Jeffrey Cushman has been a Green Sun Energy Services client since March of 2021, when the roof and the solar array were bought on the same day. The roof was finished on 12 July 2021 and the array nine days later.
4,000 square feet, stripped to the deck
A single layer of old shingles came off down to the sheathing and left with the dumpster. Deck protection went over the exposed sheathing, then a GAF Timberline HDZ system in Pewter Grey carrying a 50-year warranty, aluminum drip edge along 353 feet of rakes, eaves and valleys, and a ridge vent along the peak.
34 panels and 12.41 kW
Thirty-four LG 365 watt panels came to 12.41 kW on Unirac mounting, finished on 21 July 2021, running into a SolarEdge SE10000H HD Wave inverter with an optimizer on every panel. Critter guard was fitted around the array at the same time, closing the gap under the panels where squirrels and birds otherwise nest. Atlantic City Electric is the utility and the first year was designed for about 15,111 kWh.
The production estimate has a condition attached
That 15,111 kWh figure is not unconditional, and the contract says so: the estimate assumes the household cuts back the trees within fifty feet of the back and sides of the house. It is worth stating on a page like this rather than leaving it in the paperwork. A shade estimate is a model of the sky as it is expected to be, and trees do not stay the size they were on the day of the survey — they are the one part of a solar design that gets worse on its own. A household that knows the number depends on the tree line can keep it true; one that never hears it wonders in five years why the array does not match its estimate.
Why the roof went first
An array is bolted to a roof for twenty-five years and more, so shingles at the end of their life underneath one become a second job with a date already on them — panels off, roof on, panels back. Thirty-four panels is a lot to take down and put back. Nine days of sequencing meant it never has to be scheduled at all.
Project Facts
- Location
- Little Egg Harbor, NJ
- Services
- Roofing Installation, Solar Critter Guard, Solar Panel Installation
- Client since
- March 2021
Solar
- Panels
- LG Model # 365N1K-A6
- Panels
- 34
- System size
- 12.41 kW
- Inverter
- SolarEdge SE10000H-US000NNC2 HD Wave
- Mounting system
- Unirac
- Estimated first-year production
- 15,111 kWh
- Share of the home's electricity
- 95%
- Electric utility
- Atlantic City Electric
- Critter guard fitted
- 168 ft
Roof
- System
- GAF Timberline Lifetime Roofing System
- Area replaced
- 4,000 sq ft
- Warranty
- 50 years
Questions from Little Egg Harbor homeowners
SolarWhat should a Little Egg Harbor homeowner look for in a solar company?
One that can design, permit, interconnect, install, commission, monitor and service the system, and explain the structure accurately. That means twelve months of real usage, a realistic production model, correct kW and kWh arithmetic, orientation and shading, structural capacity, the rooftop code requirements, the electrical articles for photovoltaic systems and grid interconnection, rapid shutdown, manufacturer installation instructions, utility interconnection and net metering, incentive registration, roof age and condition, penetration and waterproofing detail, the panel, inverter, mounting and workmanship warranties, monitoring, and service after the installation. The question worth asking is not who quoted least, but which company has designed the best long-term system for the house and will still be able to support it years from now.
RoofingHow many layers of shingles can a roof have?
The residential code limits reroofing over existing roofing, including where the roof already carries the maximum number of layers permitted. The municipal permit review and a physical inspection settle what is acceptable on a particular house rather than a general rule.
SolarWhat is Permission to Operate?
It is the utility's authorisation for the finished system to run in parallel with the grid. Completing the installation does not by itself mean the system can be switched on: the utility generally requires the interconnection documentation, the inspections, the metering and the final approvals to be in place first.