Pettey House

610 Huntington Ln.
Allen, TX 75002

Tour Hours: 10am - 4pm

map

Our two PV Arrays produce approximately 13,400 kWh/yr combined, which is about 135% of our average annual electric usage.

With the TXU free nights program, we defer some household electric use until after 9 pm (clothes dryer, dishwasher, oven). We have not had an electric bill since March 2013.

 

Renewable energy features

Solar PV

System 1 (owned)
kW: 4 kW
Installation Date: April 2009
Installer: Solar Wind Technologies

System 2 (leased)
kW: 5.59 kW
Installation Date: July 2010
Installer: SolarCity

Equipment

System 1 (owned)
Equipment:  20 Sanyo HIT 200 W panels, Fronius IG inverter

System 2 (leased)
Equipment:  26 Kyocera 215 W panels, Fronius IG Plus inverter

Retail Electric Provider

TXU (Free Nights Program)

 

Green features

  • 18 SEER AC units
  • 95% efficient natural gas furnaces
  • unpainted Galvalume standing seam metal roof
  • LED & CFL lighting
  • 2 rain barrels (75 gallons each)
  • Compost bin
  • Organic garden

 

Host Comments

We had been considering adding a PV array to our house for quite a while, but the cost at the time for anything that would make much of an impact was out of reach. In 2009, when we saw an announcement of the rebate program through Oncor in the Sierra Club newsletter that, in combination with the 30 percent tax credit that had recently been announced, would cover almost half the cost of a nice sized system, we initiated the process through a local solar installer. In combination with our 18 SEER A/C system replacements a year and a half earlier, the 4kW system really was paying off well. BUT, only about a year after that system was up and running, we got a notice from TXU in our electric bill about a partnership between TXU and SolarCity for installing a leased system. The lease was too good a deal to turn down. Up went the 5.59kW system. Though we actually have room for at least another dozen panels, the system is sufficient to cover all our needs and generates enough excess power to more than offset our electric bill.

Our two PV Arrays produce approximately 13,400 kWh/yr combined, which is about 135% of our average annual electric usage. With the TXU free nights program, we defer some household electric use until after 9 pm (clothes dryer, dishwasher, oven). We have not had an electric bill since March 2013.