Ask HN: How do you about buying a home solar system?

[torstenvl]

It seems like it's impossible to find any information about home solar. The major players (SunPower, Panasonic) don't even list prices on their websites, and they won't talk to you unless you request an installation quote and tell them inappropriate personal details (like current utility bill amounts).

How does someone who isn't an electrician start getting an idea of what equipment they need and how much it would cost?

I don't want to run my cabin off a series of Jackery panels and batteries but that's what I'll do if I have to.

[bruce511]

The root of the problem is that the best solution solution for you depends on several factors;

A) your current usage (and cost). There are big amounts of money in play, so ideally uou want a solution best sized to your needs. 1 person living alone consumes a lot less than say a family of 4.

B) where you live. Not just big picture (latitude, climate) but also local details like shade coverage (mountains, trees), roof pitch angle and roof direction.

C) your goals - do you just want to reduce your bill, go off-grid, deal either regular power outages, generate excess back yo the grid, and so on.

D) install costs. Some buildings are easier than others. Some roofs are space-constrained. Etc.

While "ball park" pricing is reasonably easy to determine, spec'ing the right system for you is going to take all the above into account.

Ultimately your costs area

A) number and capacity of panels

B) size of inverter

C) capacity of battery

D) installation of panels, and electrics.

There's lots of info on the Web, but start with some basics. What are your goals? What is your current electricity consumption? Peak, daytime, nighttime? Can you use grid for backup?

I've done a fair amount of research for my own system, so I'm happy to expand if you want to give more detail.

[bombcar]

https://www.sevarg.net/tag/solar2020/ would be a good place to start as he's basically done exactly what you said and expanded.

All the major players are playing fast and loose trying to milk the subsidies. Better to at least learn enough about how to do it yourself so that you can verify that you're not getting screwed even if you hire it out.

[borissk → bombcar]

>> Better to at least learn enough about how to do it yourself so that you can verify that you're not getting screwed even if you hire it out

The problem is we live in a very complex civilization and it's impossible to learn about all the services one uses. Is solar a big enough investment to justify spending a ton of time learning more about it (instead of say learning something that's of use for one's current occupation/business and can help increase income)?

[bombcar → borissk]

Learning the basics would be about a total of a week's worth of study, and would prevent you from falling to various scams that leave you with less money AND a non-working system.

I'd say it's worthwhile, or find a very trusted contractor to deal with that for you.

[wrycoder → borissk]

All the books and articles I’ve seen are very superficial. Does anyone here have any suggestions?

[GianFabien]

If you are not a qualified electrician, then you need to be extremely careful. A typical PV installation outputs 350-450V DC. That is even more lethal than AC.

You could setup a 12V or 24V system, which is relatively safe to work on. But that won't run your fridge, etc.

I had no trouble finding suitable panels, inverters, controllers, etc on eBay.

[borissk]

Hmmm, if you don't want to give your personal details to get a quote, why don't you provide a fake name, temporary email and phone number and made up utility bills?