Giveaway…almost, … I have a contact that is removing lots of household solar panels from roofs and replacing them (warranty work) due to discoloration, so theres fundamentally nothing wrong with most of them electrically… and they asked if anyone is interested in as-is solar panels in exchange for beer money… ?
If interested, flick me an email in the next few days and I’ll put u in contact with the right peeps…
Thx.
Buzz
Is this something HSBNE may be interested in as a way to offset our energy use by members during the day? Grid tie inverters aren’t that expensive, and it could be a good way to offset the cost of our always on equipment, and machinery/tool use during the day.
If you want to offset HSBNE site power consumption you’re better off just getting a system from a professional installer. Doing grid solar DIY is kinda hard as the standards are always changing.
I thought we’d be able to work out amongst ourselves how to get the panels up and mounted and just pay for someone to come and wire/hook it all up (plus a grid tie inverter). I have no idea if any of that would make sense from a cost perspective, but just thought it was worth suggesting as something to think about. 
The inverter is probably not included in the offer? Best to follow the advice of @Thermoelectric; not just are the standards changing, panels and certainly inverters are improving.
Even that, there’s very specific standards in regards to earthing the panels, mounting, even tying the wiring behind them.
For the few grand that is a commercial system, doing a DIY grid tie would not be worth the hassle. Would be nice, but such is red tape.
@AntBee this would compliment the mounting systems you have. How serious are you about adding a freestanding mount for 8 cells in my backyard? Would it be worth it? My power bill has almost always been negative, I’ve got $500 sitting in it and that’s after winter. As for beer money, can do. You also want some spirits @buzz ?