Many people are interested in solar power these days but are not sure weather it is a good investment or if their budget or location supports it. I'll answer those questions here.
Let's look at some general considerations in the solar power equation. If you currently have an average home and pay around $125 per month for electricity, at current inflation rates you will pay upwards of $90,000 for electricity over the next 30 years. It is that compounding rate working against you. This is if inflation rates stay the same. In the last decade several categories of consumables have exceeded the general inflation rate, and energy is one of them.
For the last 35 years, solar panel costs have remained constant at around $5 per watt. In the last two years the prices have dropped considerably. You can purchase high-grade panels for under $2 a watt now. As well, there is a 30% federal tax credit on residential solar. This is not a write-off, it is basically cash-back. Systems installed before 2016 qualify for this credit.
There are basically two types of solar power installations. The first is "Grid-Tie". This is where your solar panels feed electricity directly back into the power lines. When you do this, your meter "spins backwards". At night you draw power from the power lines as usual. Whatever power you created during the day comes directly of your bill. The downside of grid-tie is that if the power lines go down, you do not have power. Even in the day, your system must be turned off so that you do not feed power into lines while the repair technicians are working on them. Your location must have a "Net-Metering" agreement with the local commercial power company. This allows you to feed power into their lines and have them ostensibly pay you for it. The second type of system is "Battery-Based". This is where you charge up batteries during the day and use the power from them at night. In this type of system, you'll have power pretty much constantly. The downside is that the cost of batteries is high and they must be replaced every decade or so.
With the grid-tie system, you must have a NABCEP-certified electrical installer to build your system. Anything that attaches to the main electrical lines has to be inspected as well (permitting and inspection). With a battery-based system, if you are the home-owner, you can do the work yourself (in most jurisdictions). The cost of having a grid-tie system professionally installed is comparable to buying batteries for a battery-based system you install yourself. You can also do a hybrid system and add some batteries to a grid-tie system to give you a little back-up power. Most people just buy a generator for back-up power on grid-tie systems.
Along with the federal tax credits, there are also many states and municipalities that offer solar tax credits and incentives. Having multiple incentive programs can significantly reduce your costs and shorten pay-back time. Pay-back time on average is 5-7 years.
With battery-based systems, what are the skills required to install a system? A solar power system is basically a battery-charging system. Instead of using a plug-in battery charger, you are using solar panels. You'll need a "charge controller". This is just like a car battery charger, but the solar panels feed it the power instead of plugging it in to the wall. Solar charge controller are much smarter than car battery chargers. They are designed for maintenance-free operation and to keep your batteries healthy. The one item in a solar charging system that makes it different than just a battery charger is the "Inverter". It changes the DC battery voltage into AC house current. Hooking-up these components is not difficult. Doing is safely requires knowing some basic guidelines as to wire sizes and physical arrangement. If you can handle basic hand-tools and could build an above-ground pool or deluxe dog house, you can build a battery-based solar power system. The major component line-up is simply: Solar panels, charge controller, batteries, inverter. You do add a circuit-breakers between each one so you can disconnect everything. There are vendors all over the US who are eager to get you what you need.
Once you learn the basics, you can scale it up to any size. You are just using more panels, bigger batteries, a larger inverter and larger wire. Everything scales up nicely. The only maintenance on a battery-based solar system is keeping water in the batteries (unless you have maintenance-free batteries) and adjusting the angle of the panels a few times a year. If you like, you can buy panel mounts that automatically track the sun during the day. This gives about 20% more power. Most people just make panel mounting frames out of decking lumber or angle-iron. You are just making a rectangular frame to bolt the panels on with an axle-bolt at the bottom so you can adjust the angle of the panel. A small strut arm comes out so you can lock it in position. Simple! Panel frames can also be mounted on top of wooden poles or metal pipe.
Now let's talk about the financial aspect of solar energy. We've all been prey to what are basically ad campaigns which portray solar energy as a fringe technology. This is all part of a program which tries to protect an endangered-species, your monthly bill. Solar energy works very well. If it didn't, we would not have an International Space Station or Satellite TV. Panels are now known to last for over 40 years. This is because that is how long ago they were invented. Yes, they will be working after all readers of this article are gone. This is crucial to calculating the financial viability of a solar power installation. Why? Because whatever size installation you invest in will be paid back to you in increased home value when you sell your house. That system will still be working 40 years from now. When people look at homes in their price-range and you home has a solar power plant on it, it gives you a tremendous edge in the market. This effect will only increase. Because of this, all the energy you ever produce with a system will have been for free. You get your system cost back when you sell. I sold my solar home in 90 minutes to the second viewer for over-asking without an agent. I retired off the proceeds in my 40's. Yes, solar is a good investment.
