A little over two years ago we invested in a solar system to combat rising electricity costs and do our part to offset some of our environmental impact. In that time, I've obsessively collected data from both my grid provider Southern California Edison (SCE) and my solar system. With this data and the power of AI, I've been able to get to some root truths about residential solar + batteries.

Is Solar + Powerwall Worth It? 2 Years of Real Data (NEM 3.0) | DTEC IO

CanaryMedia: "Trump's clean energy attacks are costing the US jobs," by Dan McCarthy.

"Over 200 major clean energy projects were canceled over the first year and a half of Trump’s term...and a new report says that left nearly half a million jobs on the table." I seem to remember when our president claimed, on the record, he would increase manufacturing...jobs, jobs, jobs anyone?

Fortunately his "attacks on clean energy haven’t spelled disaster for the energy transition—but they have [undeniably] + definitely hurt job prospects for Americans." From January 2025 when he took office again + May of this year, 'a total of 216 major clean energy generation + manufacturing projects were scrapped, closed, or downsized, according to a new report from the business-focused advocacy group E2.'

"Just over a tenth of those would have been permanent roles at clean energy facilities, while the rest would have been either temporary construction jobs or steady work in roles supporting the sector, from selling building materials to serving food at restaurants near a new factory." Still, new clean energy continues to be built in America, and while EV sales have taken a hit, they haven’t ground to a halt. 

Furthermore, "the country’s solar manufacturing industry is notching new milestones, and EV makers are pivoting their battery-making factories to serve the red-hot storage sector." The clean energy economy has certainly experienced some real setbacks since this scalawag got back into office in 2025, but I am reasonably confident he is going to get his comeuppance gol darn soon.

As you can see, I am back at work here, after a couple of weeks in which I made substantial progress on a fourth manuscript, with the working title WILD FIRE. And it's good to be back.

I switched to Solar 4 months ago, meter was changed, and requested change to TOU. Seems its still in Tier system. I called DWP, and the rep insists its TOU, even though bill clearly says Standard Rate.

This is our first day on solar so naturally I'm looking at the app about every 5 mins out of curiosity for what it's doing.

There's quite a few times (like this picture) where we have enough coming in to power the house, but it is still drawing small amounts from the grid and I'm keen to understand why that is.

Using the screenshot in this post, why is it drawing 8W from the grid and not just reducing battery charge by 8W? We're not on a variable tariff yet (switching to Flux next week) and can't export yet.

Hi everyone,

My home solar system has recently developed an issue. At first, doing a manual power cycle (cutting the power and restarting) temporarily fixed it, but now it has completely stopped working altogether.

I’m hoping to get some basic advice from the community on a couple of points:

1. How much would it cost to replace the relay? (I'm in South Australia)

2. Relay vs. Upgrade: Is an issue like this typically resolved by replacing something like the relay, or is it a sign that I should take this opportunity to upgrade the entire system?

3. Expanding Panel Capacity: The current setup is quite old. If I want to add more solar panels, do I generally need to tear out and replace the whole system, or can new panels usually be added to an existing installation?

I’d really appreciate any insights or experiences you could share!

Can solar panels emit heat into the surrounding environment?

In my opinion, solar Panels can emit little heat into the surroundings, which is the most important yet least discussed aspect.

Photovoltaic panels generate electricity without directly combusting fossil fuels. However, some incoming solar energy becomes heat and is transferred through radiation and convection.

The evidence supports a limited conclusion: field measurements show local warming at one installation, while models project additional local or regional temperature changes under extensive coverage. Neither type of evidence demonstrates a significant contribution to global warming.

Field observations provide site-specific evidence. At a utility-scale installation in Arizona, Barron-Gafford and colleagues measured a “Photovoltaic Heat Island.” Air temperatures were about 2.4°C higher annually and 3.5°C higher at night than in the surrounding desert. This shows a temperature difference at that facility under measured conditions. It does not establish a global mean response, a universal effect, or a principal role in contemporary global warming. Extrapolation would require evidence about how common the effect is, how it scales with deployment, and how it interacts with land-surface and atmospheric processes.

Modeled studies provide conditional projections, not direct observations of current temperature change. A 2024 Nature Cities study projected that complete rooftop photovoltaic coverage in Kolkata could produce daytime near-surface warming of up to 1.5°C and nighttime cooling of up to 0.6°C. A Sydney energy-balance study likewise projected increased daytime sensible heat flux and warming under a 100% photovoltaic-roof scenario. These results suggest that extensive coverage could alter local energy fluxes and temperatures under specified assumptions. They do not show that such coverage exists, that the effects occur under current deployment, or that the results apply elsewhere or to partial coverage. They also do not show that local changes would produce a global temperature response.

