We went solar and here are the real numbers
As a progressive, data geek, and homeowner, solar panels were hard to resist. After moving into our new home in 2020, my spouse and I decided to invest in installing a solar panel array on our roof. When the panels went online in June 2021, I eagerly began crunching the numbers.
First, a shout-out to our installer Solar Solution who did a fantastic job and I highly recommend them if you’re in the DC area. (I know that makes this sound like a sponsored post, but it’s not, they really were superb.)
First, the obvious: The energy we consume from solar panels is energy we don’t get from a “non-renewable” source. (I’m putting “non-renewable” in scare quotes because solar panel production is not renewable, and some portion of grid energy is renewable. But let’s leave that aside for now.)
Our 23 solar panels are rated to produce a total of 8.28 kilowatts (kW), but in reality energy production doesn’t get that high and maximum production is for a short part of the day. We peak at about 6.6 kW when the sun is highest in the sky and closest to the direction our panels face. The highest total energy production we’ll probably ever see in a day is 56 kWh, which we got on a bright, cloudless day a few days before the summer solstice (the day with the most daylight!) and only a few weeks after the panels were installed.
