Smaller photovoltaic system 2 KWp

I would also recommend a somewhat larger system to you. Otherwise, the fixed costs make the whole thing unprofitable. We also used the standing scaffolding of the plasterers immediately when building the photovoltaic system. Unfortunately, the decision in favor of photovoltaics came very late for us. Therefore, the roofer's scaffolding (higher up) was already gone, and we still had to pay extra for a one-sided scaffolding extension. We installed 5.5 kWp. I can’t say much about the achieved efficiency for self-consumption yet, as we just moved in about two weeks ago. Our idea was also to cover a larger portion of washing machine, dryer, dishwasher, and the individual permanent consumers (e.g., fridge/freezer) and only feed in "a little" electricity. Since I am not at home from 6:30 am to 7:30 pm, cooking is usually done in the evening, so this consumer can at most use the photovoltaic system on weekends. If you are planning new purchases, make sure that the devices are programmable. I assume your electricity consumption has generally decreased because you moved in with newer appliances and possibly also pay more conscious attention to low consumption. Regarding your Twiezy - I just googled it. Is the battery rental charged annually or monthly? I suspect it is annual because, in my opinion, monthly rental wouldn't be worthwhile anymore. You are right about the dark season. Here in December from the 1st to the 6th, we did not produce a single kW because it was permanently dark and the cloud layer seemed endless. Yesterday was the first day the sun shone. Unfortunately, my wife forgot to start the washing machine, which had already been prepared. Well - everything is still settling in.

@ F-pNo no, it's not the devices. We moved in here 2.5 years ago, and the two yearly statements I mentioned are both from here. One is from Nov 2012 to Nov 2013 and the other from Nov 2013 to Nov 2014. Nothing changed with the devices except for one thing: at the end of Nov 2013 we bought a new refrigerator, the A3+ instead of the previous A2+, but the new one is roughly twice as big and also consumes almost twice as much.

Our Twizy costs 40 euros per month for battery rental for 5000 km annually, it is also possible with 30 euros (2500 km annually). However, the Twizy is still worth it because a tank fill-up then costs less than one euro! If you drive more, it is even more worthwhile, but at first we didn’t know how much we would drive with it. We can increase the mileage at any time. Since the battery is rented, it will be replaced free of charge if something breaks or the capacity drops below 75%. Also, you can get a free tow if you run out of charge and there is no charging station nearby. We don’t pay taxes for the little one, insurance is 260 euros per year regardless of SF and mileage (flat rate).

Thank you for the information

Of course, we are also thinking about how we can become more mobile independent (also a reason for the photovoltaic system) I think, however, that such a "boxy car" is more suitable for getting around in the city. On the country road, which I very regularly travel even for short distances, you quickly become a standing obstacle with it. I would be interested in its characteristics in hilly terrain (8-10% incline is not uncommon in our wine region). I once spoke with someone who bought the BMW i3. Here, however, we are talking about completely different prices, which in my opinion would only make such a vehicle worthwhile over a v e r y long term at a mileage of about 140-160 km. Well - let's see where the development goes from here.

We specifically acquired the Twizy for the countryside (country roads). Although it is optimal for the city, it also works for short trips in the countryside (going shopping… does that really have to be with a combustion engine?), which also pile up a lot of kilometers.
Of course, the prerequisite is that there is a charging option nearby. Since the Twizy is usually ordered with a Schuko plug (ours was a demonstrator with a Type 2 plug, but that’s no problem either, the adapter only costs a few euros)… you usually have a charging option in the countryside in the form of your own house/garage/carport. In the city, however, you are rather stuck in terms of charging, as few people have a garage and public charging stations are rarely right outside the door.

Nevertheless, I have to say that I also considered the daily commute to work (husband). It goes to Wiesbaden and has a significant elevation profile. There is a program on the internet where you can calculate whether the Twizy can make the trip without intermediate charging.
You can enter or adjust the values (rolling resistance, battery capacity) for the worst possible case (winter!).

For me, the following resulted:

The outward journey:


And the return journey


That means I already need 42% of the battery on the way there, but 72% for the return trip, each based on the maximum battery capacity in winter.
But it also means: with intermediate charging at the employer’s, it works.
It works in summer, we already tested that when we picked up the little one from Frankfurt. By the way, via the highway!

The speed is 84 km/h, but we bought a tuning box, with which the little one reaches 92 km/h on level ground, which is more than enough for the highway or country roads. You can nicely hook up behind trucks, which then drag you along in the slipstream while saving power!

As an alternative, we initially considered the ZOE, which has more range, is faster, and nowadays can be had new for around 15k euros (demonstrators… mobile). But I really wanted the Twizy, and since both wasn’t an option, we postponed the ZOE until our combustion engine dies. That is about 5 years old, so it might take some time. But for the next 2 years, there won’t be anything new anyway.

By the way, the Twizy is quite suitable for shopping. Four full bags and two people fit easily inside. You can put 2 bags next to you by the doors and the rear passenger can hold 2 bags on their lap. My husband is 1.92 m tall and even he has no space problems in the back! With one person, even 2 crates would still fit in the back.

If you need a full-fledged car (the Twizy is a quad! albeit with airbags and doors), then I would recommend the ZOE.

Speaking of a stationary obstacle: even on the highway, I have never felt like one! However, it has happened more than once that our little one has been held back by slowpokes. Especially in tight curves (mountains, after all) but also often on country roads there are always slow drivers, which shows that it does not depend on the top speed but on driving style whether you become a stationary obstacle.

We specifically bought the Twizy for rural areas (country roads). While it’s optimal for the city, it also works for the short trips in the countryside (like going shopping... does that really have to be done with a combustion engine?), which also cover a lot of miles. The prerequisite, of course, is that there’s a charging option nearby. Since you will usually order the Twizy with a Schuko plug (ours was a demonstrator with a Type 2 plug, but that’s no problem either; the adapter just costs a few euros)... so you usually have a charging option in the countryside in the form of your own house/garage/carport. In the city, on the other hand, you are rather out of luck charging-wise, because few people have a garage and public charging stations are rarely right outside the door.

Speaking of a standing obstacle: even on the highway I haven’t felt like one so far! But it has happened several times that our little one was held up by slowpokes. Especially in tight curves (mountains, after all) but also often on country roads, there are always slow drivers, which shows that becoming a standing obstacle doesn’t depend on the Vmax but on driving style.

I regularly feel like a standing obstacle with my wife’s little car (Toyota Yaris 1.0) (since the kids arrived, I had to give up my car) — especially on hills. This always reminds me of Jim Knopf with his locomotive Emma: "(going uphill) I can do it, I can do it, I can do it, no. – (then downhill) I did it, I did it." But here, an electric vehicle could have its advantages through direct power transmission.

Personally, I would rather feel uncomfortable driving at 90 km/h on the highway. I can imagine that such a small car is easily overlooked at high speeds.

Going uphill with our combustion engine doesn’t look rosy either, at most 80 but with 2 people and loaded it’s only 60. It’s the same for trucks, so you don’t have to feel bad. Electric has the advantage that at the traffic light you really leave EVERYONE behind. It really purrs away. You can hardly be overlooked, in height the Twizy is the same as any car (ok except SUVs) just a bit narrower. But if you regularly drive a lot on the highway, the Twizy would be the wrong choice anyway. On country roads it works very well though. I would see the little one more as a safe and better alternative to a scooter. It’s simply not a car, you have to keep that in mind when comparing it to cars.