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Home > Archive > Alternative Power sources > June 2005 > Used PV Panels - What Are They Worth and Where Do You Find Them?
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Used PV Panels - What Are They Worth and Where Do You Find Them?
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| Too_Many_Tools 2005-06-22, 11:25 pm |
| Since I am thinking hard about putting together a PV system, I am
interested in understanding what the market is like for used PV panels?
What is a good price for an used panel?
Where does one find used panels?
For an example...if one could find an used panel (say a 60w Solarex),
what would a good price be?
How used can a panel be before it is better to buy new?
Thanks for any suggestions.
TMT
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| Vaughn 2005-06-22, 11:25 pm |
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"Too_Many_Tools" <too_many_tools@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1119477353.210913.103340@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
quote:
>
>
> What is a good price for an used panel?
You would certainly want to beat the best price for new panels. This is
the best I know of ($2.70/watt): http://www.sunelec.com/
As far as I know, used panels are where you find them. I got mine at an
estate sale. Nothing gets better with age, and the technology on new panels is
gradually improving. Also, you will probably be going "bare" with no warrante,
so I would want a pretty large discount from the new price for anything that was
over (say) 5 years old.
Vaughn
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| the seventh sign 2005-06-23, 11:25 pm |
| Too_Many_Tools wrote:
quote:
> Since I am thinking hard about putting together a PV system, I am
> interested in understanding what the market is like for used PV panels?
>
>
>
> What is a good price for an used panel?
>
>
> Where does one find used panels?
>
>
> For an example...if one could find an used panel (say a 60w Solarex),
> what would a good price be?
>
>
> How used can a panel be before it is better to buy new?
>
>
> Thanks for any suggestions.
>
>
> TMT
>
I strongly suggest getting newer ones. the reason being is efficiency.
there is already a new type of tech research where solar panels created
with quantum dotting has generated 3 fold the power with little heat i
look for this tech to mature soon and quickly thanks to oil reaching 60
a barrel.
Keep looking for this tech in the news. right now it is someones experiment.
TSS
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| SteveJ 2005-06-27, 6:25 pm |
| I have been hearing about new tech Cells for years now, all promised $1.00 a
watt or lower, but it has never came true.
"the seventh sign" <die.now.spammers@internet.now> wrote in message
news:11bmgbljkflpv02@corp.supernews.com...
quote:
> Too_Many_Tools wrote:
>
> I strongly suggest getting newer ones. the reason being is efficiency.
>
> there is already a new type of tech research where solar panels created
> with quantum dotting has generated 3 fold the power with little heat i
> look for this tech to mature soon and quickly thanks to oil reaching 60 a
> barrel.
> Keep looking for this tech in the news. right now it is someones
> experiment.
>
> TSS
>
>
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| the seventh sign 2005-06-28, 12:25 pm |
| SteveJ wrote:[vbcol=seagreen]
> I have been hearing about new tech Cells for years now, all promised $1.00 a
> watt or lower, but it has never came true.
>
>
>
> "the seventh sign" <die.now.spammers@internet.now> wrote in message
> news:11bmgbljkflpv02@corp.supernews.com...
>
tech cells is not what i mean i mean new technology with greater efficiency.
You have to shop around.
TSS
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| On Thu, 23 Jun 2005 18:10:43 -0500, the seventh sign
<die.now.spammers@internet.now> wrote:
quote:
>Too_Many_Tools wrote:
<------------------------- snip --------------------------->[vbcol=seagreen]
>
>I strongly suggest getting newer ones. the reason being is efficiency.
>
>there is already a new type of tech research where solar panels created
>with quantum dotting has generated 3 fold the power with little heat i
>look for this tech to mature soon and quickly thanks to oil reaching 60
>a barrel.
>Keep looking for this tech in the news. right now it is someones experiment.
