[ACHiPo]

J,
Thanks for the prompting.  Mine went online mid-May, although the metering wasn't sorted out until 6/10 so the first month's production is understated in the graph below.

Since installing the panels I've only paid taxes and fees (and gas) to PG&E.  Looking forward to getting the $11k credit next year, and the savings this year is nice.  Now if the rate plans will not change significantly over the next 5 years I may have a chance to get paid back!

Definitely seeing production drop as the trees are casting more of a shadow as the sun lowers in the sky.

AC

[MtnHam]

Congratulations to all the newly installed solar owners. You made a smart move. Soon the masses will wise up, and the stampede will begin. My system has been producing for over 6 years. Even though it was much more expensive than today's prices, it has been paying off since day 1.

My 20 year old 9kw diesel generator provides whole house power when the grid goes down, at a fuel cost of $1/hour. We live at the end of the grid, in the boonies, so we are usually the last to be restored after storms or outages, Nonetheless, the generator has only had about 100 hours of run time over those 6 years.

I will soon add a Tesla Power Wall which will eliminate much of that run time in the future; I will only have to activate the generator after several hours of an extended outage. And, the solar system will continue to operate if the sun is shining. Both the solar system and the generator will recharge the Power Wall.

Unless you live where power is extremely cheap (less than $0.10/kwh) or where solar is impractical, or you plan to move in the near future, you should not remain on the sidelines!

[JLM]

Unfortunately if your PV system is on the grid, it can't function as a backup (don't want to jolt the linemen trying to make repairs).

For folks like us Generac offers a $2000 rebate on 6kW & 15kW models if you are on propane.  For the smaller generators they also offer pre-wired 8 & 12 circuit panels to make installation much cheaper, but the cost of the generators themselves doesn't vary much by capacity (unless you jump up to big ones that run at 1,800 rpm or are water cooled).  Many don't realize that permanently mounted/fueled generators aren't necessarily whole house generators.  A careful evaluation of your electrical demands will determine how big a generator and how many circuits would be needed for "survival" needs versus whole house coverage. 

As MtnHam eluded to adding a big battery to the generator allows the battery (having been fully charged off the utility/solar power) to take over at the loss of utility power and run until utility power returns or the generator takes over.  Then as extra generator capacity allows the battery is recharged.  Once fully charged, the generator shuts off and the battery takes over again, and the process repeats.  This greatly reduces how much time the generator runs (especially at night during low demand), saving fuel/noise, and extends the lifetime of the generator (run time determines generator lifetime).