Home Solar
- Thread starter lou1661
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The awesome MakerMoot is coming up (13-15th Nov 2026), Visit the TORM & ARM markets,and have space back at camp to work on projects and enjoy great company. PLEASE CLICK HERE for more information.
A couple of questions.
(1) What do you want to achieve from home solar- regular money off power, resilience in power cuts etc?
(2) What is your location like- roof orientation, size of grounds etc?
Oh, and how much do you have available to spend?
If you have a large house with a south facing roof elevation and very deep pockets, maybe you go the direction of someone I know in the south UK who has a roof array, big house battery and system that isolates the house in the event of a powercut (they get frequently) so they can just carry on without noticing.
At the other extreme is a small solar and power station (such as Jackery, Ecoflow, Bluetti) which gives some capability to charge phones etc in a power cut. Or a solar array which generates a bit of income but is automatically disconnected in a power cut.
Each of these is set up differently, costs different amounts and achieves different goals- and so all depends what you want from your solar (and how much you have available to spend on it).
GC
(1) What do you want to achieve from home solar- regular money off power, resilience in power cuts etc?
(2) What is your location like- roof orientation, size of grounds etc?
Oh, and how much do you have available to spend?
If you have a large house with a south facing roof elevation and very deep pockets, maybe you go the direction of someone I know in the south UK who has a roof array, big house battery and system that isolates the house in the event of a powercut (they get frequently) so they can just carry on without noticing.
At the other extreme is a small solar and power station (such as Jackery, Ecoflow, Bluetti) which gives some capability to charge phones etc in a power cut. Or a solar array which generates a bit of income but is automatically disconnected in a power cut.
Each of these is set up differently, costs different amounts and achieves different goals- and so all depends what you want from your solar (and how much you have available to spend on it).
GC
On top of the cost questions come the recovery of cost questions - I worked out that I have a low chance of recovering the cost of a full solar power installation in my remaining lifetime especially if I include the investment value of the outlay 
I’ve gone small, currently. A micro inverter with cheap panels in an imperfect location that’s angled the wrong way but making more than nothing that procrastination would result in.
So far I’m 10% of the invested costs back in a months worth of generation. That’ll tail off over winter but that’s fine.
So far I’m 10% of the invested costs back in a months worth of generation. That’ll tail off over winter but that’s fine.
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