r/TexasSolar

Solar when done correctly can be VERY REWARDING!!!

I put solar on my house about 6 years ago with the idea of just owning my power as much as I could. Fast forward to the retail electric providers (REP) changing the game on all of us, gave me something to think about. So I decided to add batteries to my existing 49-panel Enphase system. I went with EG4 products, 1 GridBOSS, 2 FlexBOSS 21's and 4 of the 16kWh (64kWh total) batteries. Yesterday was a bad day in Houston with the weather, so my house ran off of my batteries and then when the sun peaked out the solar (see pic below).

Now my house is self producing the power it needs during the day and with the free night plan I'm able to charge and run whatever I need to in my house and not worry about it.

WHEN the power goes out, now I will run off of my solar and batteries and IF there is no sun for a few days, my generator will kick on and power the house AND recharge my batteries, and when the batteries get to the SOC (state of charge) that I set, the generator will turn off and my house will then again be running on batteries!

I don't really recommend people do what I did as it is overkill, but it is my house and I will never have to worry about power again. PLUS I have a HUGE credit built up with my REP (see pic below) so IF I do ever need to pull power from the grid I will be in great shape.

https://preview.redd.it/ca46jnda9q2h1.jpg?width=2116&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=57b7de6fe9975d6172f989e0b114853162496052

https://preview.redd.it/fapq4rmt9q2h1.png?width=986&format=png&auto=webp&s=b93c74f5158fa07637720c8d75e2b59e9773d224

Had my system installed in May 2024. 14.7 KW REC panels and 2x PW3. Purchased through Texas Solar Professional (Texassolar.pro).

Estimated production 22.4 MWh annually. Actual 18.2 MWh.

Power plan: Just Energy nights free plan. Paid: $12 first month, since $0 with a balance of -$325 (I think 3 referral $75 bonuses, plus my own sign up).

Total home usage: 67.8 MWh

Other additions to home: Electrical Heat pumps to replace aged traditional AC + Furnace (Daikin units also bought and installed by TSP a year ago).
EV SUV purchased (Charger bought and installed by TSP a year ago) - 3.6 MWh used 8500 actual mileage (figure 15 mpg gas and average of $3/gallon ~$1700 savings in a year)

Issues encountered:

18 months in and noticed weird behavior of some of the MPPTs wouldn’t wake from standby with the others. They would sometimes start up and generate power after an hour or so after the others, or be down the entire day. TSP assigned a resource to trouble shoot and work with Tesla. Tesla logs didn’t identify the issue and in the end we tried replacing MCIs on the problematic lines. That ended up fixing the issue but it did take a handful of visits to troubleshoot over a two week period. TSP maintained a high level of customer support.

I know it sounds like a review/ love letter for TSP, but I’m honestly sharing my experience.

ROI is roughly $7000-7500 annually when factoring in natural gas and car fuel savings. I have 2 years left on my Just Energy nights free contract.. *knock on wood*

Homeowner with CoServ. Summer electric hits $600+/mo (pool, two HVAC, two EVs, 2-story), 7-year-old roof since we bought the house 7 years ago.

Got a Tesla quote lease = $50K buyout at year 5, for $391/mo (+yearly increase til buyout). This is for 2 powerwalls with a 25.20 kW system. Other dealers local cash quotes around $60-65k for similar. Low mortgage interest so opportunity math says solar lease+invest more cash beats upfront cash purchase. If others regret their lease

Three things I can't get clarity on:

A) Texas rates went up 5.7%/yr from 2020-2024 but US 25-yr avg is 2.85%. All this AI/data center demand, is it actually going to keep pushing 5%+?

B) Feb 2021 freeze outage still messes with me. Powerwalls feel like cheap insurance against pool plumbing freeze ($3-15K busted pipes) but our actual outage history is mostly 5-min blips.

C) We are in top 5 of hail claims. 2023 was about $7-8B damage across DFW. Am I just putting this money for a piñata on my roof? :-) "Hey that powerwall saved our pool equipment but we just got hit with a baseball hail rock a month later!"

If you've been through a major hailstorm WITH solar, is it not as bad with Tier 1 panels even when the gof ball size ones do eventually hit?

I’ve built our workflow to provide quicker delivery (24 hours), smoother AHJ-compliant permit packages and dependable 24/7 support to help installers avoid delays and keep projects moving efficiently. Revisions and restamps are free of charge when required. I support installers across the USA with permit-ready solar designs and PE stamping services for residential, commercial, battery, and EV projects.

Anyone looking for the design partner. Please DM.

Just added PW to my system. Currently, I am on a 1:1 from Green Mountain, but that is going away. I already enrolled in Free Nights of Direct Energy, but my plan starts next month. Seems to me a Free Nights plan is the way to go even with the base charges. If my system can cover the consumption during the non-Free hours, the days when it is gloomy I assume is just a matter of not going crazy on the consumption but moving my heavy loads during the night, like PW charging, EV charging, and dryer and other ones I would think.

There is no buy back, but it seems on the long run makes more sense than trying to get into a BB plan when they do not pay 1:1 anymore. I know there is also the TESLA plans, but it seems even that they offer credits to the VPP, It is not really that much money we make on it, and also the export buyback sucks too.

If anyone differs or has other opinions, they are welcome.

What’s everyone signing up for in terms of contract length? 12, 18, 24 months?

Picking a new plan and trying to make a decision. If anyone has referral codes that would be helpful!

So a few years ago (maybe 2021), a veryyy pushy salesman came to our home and convinced my dad to sign a $100k contract for 20kw solar panels and 50k for a battery (this in in Texas btw). My dad signed the 100k deal for the panels only. Anyways, there were a lot of promises about being able to sell back energy to the grid, saving money on the electric bill, getting a rebate etc. Basically everything has been proven to

I think the sales man was from freedom forever, which apparently has been getting into a bit of trouble.

Anyways, fr the first 3 years (2021-2023) the panels only produced 10kw per year and the electric bill barely saw a dent in it. this was a whole ordeal and the company said they would pay the electric bill back, but I do not think that happened. So between paying for the regular electric bill and the solar panels payment, my parents are out $500-800/month.

I want to submit a complaint with the AG and honestly just want the solar panels and the loan ~gone.~ My parents are not particular old (they are in their 50s), but this was still very predatory and they were absolutely taken advantage of. They had no idea what they were signing up for and what they *should* have been asking. The sales person basically did not leave until he got a signature.

Is there anything I can do? Please be nice :') I feel like I am in waaayyyy over my head

Please do not make any business with sunrun solars as they hired a racist Person on their team who was identified on a video insulting and being racist towards a Asian American citizen in front of her kids on mothers day!!! CRAZYYYY

Person identified none other than HAYDEN ANDREWS

Does anyone know of a local installer in or around Tomball, TX, that can handle warranty service on a QCell system? I had my system installed by Affordable Solar, Roof, and Air and have a single panel that has stopped producing. I need to get someone out to look at it, but ASRA has apparently gone out of business, at least in this area. No response to online service requests, and literally every phone number I was provided for service is now disconnected. I’ve tried reaching out to QCells directly, but their responses always direct me to submit my claim at a webpage that doesn’t exist.

I know I could probably call my favorite electrician, but this should clearly be covered under the 25 year warranty, so trying to avoid paying for a service that should be free.

Appreciate any pointers folks might have.