Residential Solar Power
Residential
solar power systems are the most popular
in use today, although there are also a lot of other solar applications
as well. With the rising cost of electrical power, any alternative is
certainly appealing. The average electrical bill goes up by an average
of about six percent per year. At that rate, your electric bill doubles
every 12 years. There is a very good chance that over the next ten
years, that will increase by much more than 6% a year.
The initial
investment is the biggest disadvantage of residential solar systems. One
thing that helps offset that expense is government incentives. The
federal government has been offering tax breaks, and states have offered
rebates. In some states, nearly 50 percent of the installation cost is
offset by these programs. As a result, the payback on these systems can
be as little as seven to ten years.
Say that
your electric bill runs $300 per month. If a system costs $70,000 prior
to tax incentives, the system could cost as little as $35,000 out of
pocket. At an interest rate of 6%, it would take approximately 10 years
to pay off the loan if you only paid $300 per month, and increased your
payment by 6% each year (which would equate to your rising utility
bill). After the tenth year, your electricity would be free. At that
point in time, you would save a total of $537 per month. That savings
would increase by at least 6% each year.
That is like having an extra $700 in your pocket. This is how
much you would have to earn to pay the $537 electric bill. After 15
years, it would be like sticking an extra $1,000 into your pocket every
month.
What I love
is going out to my power meter on a sunny day and seeing the meter
actually spin backwards. You see, what happens is the extra electrical
energy you produce goes back into the power grid, and you get credit for
it. Unless you decide to go with a system that isn’t tied into the grid,
you will still need to have a utilities hookup. The only alternative to
this is having your own battery backup system, which can be a drawback
in a few ways. You would need an extra storage area to store the
batteries; you would need to buy the batteries and also need to replace
them on a periodic basis. May I add, you would also need to dispose of
the old batteries properly, since they are considered hazardous waist.
An added
benefit to residential solar power systems is that they
will increase the value of your home. It is a much better investment
that installing a swimming pool. While a swimming pool that costs $30K
to $40K, will only increase the value of your home by maybe $10K, a
solar system that costs you $30K out of pocket may increase the value of
your home by $25K to $30K. Even though the installation of solar
electricity is fairly expensive, the day to day maintenance is very
minimal.
Even if you
don’t completely eliminate your electric bill, what solar does is puts
you into the lower tiers, where you don’t have to spend as much per
kilowatt of usage. It’s when you get into the upper tiers that you start
paying a lot more for your electrical power. For someone who doesn’t
want to put up a large investment on the front end, some solar companies
offer an option to lease solar power. In this case, you can actually
lower your monthly electric bill with no, or very little out of pocket
expense.
One
advantage of solar power is that it doesn’t put any pollutants into the
atmosphere like the use of fossil fuel does.
Another great advantage to a
residential solar system is that it can be conveniently placed on top of
your home without taking up and additional space. It can also be
installed pretty much anywhere in the world, whether there is access to
a grid or not. Naturally, if the area has a lot more sunlight, it will
be more ideal in location. Modern solar systems will produce some
electricity even in a cloudy situation.
There are a
few other disadvantages, or drawbacks to solar energy. The clearest con
to solar residential systems is the fact that the sun doesn’t shine
24X7. In fact, it doesn’t even shine half of the time in most areas. For
stand-alone systems, that aren’t hooked to the grid, this is a bigger
problem. With proper storage batteries, you can still have a workable
situation. Clouds, smoke or any other form of pollution can block solar
production. Also, dust can get on the solar panels, which will cut back
on how efficient the panels are. That is one area where the solar system
does require some maintenance. I would recommend washing down the solar
panels once every month to six weeks, depending on how much rain you
receive. In dustier areas, you may need to wash them off more often.
Another
drawback of residential solar energy is if you don’t
have a roof that is South facing. Ideally, the roof should face either
due South, South-East, or South-West if you live in the Northern
Hemisphere. If, on the other hand, you are in the Southern Hemisphere,
you would need a roof to face North, North-East, or North-West.
Considering
all of the pros and cons of solar energy, it seems that the advantages
of solar power systems outweigh the disadvantages somewhat. But, each
person needs to weigh both sides before deciding if solar is a good
option or not. Here are some questions you need to answer in the
process:
Am I tired of having high electric bills every month?
Does the sun shine a majority of the time where I live?
What government incentives for solar power are in place where I live?
Does my roof face the right direction to produce solar power?
If I don’t have a South facing roof, is there some other place I could
put solar panels?
Are there solar lease programs where I live?
Are
there solar lease programs where I live?