In their current form, solar panels aren't sexy to me, but they are quite quickly looking more practical in recent years. As for the conduit, I don't think anything looks worse than to paint it.
Maybe run 1-1/2" electrical conduit through the roof much like a plumbing vent?
The connection is already there if the wire is twisted up tight, before the wirenut is screwed on. At that point is it is only providing insulation. With the nut you have a splice that might be so hard to pull apart that the wire could break first.
3M does make a live spring twist on connector if you prefer that style and they do work better when the wires are not twisted.
You can paint conduit but I doubt they had a lot of choice about the location. In this hemisphere, the collectors need a southern exposure. It is one thing that keeps them from really being attractive for me. My ridge line runs north and south so half the day they would be in the shade. I also don't like the idea of poking holes in my roof. I would prefer them on the ground but the neighbors would really hate that ;-)
If it is painted to match the background color it isn't horrible. The lights in my screen cage are run with EMT and it pretty much just disappears against the framing. It is bronze tho.
Elon Musk made a lot of noise with his design that looked like real shingles. But apparently it was mostly hype and BS, to the point that investors have complained that they were defrauded with his statements, claiming more were installed than actually were, etc. From last I read, almost all have been installed in a small radius of the factory and it took several crews 3 weeks to do the install. But the biggest problem is they cost about 3X what a regular system costs. Which means they are for the rich hippies, Hollywood stars, etc. I sure would not put them on the front of a house. The ones here that have them, it looks horrible. IMO, it devalues the house more than you will ever recover in electric cost.
IDK what's so terrible about painting conduit either. As long as it's done right. For a new install, I'd spray paint most of it before it's put up, then do the joints, touch it up, after it's up. But the panels are just as ugly and no hiding them.
The southern exposure was the deciding factor for me not to put in anything solar. The house is longways to the road. That would put the solar facing the road or it would take up the yard that is toward the road. It would look ugly on the roof. No neighbors to worry about, just me. The back side which would be fine for solar as far as the layout goes, however it faces north and if I tried to angle the solar south they would be in the shade.
I just could not see much savings or payback in my lifetime. The power bill is is less than $ 200 a month.By the time I saved on the power bill, the solar would probably be due for replacement.
You may want to find more up to date information.
Until, of course, volume and competition bring the prices down. Welcome to the free enterprise system.
Agree with everything but the payback. If your bill is $150, in ten years, that's $18K and the after tax cost is about that or less. The system should last over twice as long.
As usual, you add nothing, just tell others to go do research. Why are Democrats so lazy?
It seems to me they make conduit that comes brown and stays brown.
If not, I would have rather had the conduit go through the roof, through a closet, through a corner of the first floor** and to the basement than have it outside like that.
**Or through a corner of the second floor and a closet on the first floor.
My friend has them on the ground, but it's a big lot and they face a farm. They are hid from her view by a bunch of bushes. She bought the house this way. It's a hilly neighborhood amidst a lot of farm land, and she found out after she bought the house that it used to be flat like the rest of the area, but the developer made hills so it would look more interesting.
Maybe should add that she was really happy with how big her electic credits were for the first few years. Then they went down a lot. About a year ago someone wrote her offering her, I forget, maybe $4000 for the rest of her credits forever. and not too long after that, her credits started climbing again, at least half the way to where they used to be.
It seems someone knew rates were going to go up so he tried to buy the credits when they seemed low in value.
This is maryland fwiw.
The problem with all of that is they don't talk about maintenance or the fact that collectors don't really put out the rated amount of power. Even here in sunny Florida they are telling us plan on the rated power per hour times 5 or 6 per day. (not the 12 people might be told) That gets worse as they age. Add to that the fact that when (not if) your roof starts leaking, they have to remove the whole system to replace the roof. One good hurricane and it is all gone anyway. I know panels are getting a lot cheaper and for some folks it might be a good deal but most off that deal is tax incentives and a favorable treatment forced on electrical suppliers by the government. Basically you are being subsidized by your neighbors who don't have $20,000-30,000 to put on their roof. Welfare for the rich.
It costs about $10k for a typical system nowadays with credits; and that won't change much next year, even with the 50% cut in the federal tax credit. And the payback period runs from 7 to 10 years depending on your insolation and average electric supplier rates.
And they get cheaper every year.
Removing the system takes an hour or two, as does putting it back in the extremely unlikely event you need to replace your roof. Those panels are quite light and the mounting mechanisms are simple to emplace and remove.
Hurricanes may be a problem for you, but not for the majority of American households.
And it doesn't take a genius to realize that sunlight starts out weak at sunrise, builds to a peak when the sun is overhead, and gradually weakens as the sun sets. If someone tells you that the panels generate a constant amount of energy as long as the sun is shining, more fool you.
A competent installer takes into account many factors when designing a system to produce X KWh annually; including the seasonal insolation based on latitude and any obstructions (trees, etc). The number of panels will be the result of a sophisticated computer program that calculates what's needed (a hand-held device that, when placed in the location of the panels, will locate obstructions automatically, measure latitude and azimuth and recommend panel placement and number).
LOL! The solar companies around here make the HVAC thieves look like a bunch of boy scouts.
So far I do not recall anyone saying if you put that 10,000 in stock or something giving aorund 5% interist or if you had to borrow that 10,000 for 5 or more years what would be the payback.
What is the cost reduction per month or year in percent ? Do you save
50 % or 75 % of the cost of electricity ?
BS
and that won't change
BS squared.
Those panels are
How big is "the typical $10,000 system"? (I really haven't priced one for a while)
What other credits are there besides the federal tax credit?
For more than half of households in the US that credit is not that valuable because it is non refundable. They don't really owe that much in taxes in the first place. That is why I say "welfare for the rich".
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