Solar Power on your home makes financial sense, but it’s expensive.  So how do you stop solar projects from routinely taking a back seat to bathroom remodels?

Smart Financing.

That’s why we’re developing a resource to keep track of all the property tax solar energy financing programs across the country. Piloted in Berkeley last year, cities across the country are kicking off programs to help homeowners finance solar power and energy efficiency improvements with zero money down, by leveraging municipal bonds and property taxes.

It works by adding the cost of the home improvements like solar energy to your property tax bill, amortized over 20 years. The cost of capital is very reasonable, and the “what happens when I sell my home” question is simple and elegantly solved. The solar system goes with your house as does the tax bill. Piece of cake. We want to keep people up to date on what’s going on in their city with these programs.

Creative solar financing options, like solar PPAs, solar leases, smarter home equity products, and property tax municipal bond financing are needed for the tipping point in residential solar energy.

pic from penelopesloom.com

The Senate added a lot of renewable energy legislation to the $700B bailout bill because that thing had to go through.  It was just passed by the house and the president signed it earlier this evening.  If that’s the way things gotta get done so be it.  Here’s what’s in there (it’s big, and it’s goooood):

• 30 percent investment tax credit, capped at $4,000, for installations of small wind turbines.
• A one-year extension of production tax credits for power companies that produce electricity from wind, biomass or waves and currents from oceans, rivers or irrigation canals.
• Expansions of credits for producers biofuels and the retailers who sell such fuels.
• Tax credits for refineries, factories and other businesses that use carbon-capture systems.
• Extension of tax deductions for builders of energy-efficient buildings and homes and manufacturers of energy-efficient appliances.
• The 30 percent investment tax credit for solar and fuel-cell installations through 2016 and removal of a $2,000 cap for such credits on residential systems.
• $2,500 tax credit for owners of plug-in electric cars and (and up to $15,000 for plug-in electric trucks, wow).
• Up to $800 million in bonds to help finance clean power plants
• Benefits for employers who help their employees bike to work

Did you see the T. Boone Pickens commercial after the debates? He’s got a plan, a hell of a lot of money, and a masterful Social Media PR company (judging from the email auto-responder when I signed up at his site). Now he’s dumping millions of dollars into commercials after presidential debates. Whether it’s the best plan or not, he’s got enough money and charisma to actually make something happen! I wish more wealthy people would make big leaps on things they cared about.

So I went to his site and after watching his videos I want to cheer out the window. Finally, someone with some power and money has generated a megaphone to tell everybody that we got a problem.

I remember liking Pickens when I saw an interview with him after he donated $165M to the Oklahoma State football program.  Teachers were pissed and thought he should have donated to academics. Pickens basically said, “It’s my damn money and I’ll do whatever the hell I want with it.  And I want to see my team win!” I’m paraphrasing, but I thought it was awesome because he was so real about it.  He said what he wanted and what he was going to do and he did it.

Now that he IS spending that kind of crazy money for good, I feel like it’s going to make a difference, since he was so real and simple about the big football donation, I feel like he can speak an honest and simple language that people will listen to.  I mean hell, I dare you to watch until the end of this video and not feel moved. When you get to the end when he starts talking about cooperation, you might go ahead and do so based on his earnestness alone.

Anyway, I’m not 100% sure on all this re-routing natural gas to automobiles stuff, and Dan and I are going to dig into this over a few posts.  Stay tuned.  In the meantime check out Pickens and tell us what’s on your mind.

San Francisco and San Jose are setting examples for other cities in our nation by being renewable energy hotbeds. However, the cities are taking very different approaches. San Francisco is more focused on putting cash incentives and city-based financing into the hands of the consumer to make renewable energy installations more feasible. On the other hand, San Jose is skipping consumer subsidies and focusing on developing the local renewable energy industry, reducing the product innovation cycle and time-to-market.

