It is about 440 square feet on top of my flat patio roof. It is 2 strings of 15 in parallel for a total of 30 panels. The total installed cost was $35k, but I got back $20k from the state of FL (an incentive for growing a solar business in FL) and then I got back about $2500 in tax credits. So the net to me was about $12.5k. I have a single grid tie inverter that connects directly to my AC main. FPL installed a bi-directional reading main meter and a separate meter to measure how much power I am generating instantaneously (at no expense to me). Now I can go to the FPL web site, log into my account, and see a plot of my monthly, daily, and every 15 minutes power generation. There is not a single moving part in the system - not even a fan. My inverter is outside so as not to dump the waste heat into the house where it would have to be pumped out by the A/C.
Each 15 panel string produces about 450VDC under load and this is converted with a switching grid-tie inverter to the 220V at 96% efficiency (I tested it). This works out well because the available current (hence power) varies constantly with cloud cover. With complete cloud cover I get about 30% output. When you can't even see the sun through the clouds, you still get about 10% output. This means I am still making power at 450VDC when it is raining - so the electrical connections and the panels must all be nicely waterproof of the electrolytic corrosion would eat it up. That really worries me about the thin film panels that they are mounting directly to the roof surface now. They will be making power while under water during the rain. I also have a separate directly heated solar hot water system. This is a simple system that is very reliable - simple because we are in a clime where it never freezes. On Thu, Dec 12, 2013 at 3:51 PM, Jed Rothwell <jedrothw...@gmail.com> wrote: > Bob Higgins <rj.bob.higg...@gmail.com> wrote: > > >> I have a 5.3 kW peak fixed PV system that provides most of the power for >> my house. >> > > Wow! How many square feet is that? How much did it cost? > > - Jed > >
