Electronics Galleries

Our PV Solar System : In the fall of 2003, we installed this 2.1 KW PV array on the south-facing roof of our home in Silicon Valley. It consists of 12 165W Matrix (Photowatt) panels combined with a SMA SunnyBoy 2500 grid-intertie inverter. The total out-of-pocket cost for the system was about $8000 after CEC rebate and CA tax credit. We expect to receive about 5-6% of that back each year in the form of lower electric bills. That amounts to a tax-free annual dividend much greater than what that money was earning in the bank; it's also enough to cover the cost of financing the system on a 2nd mortgage (home equity line, etc.). The various roof pictures show shade patterns (before and after the installation). The inverter and meter pictures detail generation and usage while we were away for a week. Note that our system is fairly small and was not sized to cover ALL of our consumption; instead we aimed to eliminate our $.23/KWH usage and much of our $.19 usage.

Our PV Solar System

In the fall of 2003, we installed this 2.1 KW PV array on the south-facing roof of our home in Silicon Valley. It consists of 12 165W Matrix (Photowatt) panels combined with a SMA SunnyBoy 2500 grid-intertie inverter. The total out-of-pocket cost for the system was about $8000 after CEC rebate and CA tax credit. We expect to receive abo ...

Updated: Jun 14, 2004 2:29am PST

My First EV Expo :

My First EV Expo

Updated: Aug 19, 2008 11:58pm PST