San Jose

I spoke with Collin O’Mara, San Jose’s Clean Tech Strategist (How many cities have this dedicated job position do you think?).  There are many clean tech initiatives going on in San Jose, so much so that it sounded like his head was spinning. He spewed forth about 20 different plans in about 30 minutes. I won’t outline all their goals here (go here to see them), but I will tell you they are ambitious, to say the least. They want to be the clean tech center of the world, and I hope they pull that off. I read their “green vision” and I like where they’re focusing.
An important question that Collin wants San Jose to answer is: “How do we get your new products to market as quick as possible?”  A big solution to the problem was building a San Jose UL testing lab. If you want your products on the market, they need to be UL tested. Before that facility opened, the nearest solar testing labs were in Arizona (saddled with up to year-long backlogs). Now San Jose has the largest working photovoltaic testing facility in the world.

Another example of SJ banking on industry instead of broad subsidies was the San Jose Solar Challange. Mayor Reed implored solar companies to develop a way for San Jose’ers to install solar energy with no up front costs by creative financing structures.  They got some good results from this that will definitely scale to other cities.  Hey, if you want something, you gotta ask for it.

The bottom line is that if you are a budding clean tech company trying to bring some products from design to market, San Jose’s gonna try to make that as easy as possible for you. They’ll help you in many ways, so it’s a good place to be.  Collin then mentioned about four zillion clean tech companies focused in San Jose that I won’t list here.

As a side note: I’ve noted before that my biggest hopes for market-changing solar tech in the very near term come from two product ideas:  the integrated PV+Hot Water panels and Micro-Inverters.  Collin agreed that these are exciting technologies.

San Francisco

While San Jose might be a great place to call home if you’re a clean tech startup, San Francisco has some VERY strong initiatives focusing on the consumer, including the San Francisco Solar Incentive Program that gives up to $6000 per residential meter and even more for businesses.  San Francisco is also working with the city of Berkeley to create a low interest loan program to make the solar out-of-pocket expense more bearable for its citizens.  Smaller power bills and increased cost of doing business in San Francisco make some of the zero-financing programs no dice here. The above measures are going to help fix that and then some.

Both SF and SJ are winners of the 2008 Solar cities grants. SF is using some of this partnership money to run train the trainers meetings. The city trains proactive citizens to explain the fundamentals of solar energy to their neighbors, tennis clubs, bridge groups, whatever. I know that when citizens organize group purchases of solar energy they are much more effective in making a difference, because everyone feels like the right questions are being asked to the installer and everyone feels more comfortable. I have high hopes for this plan.  Finally, although I am biased obviously, I hope we can get some aid from the city to get the word out about One Block Off the Grid’s second run in here in SF, and hopefully triple the success of the first round.

I’m going to go over all the advantages and disadvantages of micro-inverters as I see them.   The big picture that needs to be understood is that, with microinverters, we’re talking about one inverter PER SOLAR PANEL all linked in parallel, whereas a traditional string inverter configuration links several panels together in SERIES.  This allows microinverters to maximize the energy harvest of each panel.

First, let’s go over what max power is.  Well, Power (with electricity) is voltage * current, or P=V*I.  Solar panels change their voltage output based on a number of factors, the most dominant of which is how hot they are (up to 50%! that’s why some neighborhoods can get more out of Solar in San Francisco than in some places in Arizona!).  The panel current also changes based on how much light is hitting them (irradiance).  The maximum power of a panel is just the highest number you can get by multiplying it’s voltage and current.

Take a look at this graph courtesy of the NABCEP study guide for PV Installers:

You can see that light hitting panels changes their max current, and heat changes their max voltage.  The Max Power Point moves accordingly (Imp and Vmp).

With a string inverter configuration, the inverter is getting several of these panels linked in series.  In series, their voltages of the panels add together but the current does not.  It’s the inverter’s job to try and track the maximum power point, but it can only “see” a string 0f panels, it doesn’t know which panels are doing what.

The big benefits of micro-inverters come from the fact that they can maximize this power point for EACH PANEL. So that if one panel is say dusty, faulty, aligned differently, a different type of panel, etc., it does not drag down the whole string. Additionally, conventional string inverters are limited in the configurations they can accept, and disregarding those limitations can sometimes result in zero system output at times.  micro-inverters, on the other hand, are free of most of those limitations.

Due to this individualized “panel harvest,” Enphase claims you will see anywhere from a 5%-25% gain in power output when compared to a string inverter configuration.  The low end of that range would assume a well engineered string configuration with panels on the same orientation and tilt, without shading.  You would need some heavy shading or panel orientation differences to achieve the upper end.

