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Solar Roof

tesla.com

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Re: Solar Roof

#371

Post by [deleted] »

vkou wrote: post #332
sbov wrote: post #170

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you done the math? If net metering didn't exist, my back-of-the-envelope calculations say it would probably break even in California. With net metering, sure, it's pointless.

My parents pay $1,200/year for electricity, in a fairly large house. Given the expected lifetime of a power wall, that will eat all the 'savings' of living off the grid. There's also the matter that if, say, 40% of the population disconnects itself from the grid, that doesn't mean that the cost of maintaining that infrastructure will drop by 60%. Someone will have to pay for it.

[deleted]

Re: Solar Roof

#372

Post by intrasight »

sliken wrote: post #339
OrthoMetaPara wrote: post #245

This is the dumbest thing ever. If you live in a city or a suburb, you don't need one of these things because you'll be connected to a grid that can give you electricity that is far more efficiently generated. If you live in a rural area with a lot of sun, then you can just put solar panels on the ground where they're not a bitch to clean. I'm not against using solar electricity because it can be made affordable but…

Most grid power is not solar. So running local solar can save you money, cool off your house (cool attic in the shade of the solar), and decrease your peak load on the power grid which makes the grid more efficient. Even in rural areas while cheaper to mount on the ground, you lose the savings of a cooler house.

That last sentence made no sense to me.

Re: Solar Roof

#373

Post by Shinkei »

averagewall wrote: post #367
stratigos wrote: post #217

People are thinking way too much about how much this saves them at a personal level. I think people should instead be thinking about how we can save the existence of the entire species, and all other higher order forms of life on earth, rather than focusing on their individual tax breaks, savings, or other trivial concerns. Yes, your cash flow is rendered quite trivial if life on Earth ends. Invest in the Life Econom…

Why does every climate change story have someone spreading the same false information? Climate change isn't a threat to the human race. Inventing extreme ideas entrenches opposition and gives them valid reasons to say "you're wrong and I won't do anything to help". If you really believe that, then it's an unconventional idea that deserves references.

Read away: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_warming#Observed_and_ex...

Re: Solar Roof

#375

Post by dang »

awkwardtortoise wrote: post #277

It is obvious that there are lot of PR firm employees working for Tesla all over social media. A new roofing technology that is "zero risk". So many people are trying to "sell" Tesla roof here, reddit and all over social media. It's kind of sad.

PR is a thing, but so are internet users who see it in everything their own opinions don't align with. Please keep that trope off HN unless you have specific evidence. Comments you disagree with aren't evidence, just opportunities for self-control.

We detached this subthread from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14313103 and marked it off-topic.

Re: Solar Roof

#376

Post by angstrom »

ianai wrote: post #160
taneq wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wait what, their estimated payback time is 60 YEARS? This is terrible. They've gotta be just trying to snipe rich early-adopter-for-the-status types.

I'm thinking it's early adopters and new buildings. The Tesla roof on a newly built home may make more sense than a retrofit.

Right, noone is acknowledging SolarCity's pre-existing relationships with homebuilders. http://www.solarcity.com/commercial/homebuilders

Re: Solar Roof

#377

Post by thewhitetulip »

martalist wrote: post #226
stratigos wrote: post #217

People are thinking way too much about how much this saves them at a personal level. I think people should instead be thinking about how we can save the existence of the entire species, and all other higher order forms of life on earth, rather than focusing on their individual tax breaks, savings, or other trivial concerns. Yes, your cash flow is rendered quite trivial if life on Earth ends. Invest in the Life Econom…

While noble, it seems the opposite is true. I think most people don't care about future problems, let alone other life forms. Musk has done so well precisely because he's marketed his products in a way that they appeal to people on a personal level. I mean, he could have started with a low performance, average-looking, electric, family sedan. Instead he sold something much more emotive/egotistical, with huge success.…

> I mean, he could have started with a low performance, average-looking, electric, family sedan.

A lot of other companies went that way but there was no result out of it. There is a reason for the way Tesla went :) They needed a bucket load of money to finance building a mass produced vehicle.

Re: Solar Roof

#378

Post by dang »

awkwardtortoise wrote: post #294
gpm wrote: post #291

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm pretty sure that the vast majority (if not all) of the people trying to sell this are not paid, but simply doing so because they want solar power to be a thing.

Doing what? Evangelizing? Like you? Scouring this thread and responding to every comment that doesn't toe the company line?

Personal attacks will get your account banned on Hacker News, so please don't do this again.

Re: Solar Roof

#379

Post by prewett »

vacri wrote: post #200
j2bax wrote: post #151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tesla claims their shingles are a lot more resilient than standard roofing material...

They say the glass is warrantied for the lifetime of the house, but it will be interesting to see what exclusions are in that warranty.

According to the ordering website where it says "30 years", I'd say the exclusion of t > 30 is rather extensive...

Re: Solar Roof

#380

Post by thewhitetulip »

martalist wrote: post #275
ShannonAlther wrote: post #255

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I mean, he could have started with a low performance, average-looking, electric, family sedan. There are other reasons Tesla started with a high-end model. Because building the cars was going to take a lot of R&D, Tesla supported the cost by starting with fancy sports cars, which have a better ROI, and then used the technology to manufacture less pricey cars later on. Source (ctrl + f "the business plan"): http://w…

> There are other reasons Tesla started with a high-end model. True, I didn't mean to imply it was the only reason - more that it's good example of appealing to human self-interest to fix a larger problem.

It is called selling! Nobody would have bothered to buy a electric car if it was launched as "family mass produced car", the reason why people are are raving about Tesla is because their cars are now a status symbol or a lifestyle symbol, just like the iPhone, Musk did his selling well.

When you are building a company, being able to sell a product is more important than just building a world class product.

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