Our solar production

[hill]

A/C died on Friday night (of course). System is a 21 year old 10 SEER Trane (really, nothing runs like a trane).

Replaced with a 17.25 SEER, dual compressor Trane.

Expecting to see a big reduction in both on-peak and off-peak electricity usage.

Now, my solar trumps my usage. Trane and Sun power, what a combination (throw in Hayward VSP too).

How many tons was your system and who did you use--and were you happy with the install and price? Ours is about 12 years old and is only 12 SEER, so I've been thinking about a replacement. I have some gas appliances that I could switch to electric if I replace the AC system, since I would have more headroom with our solar system if I did make a change.

AND . . . did you replace the rest of the stuff? Better insulated duct work? Blower? Plenum? Tonnage doesn't give the best story . . . rather btu's. We're pricing new/replacement components too.

 

[RegGuheert]

August was a pretty good solar month. September begins the big drop in production as winter approaches.

Here are our numbers so far this year:

• Jan 2012: 0869 kWh
  Feb 2012: 1085 kWh
  Mar 2012: 1351 kWh
  Apr 2012: 1465 kWh
  May 2012: 1478 kWh
  Jun 2012: 1478 kWh
  Jul 2012: 1396 kWh
  Aug 2012: 1447 kWh
  -------------------------
  2012 Tot: 10569 kWh

 

[SilverLeaf]

August 2012 Solar Production

1,223 DC / 1,165 AC

Produced by my 6.9 kW Sunpower System
30 x 230 watt Sunpower Panels
30 x Tigo Maximizers
1 x 7 kW Sunpower (SMA) Inverter

 

[SilverLeaf]

A/C died on Friday night (of course). System is a 21 year old 10 SEER Trane (really, nothing runs like a trane).

Replaced with a 17.25 SEER, dual compressor Trane.

Expecting to see a big reduction in both on-peak and off-peak electricity usage.

Now, my solar trumps my usage. Trane and Sun power, what a combination (throw in Hayward VSP too).

How many tons was your system and who did you use--and were you happy with the install and price? Ours is about 12 years old and is only 12 SEER, so I've been thinking about a replacement. I have some gas appliances that I could switch to electric if I replace the AC system, since I would have more headroom with our solar system if I did make a change.

AND . . . did you replace the rest of the stuff? Better insulated duct work? Blower? Plenum? Tonnage doesn't give the best story . . . rather btu's. We're pricing new/replacement components too.

The system was installed by Air Conditioning by Jay (a very highly regarded installer, excellent customer reviews)
The system is a Trane 5 ton unit with matching air handler, system rated at 60,000 BTU
The system is rated at 17.75 SEER and contains two compressors (one operates at 5 ton, the second operates at 3 ton)
The was a complete system replacement (except for venting, which was checked for leaks and determined fully operational)

 

[dgpcolorado]

Here the August weather was rather cloudy, leading to the worst August solar production on my pre-existing panels in the four years I have been tracking it. The number came in the same as the previous month, which means that July was even worse, relatively speaking. But my overall production was up because of new panels I installed in mid-July. (The rain in July and August was appreciated, however, because it drastically lowered the fire danger here.)

Totals for original 700 Watt system:
Sept-11 96 kWh
Oct-11 100 kWh
Nov-11: 94 kWh
Dec-11: 91 kWh
Jan-12: 93 kWh
Feb-12: 89 kWh
Mar-12: 115 kWh
Apr-12: 107 kWh
May-12: 127 kWh
June-12: 120 kWh
July-12: 97 kWh, 179 kWh total with new panels on July 17th
Aug-12: 97 kWh, 271 kWh total with new panels

 

[TonyWilliams]

...Date......Monthly....Year to Date....Daily Peak

Jan 2012: 937 kWh..... 937 kWh..... 39.79 kWh
Feb 2012: 970 kWh....1910 kWh.... 43.57 kWh
Mar 2012: 1210 kWh.. 3120 kWh... 50.72 kWh
Apr 2012: 1267 kWh.. 4380 kWh... 54.18 kWh
May 2012: 1390 kWh.. 5770 kWh... 53.6 kWh
Jun 2012: 1455 kWh.. 7230 kWh... 55.1 kWh
July 2012: 1402 kWh.. 8632 kWh... 52.4 kWh
Aug 2012: 1318 kWh.. 9951 kWh... 50.0 kWh

http://enlighten.enphaseenergy.com/public/systems/Ukwf22392" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[RegGuheert]

September 2012 production was 40% higher than September 2011.