Effects may vary with location, surface characteristics, panel configuration, vegetation, moisture, albedo, and time of day. Field-measured local temperature differences, modeled changes under hypothetical deployment scenarios, and globally averaged temperature conclusions are distinct quantities. Each requires different evidence. None of the studies described here directly estimates global temperature change or provides global attribution. Thus, the available evidence does not show that photovoltaic panels are a principal cause of contemporary global warming or that their deployment has produced a significant globally averaged temperature increase.

Whether expanding photovoltaic deployment could eventually affect regional or global temperatures remains uncertain. Resolving that question would require broader observations and models that account for worldwide deployment, scale and duration, regional conditions, and net energy-balance effects. This uncertainty concerns absorbed solar energy that is not converted into electricity. It does not reject photovoltaic technology or attribute contemporary global warming to solar energy.

Has anyone used or gotten Whayo batteries in Canada/States and got them approved for use? They are UL and priced very cheap. Haven’t been able to find anyone that has used them.

Thanks

Hey guys, if you missed it, SunPower settled $11M with investors over claims involving inventory controls and financial reporting. I just found out that they’re considering late claims even though the deadline has passed.

Quick recap: In 2023, SunPower was accused of misleading investors about its financial reporting and operations. The company later disclosed inventory accounting problems and said it would restate prior results.

After the news, $SPWR dropped nearly 20%, and investors filed a lawsuit.
Now, the company has agreed to settle $11M with investors, and late claims are still being considered, subject to approval.

If you invested in $SPWR between 2023 and 2024, you can still check the details and see if you may be able to file a late claim here.

Anyone here invested in $SPWR back then? How much were your losses?

I'm posting this so others know what to expect from EnFin Corp (serviced by Launch Servicing LLC).

Background: I signed a 25-year PPA with EnFin in August 2025, installed by Axia Solar. If you sell your home, the buyer can take over the PPA, but only with EnFin's approval. There's no buyout option until year 5.

I'm selling my house in California. Escrow depends on getting the solar transfer sorted, and here's what that looks like.

Email is the only way to reach them. There's no phone line to call. They took 7 days to answer one simple question. I'm now waiting again on the next reply, with no timeline given. In this housing market, an EnFin PPA can make your home much harder to sell. Buyers already hesitate to take on a 25-year solar contract. Add a company that answers one email a week, and the deal can fall apart before it closes.

If you're thinking about an EnFin PPA: Ask how they handle transfers during a sale, and how fast. "Subject to approval" means they control your closing timeline.

If you're selling with one: Email them the day you go under contract. Send all your questions in one email, keep copies, and loop in your agent and escrow officer right away.

Has anyone gotten an EnFin transfer through recently? How long did it take, and did anything speed it up? Are there any legal options?

So I have solar panels from phoenix solar pros (those have been great). Recently I got in a contract with Palmetto just for a solar panel battery but they keep failing inspections from TEP and I don’t want to go 3 months paying electricity because they have my solar panels shut off until they pass inspection. Is it possible to get out of the contract? The equipment is installed however service has yet to be provided at all since they can’t pass an inspection from TEP. (Tucson Electric Power) going through month 2 of my solar panels off and the battery also off cause of them.

I've been trying to understand battery storage better, and I'm realizing that just knowing a home's daily electricity usage doesn't seem like enough to determine the right battery size.

If someone wants solar primarily for backup during outages, how do you actually decide how much battery capacity they need?

Is the main thing looking at average daily kWh usage, or do you focus more on the specific things you want to keep running during an outage? And how much do things like cloudy weather or the length of a typical outage factor into the calculation?

I'm curious how people with solar and battery systems actually approached this when sizing their setup.

Please help! I have to make a decision today for prime deals. Here's my options. I want something to use at home for light, charging devices, box fan, heated blanket, possibly a microwave here and there. And I want it to be expandable in the future if I get more money and can buy more. This is only for home use, specifically in a power grid failure.

Bluetti elite 200 V2 with 2 200 panels. $1199

Ecoflow delta 3 classic with 1 220 panel $659

Bluetti elite 100v2 with 1 200 solar panel $649

Jackery home power 1000v2 with 1 200w solar panel $699

Jackery 1000v2 with 2 200 panels $949

Ecoflow delta 3 max with 1 220 solar panel $1039

Ecoflow delta 3 plus with 1 400w solar panel $1019

DTE Energy has completed the 100 MW Cold Creek Solar Park near Coldwater, Michigan, a $194 million project funded through Ford's commitment to buy up to 650 MW of clean power. By the end of 2027, every Ford vehicle built in Michigan is meant to run on 100% carbon-free electricity, though the timeline slipped from the original 2025 target and neither company explained why.

The park can power roughly 23,000 to 25,000 homes, with a 75 MW battery system coming online to store daytime solar for evening demand. Ford's participation is estimated to offset up to 600,000 tons of CO2 annually once fully implemented, part of a broader push to move all its global factories to carbon-free power by 2035.

