off grid. Unfortunately right now it costs about $50k. Need batteries and a propane generator.
What is consuming all that electricity on your farm that you would need such a big system? " two houses pool AC and electric irrigation pump" ā is that everything?
Irrigation for 2 acres runs 6 hours every night, time of use AG rate. Four AC units three months a year. Two big homes on the lot. Was advised to go 12kw. 100 degree weather in Cameron Park. Pool pump burns $50/m
Trying to determine the costs. PGE will not give me the bills from the previous owner. But the current tenant I have is using $500/m just for one of the houses in the winter. I figure the bill could be $10k for both houses.
Iām really confused. Is this thread showing up out of date order for any of you???
No, it looks fine for me.
Holy Moly! Can you pick off the low hanging fruit first? Irrigation - is it for food-bearing-crops or just decorative vegetation? If it is decorative in nature, can you convert to cacti?
It shows up normally for me.