Solar panels on every new house in Phoenix - good idea or waste of money?

I drove through that big new development off the 101 in north Phoenix last week, and every single house had rooftop solar. Seems great for the grid with all that sun, but I talked to a guy paying $180 a month for panels on a 3 bed house that barely powers his AC. Is forcing solar on new builds in the desert actually smart, or just greenwashing that shifts costs to homeowners?

3 comments

3 Comments

jenny_lane1217d agoMost Upvoted

Look up the actual output numbers from that Toll Brothers community near Desert Ridge. Those panels barely cover 60% of a standard AC load in July when the grid is maxed out. The problem is builders are slapping on the cheapest tier-2 panels that degrade fast in Phoenix heat, and they're wired wrong half the time because subs are rushing through installs. What happens when the homeowner tries to sell in 7 years and the panels are producing at 70% capacity with no transferable warranty? The city council pushed this through without any performance guarantees or maintenance requirements. This is just a developer tax break disguised as green policy, and the people who actually live in these houses get stuck with the bill.

fiona_hunt7117d ago

Yeah, "the panels are producing at 70% capacity" is rough. I negotiated a dealer-installed warranty into our home sale and it saved us.

the_jake17d ago

lol but builders always pass the real costs onto buyers while taking the tax credit themselves.