Taxman's Lightning Chronology

[TaxmanHog]

$1108 increase in maintenance! Tires?
Not sure if solar would be feasible for you, but I would definitely look into it with those electric rates! ROI would be massive.

I had an ~incident~ in the fall of 2024 with my Harley, premiums on all my vehicles went through the roof and won't come down for a couple of years.

Sponsored

 

[TaxmanHog]

You'd have to run the numbers. But you have an interesting use case. If 98% of your charing is at home and electricy is that expensive- what is your average daily KwH use?

If you get serious about solar from what I've looked into DIY is absolutely the way to go. Do you have a lot of space for a ground-mounted system? Easier than the roof and absolutely DIY.

This guy is fascinating.

Offgrid Solar Beginner Crash Course: Build a 10,000W Solar System

DIY would cost you 1/2 of what a company would cost. I think this system costs $4k or so (prices fluctuate). Then you'd have to figure out how many panels you need to get the amount of KhW / day to refill the truck.

I think this entire system would be less than $8k .

I've thought about putting solar on the garage, it's a separate service feed, independent of the house feed. I average around 15 kWh a day usage for the majority of around town driving. Our plot of land isn't that large 10,000 sqft, the backyard section is around 2000 sqft.

 

[Karlos]

Though the Lightning is not as economically rewarding, it is still a joy to drive.

Looks like your 0.284/mile is more economically rewarding than the F250 @ 0.42/mile. Can't argue with the Joy to Drive !!

 

[TaxmanHog]

my son just called to ask about whether he might need a compact 120v generator to go along with his compact battery/inverter pack 120v POWERStation that will run his new business, a mobile "Coffee/Expresso Bar" for Weddings and Special Events, in 'off-grid' outdoor settings:

My ecoFlow system is my first line of protection, simple & easy to manage, covers our critical needs in the house on the rare occasion of a black out. The Lighting is a great way to recharge those units when they run low, the oil fired steam boiler doesn't need much electricity, and the fridge is modern low energy usage as well.

 

[EV Engineer]

I've thought about putting solar on the garage, it's a separate service feed, independent of the house feed. I average around 15 kWh a day usage for the majority of around town driving. Our plot of land isn't that large 10,000 sqft, the backyard section is around 2000 sqft.

Depends on your interest in all of this but if you're serious the return on investment here would be maybe 4-5 years. I think the biggest thing to figure out is where you'd put the panels. Garage could be good.

The system in his video seems like ~4k for everything. It's a 16kWh battery so that would cover you day to day.

For the panels, 16kWH generation divided by 4-5 hours of sunlight---you'd probably need around 3kW in the summer, maybe 4kW in the winter.

Do you already own an EcoFlow? Does it have a solar input?

Buy a few 400watt panels and play around with it. I'm sure there will be times you'll have to use Grid power but as he says in his video this is essentially a "totally seperate gas pump" just right at your house.

I'm almost jealous I've wanted to do this but our electricity is just so dang cheap I can't really justify it. 10cents a kWH all day everyday.

 

[Big guy]

Depends on your interest in all of this but if you're serious the return on investment here would be maybe 4-5 years. I think the biggest thing to figure out is where you'd put the panels. Garage could be good.

The system in his video seems like ~4k for everything. It's a 16kWh battery so that would cover you day to day.

For the panels, 16kWH generation divided by 4-5 hours of sunlight---you'd probably need around 3kW in the summer, maybe 4kW in the winter.

Do you already own an EcoFlow? Does it have a solar input?

Buy a few 400watt panels and play around with it. I'm sure there will be times you'll have to use Grid power but as he says in his video this is essentially a "totally seperate gas pump" just right at your house.

I'm almost jealous I've wanted to do this but our electricity is just so dang cheap I can't really justify it. 10cents a kWH all day everyday.

I've always wondered what happens if you put solar panels on your roof and one day need a new roof. Who takes off the panels, reinstalls them after the new roof is installed
and confirms everything works correctly after the new roof.

 

[EV Engineer]

I've always wondered what happens if you put solar panels on your roof and one day need a new roof. Who takes off the panels, reinstalls them after the new roof is installed
and confirms everything works correctly after the new roof.

I think this is why the DIY guys recommend ground mounted or something in your backyard.