Here are our numbers so far this year:

• Jan 2012: 0869 kWh
  Feb 2012: 1085 kWh
  Mar 2012: 1351 kWh
  Apr 2012: 1465 kWh
  May 2012: 1478 kWh
  Jun 2012: 1478 kWh
  Jul 2012: 1396 kWh
  Aug 2012: 1447 kWh
  Sep 2012: 1294 kWh
  -------------------------
  2012 Tot: 11863 kWh

 

[ghabel]

Installed in June 2012

June 1292
July 1400
Aug 1388
Sept 1085

 

[Weatherman]

The Sunshine State tends to be anything but sunny during the summer months. We've had nearly 50" of rain since June 1st. So the output numbers may look weak, but that's normal for summertime. We make up for it from November through May when the weather is dry and there’s plenty of bright tropical sun.

7.2 kW system installed at the end of June 2012:

July: Expected: 913; Actual: 965
August: Expected: 895; Actual: 898
September: Expected: 873; Actual: 852

October: Expected 866
November: Expected 752
December: Expected 750
January: Expected 838
February: Expected 837
March: Expected 945
April: Expected 1037
May: Expected 970
June: Expected 891

 

[TNleaf]

2.4 kW system installed July 2012 (online 7/17/12)

July(partial)  185
August         341
September      307

------------------
Lifetime        833

 

[dgpcolorado]

I was up 8% over September 2011 for the old panels. (With my new panels the total increase was 221%.) June, July, and August were cloudy down months here so it is nice to see September be a bit of an improvement over last year.

Sept 2012 • 104 kWh (with new panels, 308 kWh)
Sept 2011 • 96 kWh
Sept 2010 • 112 kWh
Sept 2009 • 95 kWh

My solar year runs October through September and was 1234 kWh for the past year on my old array—the highest ever—and 1992 kWh including several months of the new array. The new panels ought to cover all my LEAF driving, the old panels about 60% of my household usage.

 

[SilverLeaf]

September 2012
DC production = 1,178
AC production = 1,119

With my added Solar Panels (5.52 to 6.9), My 17.75 SEER Trane A/C and my Hayward VSP Pool Pump, I am one happy camper.

 

[thankyouOB]

I was up 8% over September 2011 for the old panels. (With my new panels the total increase was 221%.) June, July, and August were cloudy down months here so it is nice to see September be a bit of an improvement over last year.

Sept 2012 • 104 kWh (with new panels, 308 kWh)
Sept 2011 • 96 kWh
Sept 2010 • 112 kWh
Sept 2009 • 95 kWh

My solar year runs October through September and was 1234 kWh for the past year on my old array—the highest ever—and 1992 kWh including several months of the new array. The new panels ought to cover all my LEAF driving, the old panels about 60% of my household usage.

congrats. more power to you.
was the upgrade in panels expensive?

 

[dgpcolorado]

congrats. more power to you.
was the upgrade in panels expensive?

Yes. They were a lot cheaper per Watt than the original ones due to the sharp reduction in panel prices over the last few years but they aren't cost-effective in any meaningful way. Some states have a lot of subsidies—my sister in central Oregon put in 4500 Watts for about $1000—but I am not eligible for what little Colorado incentive that exists. I put them in because I like driving on sunpower; I even charge my car in the middle of the day when I can.

The rationale is the same as for my LEAF: people buy less useful toys, do they not?

