When we built our house, I planned for the meter to be at the house; even ran conduit underground from a pole we put in. All for NORECO to want the meter at the closest utility pole by the highway, how they now keep track of what is what is a mystery. Was a surprise as we purchased our own transformer...not an issue when we were the 2nd house built in the subdivision. Now the wires are an absolute mess with some dragging on the ground with meters on that one pole NORECO wanted from 3' to 6' up and around the pole. What a mess. I'm going to ask the wife to inquire if we can move the meter...d*mn near willing to run some new poles to clean things up as well. Shawn
When I was designing our house, I was looking at being totally off-grid; this has been 14 or so years ago and the quote I got at the time for a solar/wind system was $50K. The electric bill, after all these years, still comes in between $100 to the most of $250 per month. ROI did not make sense for me. I ended up designing things with a split bus panel with a transfer switch which will power the "essential" circuits for lighting, ceiling fans, convenience outlets and the ref outlet off of a generator. The farm is a different situation; the transformer is far, to run secondary and installing poles, easement from neighbors and voltage drop made this a no go for me. We've installed a solar system to support the caretaker's house as well as power for a few things here and there on the 240V AC side. I designed and installed the system with our current workers, so was able to cut down on some of the costs, but it wasn't cheap. Once we get going on the aquaponics, pumps, aeration and irrigation systems I will figure out a hybrid wind/solar system; all 24VDC. Without the inverters the controllers for a DC system are relatively inexpensive. This is my opinion, ROI for a solar system to power your home doesn't seem to be a wise investment. We don't see the brownouts or their duration today compared to 10+ years ago. I think there are other options that could be cheaper based upon your situation. Shawn
I don't quite understand the "solar isn't a good investment" opinions. I heard those views from multiple sides, but at the same time I get advice that I shouldn't need to invest anywhere near half a million peso to get a 5 kw solar setup with sufficient batteries for night time use installed and running. Based on the statistics for Dumaguete the gross production of a 5 kw system should be around 20 kwh per day on average, so even when accounting for a system efficiency loss of 25% you'd still get an average net energy of 15 kwh per day. In a month that would save 15*30*15= 6,750 Peso, or roughly 80,000 Peso a year. So even if spending 400k on a top notch installation, I'd still get a 20% return on my investment. And yeah sure, some of that return will be needed for maintenance expenses, but still...................
I put mine in for approximately 300,000. Thats 2 batteries that last me the whole night. I dont think, though never positive, that i am not using any noreco. A little more for 3 guys to install it. I have 2 houses, 2 freezers, 1 fridge, and an aircon that we usually use about 3 hours a day. We use about 10 kw. designed it for a 5K but with the extra battery, we have had enough
So I decided to bite the bullet and have a hybrid solar energy system installed. I contacted a few installer via Face Book and had varying results. One was very expensive and another was slightly less. Dexter wanted to come out and review the site and discuss my needs before offering a quote. I have somewhat of a technical background so of course I had a few "skill testing question" and I was more than satisfied with answers (learned a few things). We discussed the number of solar panels, the inverter and battery capacities. We settled on enough solar panels to charge the batteries on an overcast day. The performance of the system is exactly as expected. On a sunny day fully charged by 12:00 noon, on a cloudy day fully charged by 3:30 pm. I had a couple of specific requirements 1) two manual transfer switches so the inverter/solar stuff could be completely bypassed if it's has a serious problem and 2) test points (light gauge wires) brought to the electrical panel so I can troubleshoot individual panels without have to climb on the roof. It was time to sign a contract. The contract listed every nut, bolt, piece of wire, all the hardware Dexter was offering and it's price. I I wanted to supply some of the parts myself I could and the contract price would be adjusted. Dexter's prices for the inverter, batteries and solar panels were competitive so I decided to source all materials through him. A block diagram was supplied to show how the system would go together. At the end of the installation as built drawing were supplies so I could tell which panels went to which test points (nice). Let the installation begin. They had all the proper tools for making the specialized connections. That was nice to see. I've seen other electricians crimping electrical lugs with a hammer and screw driver. None of that nonsense here. Safety, the guys were tied off whenever they were on the roof, I was impressed. The jobsite was always clean and tidy, again bonus points for housekeeping. The quality of the panel wiring was as good as I've seen anywhere in the industrial world. The Contract: This installation contract is entered into this JULY 13,2025 in BULAK DUIN NEGROS OREINTAL by and between, hereinafter referred to as solar installation contract. MR. Showpony, a foreign national holding a 13a Philippine residence visa hereby referred to as the owner or employer. DEXTER XXX_XXX. a Filipino of legal age, a Registered Master Electrician with license number 0069708 and proprietor of DX ELECTRICAL SERVICES with DTI registration number 236XXxx with residence of Brgy. Mangnao – canal Dumaguety City Negros oriental referred to as the solar installer. PROVISIONS: 1. To SUPPLY and install 1pc 8Kw DEYE hybrid inverter, 14pcs 585w CANADIAN solar panels, 2pcs 11kwhr SOLAR HOME lifepo4 battery and set of protective devices and wirings necessary to complete the system. 2. WARRANTY of inverter and battery is up to 5 years and 10 years for solar panels. For inverter and battery incase of damage within the warranted period the unit, if necessary will be send to cebu supplier for repair and may take up to 2 months. For solar panels failure to generate power, if not repairable will be replaced. Third party modification of the original installation will void the warranty. Under the warranty period all expenses from repair parts is/are shoulder by the installer. 3. SERVICE the installer as part of the warranty, shall perform yearly cleaning of panels and tightening of terminals. 4. Any DAMAGE to the roof caused by the installers team will be repaired or replaced without charge to the owner. 5. CONTRACT PRICE. Php. 416,711.00 (tax excluded) 6. PAYMENT TERMS. Cash or Bank transfer ACCOUNT NAME: DEXTER Q. REPONTE (Bdo XXXXXX-XXY) ( PNb XXXXXX XXX ) Down payment -Php. 20,000.00 Second/third payment (delivery of panels and frames) -Php 100,000.00 Third/second payment (delivery of inverter and battery) -Php. 200,000.00 Fourth payment (after completion) -Php. 96,711.00 Total amount -Php. 416,711.00 7. DURATION. Each phase of the work shall commence immediately after confirmation of payments. 8. CANCELLATION. The client shall issue a stop of work letter to the installer detailing the grounds. Any materials paid and purchased by the installer shall be non-refundable and the client shall pay the installer the equivalent amount provided that the said material(s) is/are delivered or to be delivered to the client property in good condition. The downpayment is non refundable. Post Installation support: Dexter helped my get the Deye Cloud software (I bought a Deye inverter) running on my cellphone and desktop. He told me call him anytime if I need a hand with the software or any questions about inverter/battery setting. A few pictures of the installation will follow. All in All a good experience!!
I have the Deye hybrid inverter software on my phone, had it about 17 months. Looks like a good price, nice one.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience. It will definitely help me navigate my own installation/contract.