If you can get on the roof--- sure, but for most people that's a big project and comes with real risk.
. And I wouldn't except most solar companies to be around in 10 years when you need a new roof.

I think this stuff works well with people who have large rural land and a 600 sqft solar ground array is no big deal.

 

[Big guy]

That's what I always expected to be the situation. Anyone on here have an experience with this kind of situation?

 

[GDN]

I've always wondered what happens if you put solar panels on your roof and one day need a new roof. Who takes off the panels, reinstalls them after the new roof is installed
and confirms everything works correctly after the new roof.

Asking @LUXMAN Two major hail storms in back to back years and solar everywhere.

 

[LUXMAN]

I've always wondered what happens if you put solar panels on your roof and one day need a new roof. Who takes off the panels, reinstalls them after the new roof is installed
and confirms everything works correctly after the new roof.

Well like @GDN said, I have quite the experience with that. I have a large solar system on my home. First installed in 2018. We had hail storms in 2023 and 2024.
Both a which required the whole system to be removed, the roof replaced and then a month later the whole system put back on the roof.

That is why I went with Tesla.
I figured/hoped they would be around for the long-term.
I had my insurance inspection of the roof. I called Tesla and told them the situation and they scheduled an appointment. Their guys came to inspect the system and they set up an appointment to remove it. You have to store the panels and the equipment on site. One time I did it in my back patio and the other time I did it in the garage. I would recommend inside storage if you can for your panels and equipment. After they fix the roof. You have to wait 30 days for the glue on the asphalt singles to dry. Then they will come back out and re-mount the system. And working with Tesla makes it so easy. I can't imagine if you went with a provider that disappeared and then later had to have someone else do it. Tesla had all the plans. They knew exactly where everything went and I didn't have to monitor the situation if I didn't want to.

additionally. you wanna make sure you have an insurance rider for the solar system or make sure it's covered under your policy if you live in an area where hail could be a problem.
I have done this twice and I haven't paid a thing out of pocket. While I have a deductible on my home, I also act as the contractor so I get 20% added to the claim so that covers my deductible.
But insurance does pay to get your system removed, any repairs done and reinstalled

 

[Scorpio3d]

I think this is why the DIY guys recommend ground mounted or something in your backyard.

If you can get on the roof--- sure, but for most people that's a big project and comes with real risk.
. And I wouldn't except most solar companies to be around in 10 years when you need a new roof.

I think this stuff works well with people who have large rural land and a 600 sqft solar ground array is no big deal.

I've always wondered what happens if you put solar panels on your roof and one day need a new roof. Who takes off the panels, reinstalls them after the new roof is installed
and confirms everything works correctly after the new roof.

I did not do it myself. I had a solar contractor do it, but I have some panels on my roof and some on a “pergola“ ground mount.

 

[Scorpio3d]

Well like @GDN said, I have quite the experience with that. I have a large solar system on my home. First installed in 2018. We had hail storms in 2023 and 2024.
Both a which required the whole system to be removed, the roof replaced and then a month later the whole system put back on the roof.

That is why I went with Tesla.
I figured/hoped they would be around for the long-term.
I had my insurance inspection of the roof. I called Tesla and told them the situation and they scheduled an appointment. Their guys came to inspect the system and they set up an appointment to remove it. You have to store the panels and the equipment on site. One time I did it in my back patio and the other time I did it in the garage. I would recommend inside storage if you can for your panels and equipment. After they fix the roof. You have to wait 30 days for the glue on the asphalt singles to dry. Then they will come back out and re-mount the system. And working with Tesla makes it so easy. I can't imagine if you went with a provider that disappeared and then later had to have someone else do it. Tesla had all the plans. They knew exactly where everything went and I didn't have to monitor the situation if I didn't want to.

additionally. you wanna make sure you have an insurance rider for the solar system or make sure it's covered under your policy if you live in an area where hail could be a problem.
I have done this twice and I haven't paid a thing out of pocket. While I have a deductible on my home, I also act as the contractor so I get 20% added to the claim so that covers my deductible.
But insurance does pay to get your system removed, any repairs done and reinstalled

That stinks!
I had another company do my solar install, but just added more powerwalls (expansion packs)through Tesla I did add the rider on my insurance. Hopefully, I won’t have to use it.

