$40,000. That was the quote that I was given to install a solar power system in my average sized home. For that price, I could count on generating about $250 a month in electricity. The math seemed to work (With $5000 down and $35,000 financed over 10 years at 3.5% that was about $203 a month, so the savings worked - barely). But it was still $40,000 dollars!!!
I deliberated. What if it did not work as advertised? What if it was a cloudy year? What if I just didn't want those big solar panels stuck to my roof. I started to talk myself out of it and consulted an expert (an electrician friend) for final confirmation before killing the idea; however, I was surprised when my electrician friend said that he could source the parts for about $2500 from a local supplier and assemble them on site for another $1500. Total cost for home made solar power was about $4000. The financial math started to look more and more interesting. Now I was saving $3000 a year with an initial investment of $4000! The payback period was 12 months, and then I'd save $3000 a year thereafter.
With the added excitement came added uncertainty. Not only was I not sure of the savings claim the professional solar installation team gave me, now I was less sure about the quality (or power output) of home made solar power. I decided if I was going to go with home made solar panels, I needed to educate myself. I bought a series of books and videos and discovered that the key components to solar panels were solar cells. I needed 36 cells per panel and needed between 30 and 60 panels (I have a lot of trees near my roof, blocking out much of the sun). My friend the electrician could source solar cells for about $4 a piece. He also needed wires, solder, a DC to AC converter, a special array of batteries that could store power for later use, acrylic white boards (the back), plexiglass for the front (to protect the cells) and an aluminum frame. While, he estimated that he could source the cells for $4 each, I found them on Amazon for $2. I wasn't going to hunt for the other material, I figured the hassle was not worth it, but 50 percent off the most expensive component was still 50 percent off.
The next week the electrician was off and running. He laid the solar cells out on the white acrylic boards, soldered and wired them together, and then assembled them in a frame around the panel. He then covered the panel with plexiglass. After two days (including two meal breaks) he was finished with the panels - he was then ready to wire them to my home and battery array, as well as the converter and the house. That took him a day.
From start to finish a long weekend hours. I watched in awe, I was also a little upset. If I had known it was that easy I would have done it myself!!!!
Does the system work? Yes, as advertised, last month my bill was down over $250 from the same time last year.
There it is, demystified. Not bad eh?
Warning: you can find many good books on assembling a solar array for your house. It is not difficult, but you do need the assistance of a professional electrician when you get to the point where you are connecting the system to your house and to the grid, and most important to electricity.
I deliberated. What if it did not work as advertised? What if it was a cloudy year? What if I just didn't want those big solar panels stuck to my roof. I started to talk myself out of it and consulted an expert (an electrician friend) for final confirmation before killing the idea; however, I was surprised when my electrician friend said that he could source the parts for about $2500 from a local supplier and assemble them on site for another $1500. Total cost for home made solar power was about $4000. The financial math started to look more and more interesting. Now I was saving $3000 a year with an initial investment of $4000! The payback period was 12 months, and then I'd save $3000 a year thereafter.
With the added excitement came added uncertainty. Not only was I not sure of the savings claim the professional solar installation team gave me, now I was less sure about the quality (or power output) of home made solar power. I decided if I was going to go with home made solar panels, I needed to educate myself. I bought a series of books and videos and discovered that the key components to solar panels were solar cells. I needed 36 cells per panel and needed between 30 and 60 panels (I have a lot of trees near my roof, blocking out much of the sun). My friend the electrician could source solar cells for about $4 a piece. He also needed wires, solder, a DC to AC converter, a special array of batteries that could store power for later use, acrylic white boards (the back), plexiglass for the front (to protect the cells) and an aluminum frame. While, he estimated that he could source the cells for $4 each, I found them on Amazon for $2. I wasn't going to hunt for the other material, I figured the hassle was not worth it, but 50 percent off the most expensive component was still 50 percent off.
The next week the electrician was off and running. He laid the solar cells out on the white acrylic boards, soldered and wired them together, and then assembled them in a frame around the panel. He then covered the panel with plexiglass. After two days (including two meal breaks) he was finished with the panels - he was then ready to wire them to my home and battery array, as well as the converter and the house. That took him a day.
From start to finish a long weekend hours. I watched in awe, I was also a little upset. If I had known it was that easy I would have done it myself!!!!
Does the system work? Yes, as advertised, last month my bill was down over $250 from the same time last year.
There it is, demystified. Not bad eh?
Warning: you can find many good books on assembling a solar array for your house. It is not difficult, but you do need the assistance of a professional electrician when you get to the point where you are connecting the system to your house and to the grid, and most important to electricity.
My name is Geoff Mitchell. I hope you join me in my journey to find affordable solar energy for you home. You can find more information on this and other related subjects at http://www.GreenEarth101.com
Geoff
Geoff
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