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ADVANTAGES

Modularity – Scalability

Let’s say you want to add an electric car in two years, but you don’t want to oversize your system now because you won’t get a check from the utility for excess production (or even a thank you.) Due to the nature of microinverters, you can almost always just slap on another panel/micro-inverter.

• Ideally you’d want to get it sized right the first time to avoid having to increase the racking system and number of roof penetrations, but this is still more scalable than a string inverter.
• With string inverters you have to adhere to a regimented string design, and an upgrade would require a number of things from a different inverter to a large wing of panels to fit the string configurations. For example, a 3000 watt string inverter may be limited to five specific configurations: 2-strings of 7-panels, 2-strings of 8-panels, or 1-string of 9-panels. That means you are limited to 14, 16, or 9 panels. Not a lot of scalability there.
• Up to 16 micro-inverters can be linked in parallel per AC branch. That does not mean you can only have 16 max panels, you can have literally any number of them from one to whatever your electrical service will accommodate. It is just good because you can fit more per branch than most string inverters which may cap out at 11 or 12 per string. This isn’t a giant advantage but it’s nice for the installers wiring small systems.
• No clunky box downstairs. These inverters go on the back of each panel, on the roof, so there’s no need for a big string inverter downstairs by your meter. That eliminates concerns about string inverter placement and clearance issues, conduit run eyesores, keeping the inverter out of the sun, etc. Also no need for DC switching points.

Shading

This is the big one. If you shade enough panels in a row, you can bring the voltage of the entire string low enough so that the inverter just stops, creating zero power output. However, if you have say, 5 panels shaded on an 8-panel array, those 3 panels just keep kicking with micro inverters, each one creating maximum power.

Furthermore, if dust, grime, or bird poop are getting on panels disproportionately, they can drag down the power of the whole string, much like stepping only a small portion of a water hose. Remember: the string inverter maximizes power output for the whole string, not each panel, so if some panels are suboptimal, so is the whole string.

Differences in Panels

Enphase conducted a beta test by creating massive solar installs in a checkerboard pattern. Meaning, every other panel on the roof was connected to a micro-inverter or a conventional string inverter. Over time, panels got more and more mismatched because of dust and de-rating differences. As a result, the power output of the micro inverters increased comparatively to the string configured system.

• Production methods for panels have gotten better and will get even better, but still, panel to panel mismatch is exploited best by microinverters, maximizing each panel’s max power point
• If you live in a home where certain parts of the roof are sprayed with road dust, the impact could be particularly significant
• This would be uncommon, but if you have a bunch of different panels lying around, or you have a system installed but your buddy gave you a bunch of different type of panels that fell off a truck, you can mix and match them with micro-inverters since each are independent to their own panel. As string inverters require that all panels on a string be the same orientation, they must also be the same type.

No Single Point of Failure

This is really up for debate. Some would argue that no single point of failure is better because if one inverter goes out you still have power production while you’re waiting to get fixed up. Others would argue that you have simply multiplied the possibility of failure dozens of times. Currently, I believe what I hear about their design practices and think these things, although not proven, will last considerably longer than string inverters. I hope I don’t have to eat my hat.

Burst Mode

In the early morning and early evening there may not be enough current to drive a string inverter. It will “flip on” when it gets enough light. Micro-inverters (at least Enphase models) have a “burst mode” which stores up energy until they can release it in these low light conditions. This allows for SOME power output in times when you may have none with a string inverter. I don’t have numbers on how much, but I don’t think it’s a ton or they’d be making a bigger deal out of it.

Cheaper Labor Costs

Electricians do not need to be there all day wiring, they simply perform the connection at the main panel. Installers are doing most of the connections up on the roof. The installation is also quicker with less conduit bending and what not, so some money can be saved here.

Monitoring

Another huge one. Because it’s panel by panel, monitoring system sophistication is really powerful. Not only does the software know your system as a whole is underperforming, but which panels are the culprits. The monitoring system is smart enough to know that power depression on all panels is probably a cloud, whereas if one panel is blinking on and off you’ve got an issue. You currently can’t get this type of information with string inverter monitoring. There also is some other cool whizbang stuff like getting text messages if a panel is out. Your installer gets this info too, so as soon as you know there is a problem, so does the installer. The “EMU” is smart as hell and just plugs into the wall, grabbing RF signals that the Enphase modules throw out. No need to connect it directly to the system!

