Health & Fitness
My First Year with Solar Panels
A recap of my first year with solar panels, detailing monthly savings along with maintenance requirements and an SREC analysis.
So it's been a full year since my solar panels started generating electricity for me and it pretty much went as expected. My 5kW array generated 6 MWh total, earned me 6 SRECs and saved me $1,000 off my electric bill over the course of the year.
Here's a breakdown of my savings:
Period Ending Production As % of Usage Savings Dec 21, 2011 223 kWh 32.5% $45.05* Jan 24, 2012 288 kWh 34.5% $59.26* Feb 23, 2012 419 kWh 72.2% $86.81* Mar 23, 2012 484 kWh 87.7% $106.48* Apr 24, 2012 663 kWh 116.1% $145.86* May 21, 2012 536 kWh 117.3% $81.62 Jun 22, 2012 707 kWh 121.8% $107.72 Jul 23, 2012 767 kWh 75.1% $116.86 Aug 22, 2012 660 kWh 67.9% $98.93 Sep 21, 2012 616 kWh 77.6% $92.34 Oct 23, 2012 449 kWh 69.7% $67.32 Nov 23, 2012 313 kWh 50.2% $46.93 Overall 6,125 kWh 73.7% $1,055.28*NStar 100% Green Energy rate
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If there seems to be some inconsistency, it is due to monthly usage fluctuations, differences in the number of days per billing period and NStar price changes.
So I ended the year producing just about 6,000 kWh, saving a little more than $1,000 and producing almost 75% of the electricity I used. These figures met or exceeded my original expectations so I’m happy that my estimates proved to be accurate.
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My maintenace expectation was accurate also as there was hardly any. I did spray them off with the hose once in May when they were covered with pollen but that was only because I didn't want to lose several days' worth of production until it rained.
There were a couple issues, however, that I feel must be addressed. I started out on NStar’s 100% Green Energy program. Electricity on that program costs almost 40% more than it does on the normal residential rate. So my savings are inflated from December through April and I don’t expect to save a full $1,000 in future years unless the cost of electricity rises.
Another disappointment was my income from SRECs. I had conservatively estimated that they’d sell for $400 each. However, the SREC market proved to be binary: selling near the maximum of $600 when undersupplied and near the minimum of $285 when oversupplied. And unfortunately, the market became oversupplied just as my SRECs became available to sell. I still plan on selling them for the $285 minimum in the Last Chance Auction next July, but if I cannot I will probably keep them until the market potentially becomes undersupplied again in 2015. They will be worth much more at that time, but I still have to wait. I will get paid for them but they are not the automatic quarterly payment I had budgeted them for.
All in all, it was a successful solar year and I still feel my solar panels are a great investment. My 4-year payback window should still be valid but due to the delay in selling my SRECs, I won't see most of that money until the end of that time.
If you have any questions, please leave a comment or visit my website and blog at www.MassSolarInfo.com.
Gary