So how much are we looking at for a system? You should not invest less than $5,000 in a system. With current federal tax credits only, for $15,000 out-of-pocket net cost, you could produce around 65% of what you use in an average American home. You only want to produce less-than or exactly what you now use. With CD's and other investments at historically low rates and high risk, solar is quite an attractive investment. If you have state and or local solar incentives, it only gets better. You can check for incentive programs at HTTP://www.dsireusa.org. If you are a large energy user, you could spend up to $30,000 on a large system. Your cost-benefit ratio is the same. Any size system increases the value of your home instantly.
You'll need a place in the yard or on your roof that has full southern exposure. This means no tree shading for at least 5 hours during the day. For every hour more sun you have, you save 20% on your system costs (the system can be smaller). You'll need about 600 sq feet total. (say 15" X 40" for 100% of an average home)
Lastly we must talk about increasing efficiency. 30%-40% of all energy delivered to a home is lost. That is after 7%-8% of the electricity was already lost in the commercial power delivery system (telephone pole etc.) before it got to you. It is ten times cheaper to improve the efficiency of your home - than it is to generate that lost power with solar energy. The "Hit Parade" of energy loss is as follows:
1. Inadequate attic insulation. You must have 14 inches of it up there.
2. Leaky HVAC dusting systems. You ducts have fallen loose out of their openings.
3. Edison-type light bulbs. High-efficiency compact fluorescent bulbs save $50 per bulb.
4. Old inefficient HVAC systems and appliances. Replace them with Energy-Star units.
5. Leaky windows. Replace them with double-pane vinyl or wood windows.
This has to be mentioned in the solar equation because a small amount invested first in these areas will significantly reduce your energy usage and the resulting size of the solar system you build. Sure, it's not fun or high-tech, but efficiency work really pays. Don't even consider a solar system until you tighten-up your home. Look for help with this at HTTP://www.energysavers.gov
So there you have it. Solar systems are always a good investment as long as your home is reasonably efficient. Sure the up-front investment is large, but if you consider the long-term picture, you reap tremendous rewards for being pro-active. This has always been the case. Those with a long-term view and the foresight to prepare early, reap big dividends. My goal is to teach people the skills needed to take command of their energy costs and usage. It is the responsible thing to do. It is something you can do to improve your own future security and that or our nation. We've always heard that knowledge is power, and in this case - it really is!
Let's look at some general considerations in the solar power equation. If you currently have an average home and pay around $125 per month for electricity, at current inflation rates you will pay upwards of $90,000 for electricity over the next 30 years. It is that compounding rate working against you. This is if inflation rates stay the same. In the last decade several categories of consumables have exceeded the general inflation rate, and energy is one of them.
For the last 35 years, solar panel costs have remained constant at around $5 per watt. In the last two years the prices have dropped considerably. You can purchase high-grade panels for under $2 a watt now. As well, there is a 30% federal tax credit on residential solar. This is not a write-off, it is basically cash-back. Systems installed before 2016 qualify for this credit.
There are basically two types of solar power installations. The first is "Grid-Tie". This is where your solar panels feed electricity directly back into the power lines. When you do this, your meter "spins backwards". At night you draw power from the power lines as usual. Whatever power you created during the day comes directly of your bill. The downside of grid-tie is that if the power lines go down, you do not have power. Even in the day, your system must be turned off so that you do not feed power into lines while the repair technicians are working on them. Your location must have a "Net-Metering" agreement with the local commercial power company. This allows you to feed power into their lines and have them ostensibly pay you for it. The second type of system is "Battery-Based". This is where you charge up batteries during the day and use the power from them at night. In this type of system, you'll have power pretty much constantly. The downside is that the cost of batteries is high and they must be replaced every decade or so.
With the grid-tie system, you must have a NABCEP-certified electrical installer to build your system. Anything that attaches to the main electrical lines has to be inspected as well (permitting and inspection). With a battery-based system, if you are the home-owner, you can do the work yourself (in most jurisdictions). The cost of having a grid-tie system professionally installed is comparable to buying batteries for a battery-based system you install yourself. You can also do a hybrid system and add some batteries to a grid-tie system to give you a little back-up power. Most people just buy a generator for back-up power on grid-tie systems.
Along with the federal tax credits, there are also many states and municipalities that offer solar tax credits and incentives. Having multiple incentive programs can significantly reduce your costs and shorten pay-back time. Pay-back time on average is 5-7 years.
