Buying Solar Panels for Your Home - is it Worth It?
Many people are becoming interested in converting to renewable energy with the intention of saving both the environment and their pockets. Converting to solar energy is certainly one of the best routes to take, as the benefits are many. Join in, and you will see why it is worth the investment.
Users of home solar panel systems have significantly reduced or eliminated electricity bills, which in itself satisfies most people after they have installed it. But apart from that, people are happy to know that over produced energy from a solar power system can be sold to the utility company, thereby negating their utility bills. From the environmental angle, solar panels contribute significantly to reduced fossil fuel emission, thereby protecting the environment from further damage. As previously indicated, the benefits are many and worth your while. Now, let us take a look at the costs behind such a worthwhile investment.
The first point to note is that the cost of your solar panel system will depend on what it will be supporting. Most households are fully equipped with televisions, washers, dryers, refrigerators, microwaves, computer, light bulbs and water heaters. Sure you could run through the painful task of calculating the cumulative wattage for all of them over a 24 hour period. That exercise would certainly tell you which appliances consume the most electricity. However, a much simpler method would be to consult your utility bill. You bill should highlight how many kilowatts (kW) you used for the number of days in the billing period. Just divide the total kilowatt hours (kWh) by the number of days to arrive at your average daily consumption.
Your next mission is to determine just how many hours of sunlight your roof receives on a daily basis. As a rule of thumb, most places receive about 5 hours of sunlight a day. Using that as a guide, let us look at an example. If you monthly kWh is 200 for a 30 day billing cycle, then your average daily consumption would be 6.6 kWh. As a starting point, a 1 kW rooftop system can generate about 5 kWh per day, i.e. 1 kW * 5 hours of sunlight. Therefore, a 1 kW system would not be enough to satisfy your 6.6 kWh daily needs. A 2 kW system, however, can generate about 10 kWh per day, making it an ideal size for your daily needs.
So what are the costs? Well, a 2 kW system would cost in the region of ,000 to ,000. As the wattage increases, so does the price. A k kW system would cost between ,000 and ,000, while an 8 kW system would cost upward of ,000. However, the good news is that once installed, solar panel systems are virtually cost and maintenance free. Even more good news is that the installed cost of solar panels is expected to continue to drop as thin film panels from companies like First Solar, Nanosolar and AVA Solar become available to the residential market.
Further savings can be derived if you purchase a do it yourself home solar panel system, but whatever route you take, you are bound to reap worthwhile rewards. Make the choice today.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What price range can I expect to pay to have solar panels installed?
I live in Oklahoma and we are fixing up a 3800 square ft house to move into we are considering solar panels to drop the price of the utility bills but we have been told that the costs of the solar panels can make it not worth it any opinions?- ANSWER:
The price range is between ,000.00 and ,000.00 Check with your utilities company. In Austin TX they pay up to 75% of the cost. Definitelly worth the shot.Good Luck
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- QUESTION:
How much was the price of solar panels 5 years ago compared to now?
Didnt solar panels use to cost around 0,000 5 years ago?- ANSWER:
For just 5 years ago, certainly not! Perhaps you are thinking of 50 years ago, the kind that was put on the early communication satellites?5 years ago, there was a glut of polysilicon, so modules were actually a little cheaper than today. Solar cell makers were basically using the scraps thrown away by chipmakers. But today, more silicon goes into making solar cells than computer chips, so that bonanza is gone.We will see prices going lower this year, possibly 20% from last year, because of improvements in technology, but also an increase in polysilicon supply, and a slowdown in demand due to worldwide recession. Later this year is a good time to buy panels, if you have the cash.
The industry site below tracks module prices. They used to have more data, but I guess the old data rolls off the screen with time. If you want to see the details, they'll charge you for the report.
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- QUESTION:
Price and energy production of solar panels?
I have been thinking about getting solar panels for my house. What do you think I should get? Companies? Prices?I also have another question. How much energy can a small solar panel produce?- ANSWER:
A small panel will not produce much power. When people put solar electric panels on their house with the goal of saving money, they generally put up a lot of large panels - 200 or 500 square feet worth. Its hard to save money with just one panel.The only way to get close on how much it will cost and whether that represents a savings is to get out your electric bills for the past year, and call a local solar installer for a quote. The system on our house cost ,000 and we got back ,000 in incentives, so ,000 net. It can save money, but that will be over many, many years.
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- QUESTION:
What is a reasonable price for enough solar panels to power a large amount of condos and other buildings?
I'm doing a school project and we need ways to be green. I have to power a retirement community in Florida. I have 15 large condos, 3 beach houses, 3 restaurnats, a pool, gym, hot tub, sauna, grocery store, gas station, and several offices. They don't have to power everything but I would like to be as green as possible. Also maybe other suggestions on good ways to go green.- ANSWER:
i would look at this in a diverse approch.
1. being that it is florida, i would start with using PV on the houses in combination with a couple of small peak mounted wind turbines (sources oynot.com, solardyne.com, sunwize.com and on and on).
2. condo's are different. they usually have flat roofs so the turbines would be out of the question and so would PV. Instead i would use hard mount solar panals, and try to be energy efficent in other areas of the construction.
3. the pool is an easy one. your in florida, unless you want to cool it in the summer, and heat it in the winter, then just run the water through a condenser that is in a solar water heater loop. and the same answers apply to the rest.
But the best ans is think about it before you build, build with the surroundings, and plan for it by being construction wise.
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