Some Early Numbers
We officially turned our solar electric system on last Monday evening. As of last night, we have some early production numbers.
For the past week, our system produced 210 KWh of electricity. It was a particularly sunny week, including the longest days of the year. Last month while we were in test mode, we produced 183 KWh during a cloudy week.
For June of 2003 (reading on about the 20th of the month), we used 790 KWh. For June of 2002, we used about 900 KWh.
If you multiply the 200 KWh by 4 (for four weeks in the month), we’re due to produced about 750-800 KWh. That is well over the 2/3 of usage estimate, but it’s only one month.
July will be tougher – with the air conditioning requirement last year we used 1460 KWh, against which we’ll probably produce about 750-800 KWh.
Looking good so far!
Meter Confusion
Today is meter reading day. My wife happened to be home and working outside, so when the reader wandered by, she walked over.
Apparently, he was confused as our new meter was not on his list. He made a few phone calls, and that got resolved. Apparently, even though they can read it via the phone line, he still has to record the number as a double-check.
Today will be the end of the first week – tomorrow I’ll post some numbers. I won’t have any real comparison to usage until next month when we get a bill for an entire month with the system active.
Final Approval
We got final verbal approval from PSE&G today! We’ll be turning the inverters on permanently tonight.
Our installer called his PSE&G contact, and was told that we could have turned on the system as soon as the meter was replaced. Of course, that isn’t written anywhere (in fact, the tariffs say you have to wait until your next meter reading after filing as a minimum). We decided to stick with the letter of the rules until we got some communication from PSE&G.
We should be getting the letter from them soon with the signed agreement.
Solar Installation Site Index
On May 25, 2004 the installation of solar panels on our house in Hamilton, NJ was completed.
This index lists all interesting entries for this project. Click the links below to go directly to that article.
The System We Chose (Jan 28, 2004) (NOTE: Some technical details changed later.)
A Little About Us (Jan 28, 2004)
How It Will Work (Jan 29, 2004) (NOTE: We ended up not using a sub-panel.)
Some of The Components (Feb 3, 2004) (NOTE: We ended up with the 175-watt cousin of the 185-watt panels mentioned here)
Switching Panels (“Latest Update”) (Mar 29, 2004)
Permit Delays (“More Delays”) (Apr 8, 2004)
Township Permit Issues (“Yet Another Update”) (Apr 23, 2004)
Permit in Hand! (Apr 29, 2004)
INSTALLATION Day 1 (May 3, 2004) – PICTURES – setup
Homeowner’s Insurance and PV Systems (May 3, 2004)
INSTALLATION Day 2 (May 4, 2004) – PICTURES – rail installation
INSTALLATION Day 3 (May 5, 2004) – PICTURES – roof wiring
INSTALLATION Day 4 (May 6, 2004) – PICTURES – most of the panels
INSTALLATION Day 5 (May 10, 2004) – PICTURES – last panel, wiring conduit
INSTALLATION Day 6 (May 18, 2004) – PICTURES – inside electrical, installation complete
Final Cost Roundup (May 20, 2004) – includes payback information
Inspections (May 25, 2004) – township and NJ Clean Energy Program
Phone Line Installation (Jun 8, 2004)
New Meter Installation (Jun 10, 2004) – PICTURES
Reading the Meter, PSE&G Billing (Aug 4, 2004)
Jersey Solar, LLC – A Review (Aug 27, 2004)
In addition to those entries, there are many other “still waiting” entries, entries about other people’s installations, and entries containing my thoughts on solar energy topics. You can most easily find those by choosing an Archive month link at the left.
New Meter
As I mentioned below, the new phone line was installed for our electronic meter. I called from it to my house the other day, and “PSE&G” came up on caller ID.
Today, I called and a machine answered with a single beep! I think we may have the new meter installed. I won’t know for sure until I get home tonight. If that’s the case, we may be able to turn our solar panels on as soon as tomorrow (or even today).
I’ll try to post pictures tonight, as long as there isn’t a severe thunderstorm going on when I get home (they are calling for one).
UPDATE: They did install the new meter. Here it is:
The meter is a replacement of the old mechanical meter. Also, the box attached to the lower left corner of the meter box is new – I think it includes the modem. It’s locked, so I can’t tell for sure.
This is a close-up of the new meter. I have no idea what the things on the screen mean – I’ll have to do some digging on the net to find out.
We are now waiting for verbal permission (to be obtained – hopefully – by our installer through his contacts tomorrow) to turn the panels on. At some point soon, we should receive the signed interconnection agreement and we can turn them on then anyway.