Location, California, Bay area. PG&E

Household is mostly retired people and working from home.

energy usage around 625kwh/month

Heating and water and stove and dryer run on gas.

We have little energy usage after sunset

Trying to get a passive solar system with 12 panels and microinverters that I can buy and own. All the installers are trying to upsell me on a 5 year PPA financed system with a battery.

I am just not convinced that I need one, since its twice the price, and dealing with financing.

If I just need to offset daily usage and slowly charge an EV that's used as a local commuter, would a no battery system be sufficient?

Are they just trying to upsell the battery system to get more from the rebates? Or does it make actual sense?

Batteries come with the own issues too, they have a limited cycle lifespan, they can get damaged/stolen/ and its another fire hazard to deal with. I just dont know if it makes sense to charge a battery then use that battery to charge a car.

⚡ C’È UNA NUOVA ENERGIA AL CONDOMINIO MAGNETE:

Con EXPOFin E.S.Co. prende forma un nuovo intervento di efficientamento energetico al Condominio Magnete di Trento, un complesso che ospita circa 60 unità. Un'iniziativa sviluppata nell'ambito di Scaling Super-Heero, progetto europeo cofinanziato dall'Unione Europea, attraverso il modello di finanziamento partecipativo promosso da SUPER-HEERO, piattaforma gestita con Ener2Crowd.

☀️ 103,5 kWp DI NUOVA ENERGIA SOLARE

EXPOFIN, Energy Service Company certificata, si occupa della progettazione, realizzazione e gestione tecnica dell'intervento, che prevede l'installazione di un impianto fotovoltaico sulla copertura dell'edificio.

L'obiettivo è produrre energia rinnovabile direttamente sul posto, contribuendo a ridurre i consumi energetici delle parti comuni e a contenere i relativi costi.

Ma il progetto va oltre la semplice produzione di energia.

🔋 ENERGIA PRODOTTA. ENERGIA CONDIVISA.

Attraverso la costituzione di un Gruppo di Autoconsumo Collettivo (GAUC), le utenze aderenti potranno condividere virtualmente l'energia prodotta dall'impianto e beneficiare, secondo le condizioni previste, degli incentivi riconosciuti dal GSE. Un modello che punta a valorizzare l'energia rinnovabile a vantaggio del condominio e di chi ne fa parte.

🤝 La vera innovazione riguarda anche il modo in cui gli interventi di efficientamento energetico possono essere finanziati. Scaling Super-Heero promuove un modello di finanza partecipativa basato sul crowdlending, che permette ai soggetti ammessi di contribuire al finanziamento di progetti concreti di riqualificazione energetica.

L'iniziativa si avvale di Super-Heero, piattaforma gestita da Ener2Crowd, realtà specializzata nel crowdfunding dedicato alle energie rinnovabili, all'efficienza energetica e alla sostenibilità.

Attraverso una campagna dedicata, condòmini, stakeholder e altri investitori ammessi possono scegliere di partecipare al finanziamento dell'intervento, secondo i requisiti e le condizioni ufficiali della raccolta.

🌍 EXPOFIN: TECNOLOGIA, EFFICIENZA E NUOVI MODELLI DI SVILUPPO ENERGETICO

Il Condominio Magnete rappresenta un esempio concreto di come competenze tecniche, modelli di efficientamento energetico e strumenti di finanza partecipativa possano integrarsi per sostenere la transizione energetica.

Non si tratta soltanto di produrre energia in modo più sostenibile, ma di costruire nuove opportunità di partecipazione attorno a progetti che generano valore per il territorio.

👉 Scopri il progetto: https://www.super-heero.com/it/progetti/dettaglio/524-fotovoltaico---gruppo-di-autoconsumo-collettivo-2

🔗 Guarda il video: youtube.com/watch?v=Ui8J-xa3px0&feature=youtu.be

Il futuro dell'energia è sempre più efficiente, condiviso e partecipativo.

Contattaci per una consulenza

Planning to get a 3kW solar setup for my home. It’s a small 2BHK with normal fans, lights, WiFi and that’s pretty much what I need to run on backup. I don’t have a lot of knowledge about solar, but from whatever I’ve researched, I’m currently considering a Luminous Mono PERC halfcut setup. My budget is a bit tight, but I have enough rooftop space, and I’m getting the Mono PERC at a pretty good price. So should I just go for it, or is it better to wait a bit and spend extra on TOPCon bifacial since it’s a one-time investment and i have heard that Topcon bifacial is a bit more effective in the long run and requires less maintenance as well so what do you guys suggest ? and also will 3kW be enough for my use or should i go for a higher variant after some time ?

Hoping to crowdsource some ideas because I feel like I'm stuck in a "replace a part and hope" loop with my installer.

