The Secret to Shaving Half the Cost of Your Off-Grid Solar Power System
You can cut about half the cost of your off-grid solar power system (compared with a typical on-grid installation) without compromising output, reliability, or safety. It involves thinking outside the box and questioning the “that’s how things are done.”
Let’s start with a cost breakdown of a typical solar power system
Let’s use the numbers for a typical suburban home as a starting point:
Before applying any tax credits, a 5kW system (sufficient for a 1,500 sq. ft. home) comes in around $14,800. A 10kW system (for a 3,000 sq. ft. home) costs around $29,000, while a 15kW one (for a 4,500 sq. ft. home) comes in around $43,600.
25% of this cost goes to solar panels, 10% to the inverter, 10% to installation, 10% to the balance of system (e.g., wires, switches, mounting systems, battery, etc.) and 45% are operational costs (e.g., permitting, system design, grid connection, etc.)
Read that again: Almost half of the cost has nothing to do with generating power from the solar installation. It’s mostly spent on paperwork and hooking up to the grid.
These numbers are for an on-grid installation, which requires type-approved, brand-new equipment and a boatload of paperwork. There are good reasons for this — if someone starts turning your million-dollar suburban house roof into Swiss cheese to mount a truckload of panels on it, you better be sure not a single hole leaks and rots out your house frame.
There are many ways to reduce costs without cutting corners when we design and implement an off-grid system. For example, we only offer ground-mounted systems that don’t require waterproofing. You don’t have to hunt for unicorn, expensive, high-performance sealants that can stop leaks after being relentlessly roasted in the California sun for thirty years.
How we lower the cost of an off-grid solar system
Depending on a system’s complexity, we help our clients reduce the cost of their off-grid system by as much as 50%. Here’s how we do it:
Use refurbished panels
Brand-new panels cost around $120 to $400 each, while refurbished ones can be as low as $40 to $50 each. We source ours from a trusted vendor who tests all their panels (retired from commercial solar fields with most of their capacity still intact) and guarantees power output.
Plus, in rural areas like Caliente, where land is abundant, we can add a few extra panels to compensate for the slightly lower output and add resiliency to the system — and still come out ahead (by a lot!)
Why aren’t more people using refurbished panels? The answer is quite simple. These panels aren’t approved for grid-tied systems, i.e., most suburban installations. Since they have few suitable applications, the law of supply and demand makes them very affordable.
How about their real-world performance? We’ve been using them for over three years, and they’re performing better than expected. We’re happy with the outcomes and highly recommend this option to our clients.
Take a collaborative approach
Solar system installation isn’t just about having some guy come to your house to turn a few screws. If we drill into your roof and walls, we must consider liability and spend an arm and a leg on insurance.
But we got one thing going for us here: Almost everyone living on a ranch is pretty handy. We involve the property owner in the implementation process to eliminate all the “cover our ass” shenanigans so we can pass the savings to you.
Yes, you’ve gotta drill a few holes, turn a few screws, and lift a few 2x4s along with us. But that’d easily save you a few thousand bucks. Worth it?
Skip the expensive mounting contraptions
Solar installation on a suburban lot is expensive because you must use costly, type-approved mounting systems to secure the panels to the roof. And you must take down the installation if you have to repair or replace your roof!
Why go through all the trouble if you can throw a bunch of panels on 10, 20, or 40 acres of land and anchor them with some good old Unistrut?
By securing solar panels on the ground with our assistance, you can eliminate the costs (and risks) of drilling holes in your roof and the expensive mounting systems required by such installation.
Cut the formality
We streamline system design by working with our clients closely throughout the design-build process. We take the time to understand your needs at the start of the project to save time and effort later on by minimizing back-and-forth’s and frustrations.
We’ll also discuss options with you to minimize unnecessary paperwork and help you make informed decisions (note: we don’t officially offer permitting advice.)
So there you have it: The secret to affordable off-grid solar
We look for opportunities to streamline processes and cut out expenses related to grid-tied, cookie-cutter installation to help you substantially reduce the cost of off-grid solar solutions. No sketchy stuff, no cutting corners.
Our unique collaborative approach empowers you to make decisions based on your preferences, requirements, and usage patterns to create a system that works for you and your property.
We choose to live on the ranch in a rural area to do our own thing. So, why constrain ourselves with solar installation rules not designed for our environment?