>
>TSS
I believe this is what your refering to?
http://www.news.utoronto.ca/bin6/050110-832.asp
Personally I wouldn't waste money on any used panels, unless they were
extremely cheap. It's been less than six months since the news release
came out on the research "discovery" of this application of quantum
dots. Give it another 6 o 12 months while saving up your cash and you
may have a product on the market hat will be far superior to panels.
I read another post that mentioned "thermal" polution and I think his
product will help to reduce it. Painting your house with material,
(which I believe is said to cover the infared portion of the spectum),
would reduce the amount of cold weather heat loss and the warm weather
heat absorbsion of the building it's applied to.
M.
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| Windsun 2005-06-29, 6:25 pm |
| A good used panel in like-new condition will sell for around $4 a watt.
A crappy 20 year old panel might go for $1 a watt, or even less.
All else falls in between that range.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Free Solar Discussion Forum: http://www.wind-sun.com/forum/index.php
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"SteveJ" <SJ@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:2fidneyUuNRix13fRVn-1A@comcast.com...
quote:
>I have been hearing about new tech Cells for years now, all promised $1.00
>a watt or lower, but it has never came true.
>
>
>
> "the seventh sign" <die.now.spammers@internet.now> wrote in message
> news:11bmgbljkflpv02@corp.supernews.com...
>
>
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| Vaughn 2005-06-29, 11:25 pm |
|
"M." <kopinions@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:25e5c1hn7mgfr9pbfub9urfid9c6247tqv@4ax.com...
quote:
> I believe this is what your refering to?
> http://www.news.utoronto.ca/bin6/050110-832.asp
>
> Personally I wouldn't waste money on any used panels, unless they were
> extremely cheap. It's been less than six months since the news release
> came out on the research "discovery" of this application of quantum
> dots. Give it another 6 o 12 months while saving up your cash and you
> may have a product on the market hat will be far superior to panels.
>
There is no way that such a product could hit the market in that time
frame. Once the basic research is done, you are just barely past the first step
on the way to a marketable product.
Frankly, (though I would be happy to be wrong) if history is any guide,
this "breakthrough" will disappear into oblivion just like so many others.
Though we can (and should) be hopeful, the best we can probably hope for is
evolutionary improvement in PV design, not revolutionary.
Vaughn
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| Too_Many_Tools 2005-06-30, 4:25 am |
| Thanks for the comments that everyone is offering.
How do you judge an used panel is worth buying?
How much output is good versus bad?
The panel's mechanical condition?
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| Anthony Matonak 2005-06-30, 4:25 am |
| Too_Many_Tools wrote:
quote:
> How do you judge an used panel is worth buying?
> How much output is good versus bad?
> The panel's mechanical condition?
I'm no expert in these things but it shouldn't be very complex.
The primary criteria for any purchasing decision is value or,
if you wish to say it more simply, it's price. A used panel should
cost less than a comparable new panel. If it costs more then it's
cheaper to buy the new one.
How much less? That depends on your estimate of the panels life,
use, abuse and general condition. Most used equipment is just
off-handedly priced at 50% of new but PV panels are in rather
short supply so they may sell for more than that. You could use
the percent of warranty that remains and apply that to the price
of comparable new panels. For instance, say you can buy new panels
for $4/watt and the used panel has a 25 year warranty and it's
10 years old. The price would then be (25-10)/25*4= $2.40/watt.
Purchase price should be dependent on measured output of the panel.
That means that no matter what the original rating on the panel,
it's what it produces now that you are buying. Generally speaking,
you shouldn't see less than 80% of the original power production
unless the panel is more than a couple of decades old.
Mechanical condition? I wouldn't be able to give you a detailed
list. Don't worry about browning or other color changes as long
as they are fairly uniform across the panel and the panel still
functions. Look for delamination, fogging, corrosion on the cells,
cracks in the glass or other indication that the seal has failed.
Look to make sure it's got wires coming out of it somewhere and
that you're comfortable with dealing with them.
Generally speaking, if it's physically broken then it should be
pretty obvious. Even panels that are broken might still be useful
but there is more risk so you should value them less than fully
intact panels.
Anthony
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