Is Solar Energy Worth the Cost?

"Is Solar Energy Worth the Cost?"

It depends entirely upon the other options, does it not?

offgridstores said:

Solar systems can be expensive at first, but they may save money over time. This topic looks at whether solar energy is a good investment.

I think a lot of the points in this thread come down to how much self-consumption you actually have and what your local electricity prices look like.

For some people it clearly makes sense over the long term, especially if they can shift usage into daytime or use EV charging. For others, the payback just stretches out too long to feel worth it.

In the end it feels less like a pure “investment” decision and more like a lifestyle + energy security choice.

I’ve also noticed that once people move beyond small home setups and start looking at larger storage (like a 32kWh rack-style system such as https://cmxbattery.com/product/32kwh-48v-628ah-floor-mounted-lifepo4-battery-solar-home-energy-storage/  the conversation shifts again — it becomes more about stability and how to actually use the energy rather than just the ROI on paper.

Miller_Ranch said:

Definitely worth the cost if you live miles away from the nearest power line. 

Yup. In 2010 it was $250000+ to go to a place 1/3 of the way to us. It didn't take too much math. OTOH we could just move to a populated sustainable community.

Somebody says they go where power lines don't go. That's where I'd live (and do). That's the person I'd work with if I couldn't do it myself.

But most want to flick switches and push buttons like they have a grid connection. Therein is the danger.

DanS26 said:

In my neck of the woods, if you have to pay someone to install solar it is not going ever have a payback.  IMO it is the huge cost of outside labor and expertise that make it unaffordable.  DIYers definitely have an advantage.

In the Midwest we live in a world of net billing rather than net metering.  That means you receive wholesale for energy sent to the grid and pay retail to buy it back at night. That means in most cases it is a no go for anyone who knows how to analyze cost/benefit.

If you go off grid the cost of installation and the recurring battery replacement cannot come even close to buying grid power at under $0.10 per kWh.  The REMC system in the Midwest rural areas is very good and it is rare to not be able to get reasonable priced grid power. My REMC has not raised the cost for a kWh for over 6 years.......unbelievable in this inflationary world.

OTOH it is very good that people who can't or don't want grid power have an alternative and can go it alone if they want.....costs be damned.  Most of the people I know who go off grid do it for other reasons than trying to save money.  

Dan, there is a lot of truth to what you wrote. When we started our home for retirement, if grid power was available, it wouldn't have taken a second thought. But I know that I would've still added solar because it is something I've long wanted to do. But there was no grid power nor will there ever be in our canyon so we planned everything around efficiency.

As far as hiring out there were two things that fell into that category because I couldn't do it by myself: the foundation and then the stacking of logs. A concrete truck will not come here so everything was done by hand. The house through 'dry in' was craftsmanship with a chain saw. Both crews lived in tents and made their meals on sight. They had a ball. I'm about to the point of changing out my panels and it's gonna be tough because it will cut the work day in half if someone won't stay on site.

In time I learned something unexpected that is an advantage of being where power lines don't go. That is that many folks in our modern times are spoiled by convenience and going off grid translates to work and having to learn some new things. That really cuts down on potential neighbors. It stays really quiet in this area except for hunting season(s).