Dude, it wasn’t intended to be super accurate calculation... Nor did I ever suggest it was a good idea for use as a standby generator... In fact I wasn’t suggesting it was good idea at all economically... The only point was it doesn’t take a huge area to generate a decent amount of power. Far less than the poster I was responding to thought.
In short it was just a basic example.
In my original example I tripled the panel area to add lots of margin for his 12kW A/C example...
And 0.095 is 82.6% of the theoretical 0.115 performance in the German study you site. That actually is pretty good...
And, the solar panel manufacturer link I provide earlier has a 20 year warranty stating the power output won’t degrade below 80% of its original rated value. So the drop off over time isn’t nearly as bad as you make out.
And yes, you have to clean the panels from time to time... Duh...
And staying on the grid makes it much more practical because you don’t need batteries with all the cost and efficiency losses they cause. And during the periods the A/C is cycling off the solar power is feeding the grid reversing the spin on your power meter. So the solar system doesn’t have to provide 12kW continuously during a hot day, it has to average what the A/C uses over the day to balance the energy use as long as you stay on the grid.
And most people don’t use A/C to cool their house with snow outside... Where I live it is only hot when the sun is shining... At night it normally cools off quickly.
So chill out...
Dude? Your age is apparently catching up to you.
My premise is that "solar energy from the sun" is similar to moonbeams and windmills. It will not pay back your investment, despite "Tax credits" and other market manipulations. Your "1600 sq ft of panels is MUCH larger than most roofs have to offer to the southern exposure, and then must be IDEALLY situated.
I am quite familiar with solar (20+ years in "free hot water", but my only recommendation goes to H2O, with PV only to power the circulating pumps. With "free hot water", you can heat a house, or take a hot bath. A windmill for pumping water will provide a tank full of potential energy transference and something to quench a thirst. PV, at this time, is still a loser financially, and is only good for those locations far off the grid. But, the use of electricity in those places must be mitigated by propane, wood, or some other replaceable fuel appliances, because of total home needs. The selling back to the utility company only applies in locales where it is permitted, and most places above the Mason-Dixon line are SOL, due to lack of sufficient sunshine.
As for a 20 year guarantee on those Kyocera panels, I can suggest you look at (BP Solar closes Maryland factory, despite promising growth) BP Solar. They now import Chinese cells, as do many other "American" companies.
Wind energy is made possible by your friends at General Electric, and the Chicago Mafia. It is also a loser, but has lots of proponents from "Warshington" (as the locals call it!)...
Already chilled, thanks. My A/C is running fine! (BTW, I cited the German study...)