Phone Line Installed
Verizon installed the phone line yesterday – 1 day shy of 2 weeks after I mailed the PSE&G interconnection agreement, and about 1 week after they cashed my check.
They installed what seems to be a POTS line (normal, dial tone line) with a local phone number. Verizon left a modular station wire attached to the telephone network interface with the phone number written on the baggie.
I guess that this means that PSE&G can install the meter any day. Looking at their tariffs, there’s a chance they might wait until my next meter-reading day – which should be June 20 or thereabouts. Or, maybe I’ll come home tonight and find it done.
A Tiny Status Update
PSE&G cashed our interconnection application check yesterday. I guess that means that they received the application. No other news yet – it doesn’t look like Verizon has been to the house yet.
Inspections
Today, we are scheduled for inspections by the township building department, and the NJ Clean Energy Program. The township inspection is required before filing the PSE&G Interconnection Agreement and before the NJ Clean Energy Program will release the rebate to my installer.
Stay tuned for results!
UPDATE: 10:15am – the Building Inspector has come and gone. He approved us. He used to work for my company a long time ago. He was really interested in the whole solar thing so I gave him the nickel tour.
UPDATE #2: 11:15am – the Electrical Inspector has come and gone. His first question was “Where’s the transfer switch?” (there is none – and he inspected another system a few weeks ago nearby.) I explained the function of the system, showed him the original electrical drawing, and the inverter manual. I think he decided that he didn’t know as much as my installer and approved us. The yellow permit card has now been removed from the window.
I’ll be filing the PSE&G interconnection agreement this afternoon.
UPDATE #3 5:00pm – The NJ Clean Energy Program inspector was here a few minutes ago. He also passed us. He did a more thorough inspection than the township inspector – actually counted the panels, checked the DC voltage at the DC disconnect switches, and turned off the exterior A/C disconnect switches to see the meter speed up (it was running forward).
I mailed the PSE&G interconnection agreement paperwork today at the post office – they should receive it on Thursday. My installer estimates a 6-week wait for the new meter and the ability to turn the system back on again – for now it will sit dormant.
Final Cost Roundup
We’ve made the last payment to our installer – the only remaining cost as far as I know is the PSE&G interconnection fee.
For those who are interested, here is the final cost roundup:
$52,893 Installer’s Total Cost from Contract
-$37,025.63 Final Rebate Amount from State (70% of total)
—————-
$15,867.37 Our cost from the Installer
$118 Permit Cost (paid directly by us)
$100 PSE&G Interconnect Agreement Fee (paid directly by us)
—————-
$16,085.37 Our total cost
The system produces 6.825 kWh at peak. That means $7.78/watt total cost, or $2.36/watt our cost.
We expect an approximate savings of $716/year (estimated 2/3 of our power usage), making the payback about 22 years based on straight savings and assuming no increase in electric utility rates. It’s probably more like 17-18 years assuming a reasonable increase in the cost of electricity. My cost for the system will never go up, but electrical rates will almost certainly go up – at least as much as the inflation rate.
There is a rule of thumb that your property value goes up $20 for every $1 in utility savings. In that case, we will increase our property value $14,320, or most of the cost. Combine that with 2 years of energy savings and the system is paid for. I should note that my installer feels the increase in property value is a little higher – somewhere between the $16,000 that we spent and the total $53,000 – more like the low $20k’s.
An additional available source of revenue is the sale of green tags or Renewable Energy Credits (REC). I’m investigating that now. It means that you sell the “greenness” of your system to a broker who ultimately sells it to a company that is required to produce a certain amount of energy from green sources. For example, utility company B could purchase my green tag and therefore have covered 6.825 kWh of their green energy requirement for the life of the sale. It appears that this could provide $400-500 of income per year to us, but at the cost of the actual environmental benefits of our installation (since somebody else is avoiding pollution less than they “have to”).
Of course, money isn’t the only benefit here. We have the benefit to the environment – after about 2-3 years the system has produced enough energy and environmental benefits to cover it’s manufacture. We’re reducing dependence on oil and natural gas for electric power – most of which come from foreign sources. We’re also doing more local generation than before – reducing stress on the electrical infrastructure in our area (less current has to travel over the wires from the power plant when our system is injecting it locally).
Township Inspection Scheduled
The Township inspection has been scheduled for next Tuesday, May 25. My installer will be trying to schedule the state BPU inspector to come the same day (or he might just choose not to inspect).
After that, the PSE&G paperwork goes in, which might take as long as 6 weeks. It might be mid-July before we’re truly live full-time.
UPDATE: The State BPU inspection is scheduled for the same day. The inspector will be coming by on his way home out of Trenton – we’re conveniently located!
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