r/solarenergy

We take regular hits from golf balls and I'm wondering if solar is a possibility.

I have done some research and have seen solutions that vary from netting systems to polycarbonate panels for protection.

I'm wondering if anyone here has had practical experience with any of these solutions? Do they work? Are they cost effective? Do they degrade efficiency?

Any thoughts and recommendations would be appreciated. Thx in advance.

I'm thinking about putting an offer in on a house that has 14 panels on the roof, and that's all I can find out so far. I'm moving from renting to owning, and I'm trying to decide how much the install is worth. I'm in Maryland; the asking price on the house is $375,000. They are owned outright.

I realize this is very little to go on but the realtor cannot tell me the wattage, at least not yet. Is this more of a $10,000, $25,000, or $50,000 level of cost to put on? I can buy another place and install myself of course, but getting an idea of how much this adds to the value would be . . . valuable.

**Update** -- thank you all! A 2024 install so they're quite new. I drive an electric so the solar means cheap fuel too, and with the price of electricity going up in PJM it's a really nice benefit. May install a battery to go with it. Average electric bill has been $35 according to the docs with the house.

The house is in great shape. I wish the garden was too!

We have a 24KW array with 2 Tesla PW2s. We got them literally days before the PW3s came out and were not backwards compatible. We want more battery storage. What’s the best option?

The is idea that you take the benefits of having solar panels above, blocking direct harsh sunlight on the azolla, and preventing water evaporation. The azolla pond below evaporation cooling keeps the solar panels cool which improves their efficiency. Harvest the azolla, squeeze and dry it for sale as a product, and sell the excess electricity generated as well. This would result in a carbon sequestration system that would maximize land usage per acre because of the rapid cycling of azolla production per acre, while offsetting electricity usage from coal.

They assume:

Payback = system cost ÷ monthly bill savings

But that ignores how electricity pricing actually works today.

A more realistic view looks like this:

• Utility rates in the U.S. average ~17¢/kWh and keep rising ~3–5% annually
• Every rate increase improves your solar savings over time
• Adding battery storage increases value by reducing peak-hour grid usage

So ROI isn’t static anymore; it improves as utility prices go up.

In other words: solar isn’t just about cutting today’s bill; it’s about locking in future energy costs.

Our home gets an enormous amount of sunlight in the back of the house, especially on these hot summer days. Anyone have solar panels installed on their roof and like the company they work with?

6 years ago I had a licensed electrician install a 6.6kw system. I have only recently started using the monitoring up trying to work out how we might be able to upgrade our system. To my surprise we are only producing an average of 4.8mwh per year, over the past 6 years. I can see the inverter regularly reaches 4.9kw and then crashes down to 1kw and repeatedly zig zags. Sometimes it plateaus, but most days there is zig zagging.

The AC cable from the inverter to the meter board is about 50m long, and it is 6mm.

When I go through all these details with GoogleAI it tells me that this cable is drastically undersized and is against the solar regulations. It says this is the culprit of my approximately 50% loss in production, as the resistance caused by the small cable is causing the inverter to raise in voltage and then tripping an alarm and dropping back down to 1kw.

Firstly, does this all sound plausible? I’m no expect so I’m relying on Google.

Secondly, if it is against the standards do they have to replace the cable with a larger cable?

If I have to pay to do that I will, but I’m wondering if they broke regulations choosing a smaller cable then shouldn’t they have to replace it?

hello, everyone… i am buying a small 12v fridge to tide me over until i can get my bigger system… anyone have any experience with Euhomy or Simzlife systems?… just looking for input… thanks in advance, i am looking forward to your input, and have a great day/week/end!!!…

Most of the global solar market is completely dominated by rigid, heavy silicon panels that require heavy aluminum frames and complex roof racking systems.

But recently, there has been a lot of technical innovation surrounding Organic Photovoltaics (OPV) and ultra-thin, printable solar cells.

These materials are incredibly lightweight, flexible, and can literally be rolled out like a roll of wallpaper or stuck onto curved surfaces, car roofs, and even lightweight canvas tents.

The manufacturing process for organic solar is also significantly cleaner than traditional silicon, as it doesn't require high-temperature smelting or toxic chemical refining.

But the massive downside that always comes up in data sheets is the efficiency and lifespan compromise. Most commercial OPV cells struggle to hit even 10% to 12% operational efficiency, which is nearly half of what a standard silicon panel delivers.

Furthermore, their organic chemical chains degrade much faster under direct, intense solar radiation.

Do you think flexible organic solar will ever achieve the durability needed to compete with standard rooftop arrays?

Or will this technology always be restricted to niche consumer electronics, portable camping gear, and temporary outdoor structures?