 

[LUXMAN]

That stinks!
I had another company do my solar install, but just added more powerwalls (expansion packs)through Tesla I did add the rider on my insurance. Hopefully, I won’t have to use it.

Nice PW3s! Wish I could get the expansion packs. They need to make it compatible with PW2.

Here are some PW pics and I figure I almost have enough solar, but you can see what a Texas Hailstorm can to to the panels. Supposedly they can stand up to Golf Ball size hail, but bigger is a problem. The reason they look like a Shotgun blast is they get hit by a large hail stone and that weakens the whole structure and the rest of the panel is blasted. I only lost 3 panels in the 2023 storm, but I lost 10 in the 2024 storm. But the system kept running.

With the loss of the Tax Credit however, I wouldn't even consider a system now. The price of electricity is < 12 cents here. So it is a tough one to justify, but electricity rates have increased 50% since I installed the first system in 2018.
And our Coop recently started a VPP with Tesla PW owners so that is actually starting to pay dividends. Even covers my gas bill.
I don't know how the solar industry will survive in a place like Texas however. So I hope Tesla continues to service the area (since I have a 25 year bumper to bumper warranty). I know they are making buy out Lease deals on solar so hopefully that will help. Good thing @TexasGardeningGirl is patient with my solar follies

BTW, @GDN that is Jesse's foot in the picture on the roof

 

[chriserx]

my son just called to ask about whether he might need a compact 120v generator to go along with his compact battery/inverter pack 120v POWERStation that will run his new business, a mobile "Coffee/Expresso Bar" for Weddings and Special Events, in 'off-grid' outdoor settings:

his initial concern was that the Powerstation might only be able to support about 2 hours of continuous output for his Expresso machine's 'boiler/heater' elements, and he might need to 'recharge' the Powerstation during a longer 4 hour event...

He landed, though, on another option: the Powerstation allows for DC input, whether from solar, or, even better, a separate battery... which I thought would be a 'best' idea, as an additional battery would be QUIET and more easily transported, without the need for gas/oil and the noise, of course.
A golfcart battery might just be the answer.

while we discussed this, his eyes got big, and he suddenly realized that his DAD already 'had' the answer: a truck that could not only support all his Coffee/Expresso machine needs on the open Tailgate, but also all the POWER he could possibly need to run his business ALL DAY! Maybe he can find a good used one... it might be less than a Powerstation and extra golfcart battery! Who Knows!

what's the usable capacity of that generator, I'm almost certain that it'd be enough for 4 hours of espresso production as is. espresso shots are tiny, i'd guess turn around was about 2-3 minutes per shot. I typed that before I realized it is a 2 shot machine, for a 4 hour event you likely are looking at 3-4 kwh.

 

[Big guy]

Well like @GDN said, I have quite the experience with that. I have a large solar system on my home. First installed in 2018. We had hail storms in 2023 and 2024.
Both a which required the whole system to be removed, the roof replaced and then a month later the whole system put back on the roof.

That is why I went with Tesla.
I figured/hoped they would be around for the long-term.
I had my insurance inspection of the roof. I called Tesla and told them the situation and they scheduled an appointment. Their guys came to inspect the system and they set up an appointment to remove it. You have to store the panels and the equipment on site. One time I did it in my back patio and the other time I did it in the garage. I would recommend inside storage if you can for your panels and equipment. After they fix the roof. You have to wait 30 days for the glue on the asphalt singles to dry. Then they will come back out and re-mount the system. And working with Tesla makes it so easy. I can't imagine if you went with a provider that disappeared and then later had to have someone else do it. Tesla had all the plans. They knew exactly where everything went and I didn't have to monitor the situation if I didn't want to.

additionally. you wanna make sure you have an insurance rider for the solar system or make sure it's covered under your policy if you live in an area where hail could be a problem.
I have done this twice and I haven't paid a thing out of pocket. While I have a deductible on my home, I also act as the contractor so I get 20% added to the claim so that covers my deductible.
But insurance does pay to get your system removed, any repairs done and reinstalled

Imagine if it wasn't a situation covered by insurance. Just that the roof was worn out and needed to be replaced. All out of pocket. OMG

Sponsored