Quote:
Originally Posted by red-beard
On the electric company sending you a check, some will and most will not. You are LUCKY if you can get net-metering. 10 years ago, when the solar panels were uncommon, the companies were more likely to do net-metering. Not so much today.
If you have high electric rates, over 20 cents per kWh, it is a no-brainer! 12 to 20 cents, you can save money with a solar install. If you have a tiered electric rate, you can save money by putting in a small system to get you under the top tiers.
If you want to have power when the power goes out, it is a very different, battery based system. Can you use a battery system to effectively give yourself net-metering? Yes. But it requires using long life Lithium batteries. Can you hook up a generator with all of this? Yes, but it must be designed properly to prevent the solar from back-feeding the generator.
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FWIW - I did some reading on how the "payback" works in CA with PG&E. This is my understanding.... You get "trued up" every year with your usage vs your production if you have excess production you get paid 2-4 cents/kilowatt hour by check that is sent automatically. I think a net-metering meter is required.