How much is the monitoring price? I think they have different programs but from what I understood, they recommend salespeople offer 1 year free and $10/month for the whole system after that (with lump packages that make it slightly cheaper than $10/month).

Orientation

Let’s say you have a small roof with a west and south face. You can fit 10 panels on the south face and 5 panels on the west face. String inverters require all panels on a string to be the same orientation and tilt, so a string of 5 and a string of 10 is probably not a possible configuration, and splitting them up 8 and 7 won’t work because of this requirement. Even if you were allowed to perform these two string configurations, different string orientations need to be carefully designed and can lead to disastrous situations if not carefully looked at, something which even seasoned solar salespeople may not be able to do correctly. This allows for roof area maximization.

DISADVANTAGES

Field testing data is relatively early

By relatively I mean that they have thousands of these things operating in the field, it’s just that they’re supposed to last for decades so it’s early until we’ve reached decades. This is a big issue for most people considering micro-inverter systems. As you may know I have a big beef with this sort of thing. “We are waiting for new technology! We are waiting for new technology!” Then you bring new technology and everyone is like “It’s untested! We don’t want it!” So here are some reasons why it’s not a big deal:

• Their MTBF is calculated for 119 years. They’ve got some people on their design team that would design stuff to be put on power poles in the middle of the desert. Believe me, they understand very clearly that if these have a high fail rate, they’re screwed as a company, so they put a whole ton of effort into nailing that beforehand.
• There are lots of micro-inverters in the field and according to Enphase, none have ever failed. There are more being installed every day.
• They have no moving parts and soft switching, unlike some fan cooled string inverters. That should aid in lengthening their lifespan.
• In California, inverters are all warranted for 10 years anyway, and the lifespan of a string inverter isn’t much longer than that. I could see being concerned in say, year 5, if tons of them started failing all at once and the company goes belly up. This is a legit concern, but I think it’s worth the small gamble based on what I’ve seen, plus they just got $15M in more in funding.

Exposed to the elements

So yah, they’re up there on the roof. They are shielded by the panels, but they are outside none the less. (However, I’ve already gone over how these are designed to be rugged as hell because the company’s future depends on it)

Limited in some applications

• No off grid situations, not overseas yet (50Hz), and haven’t been tested or designed for other forms of renewable energy other than solar
• They DO have a 3-phase version for commercial applications but that is outside the scope of this article

Are they cheaper or more expensive?

The answer is that it depends. I didn’t put this as and advantage or a disadvantage because it’s complicated. Currently Enphase is $200 MSRP last I checked. Let’s call a 3000 Watt string inverter $1600 for simplicity’s sake. So once you go over 8 panels you’re looking are more money on the product side, but you’re weighing that against some other things like, well, the advantages listed above.

The extra power output is worth money, and so is the decreased labor costs, so you have to do that calculation. On a tiny system, micro-inverters are a slam dunk in my mind.

What’s Next, who’s entering this market?

There are other micro inverters that will be manufactured, as well as some string inverter technology that attempts DC based max power point tracking like National Semiconductor’s Solar Magic technology, which as far as I’ve heard, isn’t in the field yet.  There’s something called “solar bridge” but there’s virtually nothing on the internet about it and I haven’t seen it in the field yet.

So that’s probably more than you ever wanted to know. My take is that for residential, you can’t beat these things, they rock. In some large, perfectly unshaded, same orientation, residential applications you could still make a case for string inverters I think.

If you’re actually still reading, here’s a good video:

This happened when I was still working for my old solar company, NextEnergy Solar. Not a joke.  let’s just say it was miller time when I got home.

“Ma’am, what’s the best way to get to your roof? We need to see where we’d put the solar panels and we don’t have a four story ladder.”

“I think this door goes out on to the roof, but I’ve never been out there.”

“OK… wait, it doesn’t seem to open… I think it’s just painted shut though, you mind if I…”

*motions of shoulder nudging it*

“Sure, go ahead.”

*Nudge* Nothing. *Harder Nudge* Nothing.

*Three more violent shoulder rammings*

“Let’s go try the window.”

*One last goodbye give-it-my-best ramming attempt.*

(It gives a about a milimeter)

“Hey! I think I can get it, it’s moving!”

