this post was submitted on 29 Oct 2023
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Solar is pretty neat. Why aren't all new housing developments done with the roofs optimally positioned for solar panel use?
We could have big south facing (or north facing for those down under) sections instead of a traditional gable roof.
Putting panels on houses is the least cost effective way to do solar. Every house only has so much space on the roof, you have to work around vents and other obstructions, and the inverters will be smaller (meaning less efficient than one big one). It's a custom project for every single house.
Conversely, if you buy a field, you can make racks that slap on every panel the same, there are fewer obstructions to work around, and you can buy one big inverter to cover the whole thing. This is where solar gets cheap. Really cheap.
I know everyone wants to stick it to power companies and have energy independence. If you want that, look for community solar projects where everyone pitches in a little to get a larger deployment. If your state or locality is blocking those projects, then start going to campaign events and asking them about. Hold them to it with votes and campaign contributions.
Maybe I could look it up, but you seem to know about it already, so how does energy from the local projects get distributed and billed? Does it feed into the grid? If so, how do the people who funded it get billed? Or does it have a separate distribution network for the community so only nearby houses have access? Or something else?
I paid into one that was about $500 upfront, and then I'm locked into $0.13/kwh for the next 25 years for a portion of my bill. Still tied to the regular utility grid. But every setup is going to be a bit different.
So for example, your first 500 kW hr are $0.13 each, then after that you pay market rates?
Something like that, yes. Since solar makes more in the summer than the winter, the exact amount is laid out in a table for each month.
Money. Why spend x extra dollars when you don't have to?
I think California has a new law that mandates this, but until their is loud and constant consumer demand home builders are going to continue doing the bare minimum.