 

[TonyWilliams]

...Date......Monthly....Year to Date....Daily Peak

Jan 2012: 937 kWh..... 937 kWh..... 39.79 kWh
Feb 2012: 970 kWh....1910 kWh.... 43.57 kWh
Mar 2012: 1210 kWh.. 3120 kWh... 50.72 kWh
Apr 2012: 1267 kWh.. 4380 kWh... 54.18 kWh
May 2012: 1390 kWh.. 5770 kWh... 53.6 kWh
Jun 2012: 1455 kWh.. 7230 kWh... 55.1 kWh
July 2012: 1402 kWh.. 8632 kWh... 52.4 kWh
Aug 2012: 1318 kWh.. 9951 kWh... 50.0 kWh
Sep 2012: 1250 kWh..11200 kWh...
http://enlighten.enphaseenergy.com/public/systems/Ukwf22392" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

September 2012 Total: 1.25 MWh
Previous Month Total: 1.32 MWh
Year to Date: 11.2 MWh

 

[Weatherman]

Sun has set for another month, and thanks to Sandy, the last few days of October were clear, cool and breezy. This allowed the October total to exceed the expected amount by a considerable margin. Overall PVWatts hasn't done a bad job at providing the initial estimates over the past four months.

7.2 kW system installed at the end of June 2012:

July: Expected: 913; Actual: 965
August: Expected: 895; Actual: 898
September: Expected: 873; Actual: 852
October: Expected 866; Actual: 924

November: Expected 752
December: Expected 750
January: Expected 838
February: Expected 837
March: Expected 945
April: Expected 1037
May: Expected 970
June: Expected 891

 

[RegGuheert]

Sun has set for another month, and thanks to Sandy, the last few days of October were clear, cool and breezy. This allowed the October total to exceed the expected amount by a considerable margin.

Thanks to Sandy, the last five days have been windy, overcast, cold and rainy. This has greatly reduced our total for October. Unfortunately, I cannot calculate the total for the month since Sandy has also cut off our internet for the past two days. When it comes back up, I should be able to add in the additional few kWh that have not yet been reported.

Still, we are very thankful that the impact was not too bad here.

Edit: Internet is back now. Even with the storm, October 2012 production topped October 2011 (when we still had one misbehaving microinverter) by about 50 kWh.

Here are our numbers so far this year:

• Jan 2012: 0869 kWh
  Feb 2012: 1085 kWh
  Mar 2012: 1351 kWh
  Apr 2012: 1465 kWh
  May 2012: 1478 kWh
  Jun 2012: 1478 kWh
  Jul 2012: 1396 kWh
  Aug 2012: 1447 kWh
  Sep 2012: 1294 kWh
  Oct 2012: 0981 kWh
  -------------------------
  2012 Tot: 12844 kWh

 

[TNleaf]

2.4 kW system installed July 2012 (online 7/17/12)

July(partial)  185
August         341
September      307
October        290

------------------
Lifetime        1123

 

[dgpcolorado]

Here it was the sunniest October in the five years I have been tracking it. My old panel numbers:
Oct '08 96 kWh
Oct '09 87 kWh
Oct '10 98 kWh
Oct '11 100 kWh
Oct '12 113 kWh

Overall, the October total was 322 kWh—highest since my new panels were installed in July—and well more than my estimated total usage of 231 kWh. I'll be using up that credit over the winter as my output continues to drop along with the sun and length of the days.

It was also the warmest October I've ever seen here and I only had the furnace on briefly for three mornings the entire month, despite many below freezing overnight lows. My "sun tempered" house works well in the fall and winter.

 

[turbo2ltr]

First year of productionOct - Sept) about 9.2MWh
Currently have something like 1.6MWh peak credit with APS so I've been trying to charge during peak hours.

Can someone explain to me (or point me to something as I can't seem to find anything online) how power is sent back into the grid? I understand MPPTs and H-Bridges, but I just don't understand how, after the inverter creates this perfectly sync'd sinewave, how it's "shoved" back into the grid. To me the only way to reverse current flow is to increase the voltage over the incoming grid power. But that sounds like a bad idea, and I have yet to find any documentation that actually says that. I'll admit my knowledge on AC theory is a bit limited.