*Ultra violent running shoulder ramming*

It gives more, about 3 MM now.

“Hey, that door looks like it may fall off its hinges if you keep ramming it. Do you think you will be able to close it if you get it open?”

“….. hmm… You’re right” *Disappointed look*

“OK, let’s try the window.”

There’s a solar panel shortage worldwide, but the solar industry is getting hit especially hard here in the US.

In California, the state rebate makes incremental drops as more and more people install solar. When the rebate is close to a drop point, solar salespeople make a large push for their fence-sitting customers get panels now, as it’s a very powerful selling point… that works.

Well that’s exactly what’s happening in Germany right now, but it’s a much bigger deal. Germany will pay you for your energy production for TWENTY YEARS with what’s called a “feed-in tariff.” Well, you can imagine that if you’re thinking of building a solar farm in Germany, you’d like to lock in the current twenty year payment price before it drops, right? So that’s one hell of a selling point.

This massive last minute push for solar in Germany before the drop is causing many distributors of photovoltaic panels to ship overseas, adding to the problem of an already painful shortage of solar panels in the US. Couple that with exploding demand in the US due to powerful new subsidies in places like New Jersey, Maryland, Hawaii, Colorado, (along with others states and municipalities), and we’re in trouble.

I don’t blame the distributors. With a strong Euro and the ability to get 125% – 150% as much money for their panels there, why wouldn’t they? It’s business.

What can we do? Not much. Supply will converge with demand at some point, though the problem will likely worsen before it gets better.

What can YOU do? Make sure to ask your installer what their fulfillment issues are with the shortage and if they can get panels… and try to get an honest answer. Get a few bids for solar. Bigger players may have more sway with their distributors or carry a more diversified product line. Most importantly, get solar now and stop thinking about it. There’s never been a better time than right now.

So, you are considering solar and need a few more rounds of ammo to seal the deal. Good! You’ve come to the right place. Let’s begin with the environmental benefits of choosing solar, then we’ll cover the juicy financials.

ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS

• No emissions/pollution free

Unlike burning coal, oil, or even wood, solar power is clean. That is to say, there are no residual accumulating pollutants after a day’s worth of energy generation.

• Reduce your carbon footprint

Whether you are an eco-cognizant carbon worrier, or someone who does not know the difference between a carbon footprint and a criminal fingerprint, you’ll be glad to know installing solar equipment on your property lessens the detrimental impact you have on our environment. There are some curmudgeons out there that will argue the carbon cost of producing the panels outstrips the advantage of them, but they are flatly wrong. Those panels have a net zero carbon footprint after only 2 years on your roof, and that number is decreasing with new production methods. After that, you’ll be consuming significantly less energy produced by processes which release CO2 into the atmosphere, thereby doing your part to ameliorate our global warming and pollution problems. Go you!

• Provide clean energy for the next generation

Your home or business will probably be around for some years to come, even after you pass on to whatever you believe lies ahead. The equipment you install now has long-term warranties on it, and many panel manufacturers warranty their product for 25 years. There are installations done 50 years ago that still produce. Those that inhabit your home or work in your buildings in 2060 will be thankful you installed this equipment.

• Be a part of your communities’ solar future

By conserving and installing solar power, you now are providing a model for others in your community to follow. You would be AMAZED at the difference in receptivity to solar from people on a block where someone has it vs. people on a block who don’t. It’s also a great way to teach your children or those in the neighborhood about energy, the awesome power of the sun, and electrical engineering. Even though I studied psychology, this stuff is really cool. Just think, you can run your electric guitar, Cuisinart or power tools with photons careening off of our sun. Try to imagine explaining that to someone who was born in 1608. This technology is simple, elegant and really amazing.

FINANCIAL BENEFITS

Here we get down to the financial reasons to go solar. Experience has shown that this is the area many home and business owners really care most about. Well, let’s get to it!

• Stabilizes energy costs over time

Current utility rates are just that. They are current – meaning they have been a lot lower in the past and there is no reason to believe they will be decreasing any time in the near future unless you start generating some of your own power. Below, you can see the average cost of energy per kilowatt hour in California. Over the past 30 years, this rate has increased at 6.7% per year. Look for this number to increase US wide in the coming years due to the increase in natural gas prices, among other things.