With battery-based systems, what are the skills required to install a system? A solar power system is basically a battery-charging system. Instead of using a plug-in battery charger, you are using solar panels. You'll need a "charge controller". This is just like a car battery charger, but the solar panels feed it the power instead of plugging it in to the wall. Solar charge controller are much smarter than car battery chargers. They are designed for maintenance-free operation and to keep your batteries healthy. The one item in a solar charging system that makes it different than just a battery charger is the "Inverter". It changes the DC battery voltage into AC house current. Hooking-up these components is not difficult. Doing is safely requires knowing some basic guidelines as to wire sizes and physical arrangement. If you can handle basic hand-tools and could build an above-ground pool or deluxe dog house, you can build a battery-based solar power system. The major component line-up is simply: Solar panels, charge controller, batteries, inverter. You do add a circuit-breakers between each one so you can disconnect everything. There are vendors all over the US who are eager to get you what you need.
Once you learn the basics, you can scale it up to any size. You are just using more panels, bigger batteries, a larger inverter and larger wire. Everything scales up nicely. The only maintenance on a battery-based solar system is keeping water in the batteries (unless you have maintenance-free batteries) and adjusting the angle of the panels a few times a year. If you like, you can buy panel mounts that automatically track the sun during the day. This gives about 20% more power. Most people just make panel mounting frames out of decking lumber or angle-iron. You are just making a rectangular frame to bolt the panels on with an axle-bolt at the bottom so you can adjust the angle of the panel. A small strut arm comes out so you can lock it in position. Simple! Panel frames can also be mounted on top of wooden poles or metal pipe.
Now let's talk about the financial aspect of solar energy. We've all been prey to what are basically ad campaigns which portray solar energy as a fringe technology. This is all part of a program which tries to protect an endangered-species, your monthly bill. Solar energy works very well. If it didn't, we would not have an International Space Station or Satellite TV. Panels are now known to last for over 40 years. This is because that is how long ago they were invented. Yes, they will be working after all readers of this article are gone. This is crucial to calculating the financial viability of a solar power installation. Why? Because whatever size installation you invest in will be paid back to you in increased home value when you sell your house. That system will still be working 40 years from now. When people look at homes in their price-range and you home has a solar power plant on it, it gives you a tremendous edge in the market. This effect will only increase. Because of this, all the energy you ever produce with a system will have been for free. You get your system cost back when you sell. I sold my solar home in 90 minutes to the second viewer for over-asking without an agent. I retired off the proceeds in my 40's. Yes, solar is a good investment.
So how much are we looking at for a system? You should not invest less than $5,000 in a system. With current federal tax credits only, for $15,000 out-of-pocket net cost, you could produce around 65% of what you use in an average American home. You only want to produce less-than or exactly what you now use. With CD's and other investments at historically low rates and high risk, solar is quite an attractive investment. If you have state and or local solar incentives, it only gets better. You can check for incentive programs at HTTP://www.dsireusa.org. If you are a large energy user, you could spend up to $30,000 on a large system. Your cost-benefit ratio is the same. Any size system increases the value of your home instantly.
You'll need a place in the yard or on your roof that has full southern exposure. This means no tree shading for at least 5 hours during the day. For every hour more sun you have, you save 20% on your system costs (the system can be smaller). You'll need about 600 sq feet total. (say 15" X 40" for 100% of an average home)
Lastly we must talk about increasing efficiency. 30%-40% of all energy delivered to a home is lost. That is after 7%-8% of the electricity was already lost in the commercial power delivery system (telephone pole etc.) before it got to you. It is ten times cheaper to improve the efficiency of your home - than it is to generate that lost power with solar energy. The "Hit Parade" of energy loss is as follows:
1. Inadequate attic insulation. You must have 14 inches of it up there.
2. Leaky HVAC dusting systems. You ducts have fallen loose out of their openings.
3. Edison-type light bulbs. High-efficiency compact fluorescent bulbs save $50 per bulb.
4. Old inefficient HVAC systems and appliances. Replace them with Energy-Star units.
5. Leaky windows. Replace them with double-pane vinyl or wood windows.
This has to be mentioned in the solar equation because a small amount invested first in these areas will significantly reduce your energy usage and the resulting size of the solar system you build. Sure, it's not fun or high-tech, but efficiency work really pays. Don't even consider a solar system until you tighten-up your home. Look for help with this at HTTP://www.energysavers.gov
So there you have it. Solar systems are always a good investment as long as your home is reasonably efficient. Sure the up-front investment is large, but if you consider the long-term picture, you reap tremendous rewards for being pro-active. This has always been the case. Those with a long-term view and the foresight to prepare early, reap big dividends. My goal is to teach people the skills needed to take command of their energy costs and usage. It is the responsible thing to do. It is something you can do to improve your own future security and that or our nation. We've always heard that knowledge is power, and in this case - it really is!
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