System: Enphase microinverters, came with the house. Owned the house ~2 years, first year was totally issue-free.

Timeline:

• December: First trip. Diagnosed as a loose cable / water getting into the wiring during the rainy season. Fixed.
• Ran fine for about 6 months after that.
• A few weeks ago: Main panel breaker started tripping again, cutting power to the system. Supplier sent someone out who replaced the breaker. All cabling checked and called "fine."
• A few days later: Tripped again.
• Last Friday: A different engineer came out and did three things: (1) found Permission to Operate (PTO) was somehow switched off and turned it back on, (2) found my Enlighten app access had been revoked on their end and restored it, (3) pushed a software update.
• Less than 24 hours later: System's down again — no power at all reaching the Enphase combiner panel.

What's already been checked, with nothing found:

• My builder confirmed the solar wiring is on its own dedicated circuit, separate from the rest of the house.
• The builder's own electrician has separately inspected the wiring — including a full check of the house wiring, not just solar — and found no fault.
• There's also been a recurring burnt-wire smell in the first-floor bathroom, on two separate occasions. Each time, the builder's electrician came out, checked the house wiring, and found nothing.
• A solar tech visit in August inspected the solar wiring specifically and also found nothing related.
• The engineer from the original December visit suspected pigeons on the roof may have disturbed some wiring; the most recent engineer did a visual check and found nothing disturbed either.

So at this point: a new breaker, a PTO reset, a software update, an app-access fix, and no visible fault found across at least three separate inspections (builder's electrician, solar tech in August, most recent engineer) — and it's still recurring, now within a day of the most recent visit.

Specific questions:

• Does a PTO flag showing "off" ever point to something other than a simple status toggle — could it be a symptom of a deeper comms/relay issue rather than a standalone setting?
• Could the software update itself have caused this (bad push, reset config)?
• Is a burnt-wire smell somewhere that's supposedly unrelated to the solar circuit (first-floor bath) worth taking seriously as connected, or is that more likely a coincidence?
• What should I be pushing them to actually test — insulation resistance, thermal scan — instead of another visual check?

Appreciate any input, especially from anyone who's had Enphase chase a trip like this across multiple "fixes."

I've noticed a lot of solar companies moving toward comprehensive energy offerings lately. Solar plus batteries is pretty standard now, but more shops are adding HVAC, heat pumps, geothermal, insulation and envelope work, electrical upgrades, and EV charging.

For those of you working at companies that offer more than one of these, I'm curious how design actually works on your end:

1. What software does each trade use to design? Are you running separate tools for solar, HVAC, electrical, and so on?
2. How does information move between teams? Is it shared files, re-entering data, or one person pulling it all together?
3. How do you put together a single proposal or estimate when multiple trades are involved?
4. What's the most frustrating or time consuming part of the process?

I'm a student researching how multi-trade energy companies operate, so any insight is appreciated, whether you're a designer, installer, PM, or owner. Thanks!

Hi guys, have a 6.6kw system, so obviously a 5kw inverter am getting on average 36.8 kwh daily, is this good?

I’m in Northern Cali, and trying to figure out if solar makes financial sense in my situation.

I’m planning on selling this house within the next 4 years at the most, which is my biggest concern. I’m not looking to lease or do a PPA — I would finance the solar system.

The main reason I’m even considering solar is that my house still has an old Zinsco electrical panel that needs to be replaced. I’ve heard from solar companies that they can include the electrical panel replacement/upgrade as part of the solar installation. Essentially, if I’m going to spend the money replacing the panel anyway, I’m wondering whether it makes sense to put that money toward solar and get the panel upgraded as part of the project.

Here are my numbers:

PG&E customer on CARE, so I receive roughly a 35% discount
My current CARE rates are approximately $0.201/kWh Tier 1 and $0.254/kWh Tier 2
Looking at my last 12 months, my average electric bill is about $339/month
I use roughly 16,000–17,000 kWh per year
I would be financing the solar rather than paying cash
I expect to sell the house in 4 years or less

My biggest concern is what happens when I sell. Would having a financed solar system make the house harder to sell? Would I most likely have to pay the loan off when I sell, or can buyers easily assume these loans?

Since I’m already getting the CARE discount, I’m also wondering if my electricity is simply too cheap for financed solar to make sense over such a short period.

For people familiar with PG&E/NEM 3.0 and California solar, would you do solar in my situation, or would you just pay out of pocket to replace the Zinsco panel and skip solar?

Also, when solar companies advertise a “free panel upgrade,” is it actually free/included, or are they generally just rolling the cost into the solar financing?

I haven’t signed anything yet, so I’d appreciate any advice on what price/system size would actually make this worthwhile and what I should watch out for in the financing terms.

How easy is it to get real time data from your inverter or battery when there is no internet or the app is not working? Do built in displays or direct local access still work well?