By getting ahead of the curve and going solar, you can lock in future energy costs over several decades that are significantly lower than you are currently paying. Here’s a more practical example of why going solar for this reason makes a lot of sense. As you probably know, airlines are having severe problems maintaining their profitability after fuel hikes. Many are charging for additional bags, some are now charging for water! Water! Well, in the past 2 years, United filed for bankruptcy, Delta almost tanked, and others like America West and US Airways had to merge with each other to stay afloat.

Southwest was the only airline that made it through this continuing price surge. They recently reported their 28th profitable quarter in a row. Why? They locked in the price of fuel years ahead of time at a good rate by buying fuel futures. Buy your own energy futures with solar energy today. Don’t be the next United Airlines. Even if you don’t have pensions to sever, the money you save can be used for other things- like your bottom line, groceries, or your next tank of gas.

• Utilizes free fuel (sunshine)

Oil extraction is risky, dangerous, messy and expensive business. Sunshine however, is.. well.. pleasantly free. I’ll spare you the elementary math. Yes, while the equipment needed to harness the energy is not free, the energy produced after payback is. It’s like having your own oil rig in your back yard, except it’s not ugly, nor does it move. Plus you don’t have to set the product on fire to make it work, it just does.

• Adds value to your home

Having solar equipment on your home increases its value. How much? Appraisers are still getting their act together on this one and they may vary a bit from one to another, but according to The Appraisal Journal, solar energy adds $15-$20 times yearly energy savings to resale value. So let’s say you own a home in Pennsylvania and you install a solar power system on your roof, and it ends up saving you $4000/year in electricity bills. That means your home would increase in value $60,000-$80,000. That’s more than the system will cost, so your initial investment is recouped immediately and pays a $4000 dividend the first year. Instead of getting upset every time your utility raises power rates, you get a raise instead!

• Reduces your annual electric or gas bill

No brainer.

• Leverages lucrative financial incentives and tax credits

Incentives and tax credits were passed into law in many states. Check the right hand side of the page for further details. In some areas, you can deduct up to 50% of the cost of your solar power system (including installation!). However, these tax credits are not permanent. For some areas, credits like this are expiring and will be stepped down over the next decade. Now’s the time to lock them in. Once electric rate prices make solar more cost effective on it’s own, you will have purchased the same technology as the latecomers, but the government will have paid up to half the price for you. You’ve been paying for these rebates with your taxes and your electric bill…. TAKE THEM BACK!

• Adds credits to your utility account for future use

Many states have net metering guidelines they must follow when home or business-owners install energy producing equipment. Net-metering does not involve people from your municipality donned in orange hardhats coming through to measure the height of your basketball hoop net with meter sticks. Instead, your power company is obliged to purchase power you generate back from you at a wholesale rate. So, let’s say you’ve got some solar power panels up on your roof for the summer but you decide to go on and take a vacation for a month or so. All the power that is being generated gets credited to your account. At the end of the year, if you use as much power as you feed back into the grid, your power bill is… negligible. In Germany, legislation has gone a step farther. There, they have huge feed-in tariffs which means that home and business-owners get paid 4 times as much for the electricity that they produce than for the power they consume. Also, they are cut a check from the power company for excess power generation. This is why over 60% of the solar equipment produced in this country is shipped there, creating a panel shortage here. Though the subsidies there are about to be cut back quite a bit, look at the effects on the workforce and panel market:

Now, go get yourself hooked up with a local installer to get moving!

Our engineer gave the customer the specs required by code for the trellis, and the customer built the structure because he was a contractor. Then our guys came in and did the install, and it’s really pretty looking. They are going to put in pavers underneath it and some patio furniture. It’s a hell of a way to shade your patio.

The system is a giant for a residential application at 7.74 kW, and by the time I got there to snap these pics it had already generated 43kWh or electricity that day, and it was only 3:30 PM.

If you want to get your place checked out, click here to get a free solar evaluation in San Francisco, and here for a solar evaluation anywhere in the US.

While many groups are praising the Pennsylvania general assembly for passing solar legislation in a special session earlier this month, some significant work remains to implement energy proposals that could really make a much more important impact on citizen’s checkbooks. Read more details on the Pennsylvania solar energy page.