9 Responses

1. Solar panels are a extremely good alternative to any power source, you will need professional installment and it is very pricey to get yourself started with solar, but in about 10 years you will have save way more money then you spent.

2. Well if you go depending on solar alone for 24 hours that’ll cost you a lot. If you go hybrid-ing solar into main power lines instead that’ll save you a lot of money.

   Try http://www.enhancegreenenergy.com. If you sign up for their newsletter, in one of the emails they’ll show you how to build a solar paner for costs as low as $200. And it lasts long too!

   Thanks to them I’ve cut $250 per month on my electric fees.

3. It depends on where you live and the state and local incentives available & it depends on how much electricity you use and when you use it.

   It **ALWAYS** makes the most sense to work on the conservation side first. So if your electric bills are high from heating or cooling, then get an energy audit done first and find out when you can do to make your home more energy efficient. Add the insulation they suggest. Change out your light bulbs to more energy efficient ones…etc.

   Only after you do all of this stuff should you even worry about solar.

   >Is it hard to hook them up to your house< There is a lot more to this than just hooking solar panels up to your home. This isn't something the average person can or should do. Besides, the electrical company that does provide electricity to your home (remember... these things generate no power at night) will not allow you to hook anything up to the electrical lines without them knowing about it and approving it. Yahoo Answers has a large number of people trying to provide what I am sure they think is useful information, but in truth, their bad advice does more to harm and confuse than anything. I'd like to comment relative to the poster who indicates their solar panels save them $250 per month on their electrical bill. While this is possible, I'd like to use this as an example of just what sort of an investment this means. I live in AZ which is just about the best solar conditions one can possibly have. http://www.americanpv.com/pdf/res_on/prices.pdf

   Take a look at the above information, which is actually quite typical. To achieve an average savings of $250 per month would be a little larger than the 8.385 Kw system quoted in the second column from the right. The total price of such a system quoted here is $44,800 but in reality is going to be higher than this… say $50,000. Even more interesting is that the resultant system ends up covering around 1000 sq. ft of roof area.

   They quote an installed price after all incentives and rebates of over $23,000. In most areas of the country the cost will be far higher. Our local utility reimburses $3 per watt of system size, which is MUCH greater than any other utility I have ever seen. For example, the greatest rebate I have found for any CA utility is about half of that.

   A system like this costing the end user $8000 is sometimes a feasible thing to do. However, if your utility rebate is reduced by 50% (as most are) and your location does not have the sun intensity we do, the end user price can very easily be over 30,000 dollars! (and that is with the Federal tax credit)

4. Hi Carrie,

   Let me share with you a DIY guide that will help you learn everything about solar panels.
   This includes:
   -the benefits of solar panels
   -how to install it
   -the things you’ll need
   -detailed computation of how much energy you need for your appliances
   -and not just solar panels, they even have a guide in making wind turbines
   -all in step-by-step instructions
   -with video demonstrations on how to do everything and lots more!
   RESULT: you’ll be able to save a lot on your electricity bills and you can even earn if you produce excess electricity.
   http://bit.ly/7gRPar

5. listen to Stephen….he knows what he is talking about……and Mr Chainsaw is in the neighborhood too, although $100,000 is a bit much

   the rest of the answers are either optimistic or running a scam on you

6. Give Stephen best answer – he’s right on!

   The best alternative to heating is to insulate, insulate, insulate. That will almost always pay back, and fast.

   Also to save money with solar, consider solar hot water first. It’s not as high-tech as solar electric, but who cares if it saves money and energy?

   We have solar electric on our house. I sized the system poorly (too large), so it covers just about 100% of our electrical needs for the year. We have gas heat, gas stove, no air conditioning, no pool, no big-screen TV. Our system cost $12k net, but it displaces our already low electric bill of $50 a month, so it will take a lnog time to pay back. If you’re interested, the details are at http://www.angelfire.com/ca2/roderick/solar/photovoltaic.html .

   We hooked up our own, but my general recommendation to anyone is to contact a professional. You need a bunch of permits, and electrical work is nothing to be trifled with.

7. hi. yes, you can get away with only using solar panels if your power/energy requirements are lower than the power generated by solar panels. you can store excess solar power in batteries and use them at night or on cloudy days. alternatively, you can sell the excess to the power company during summer and you can buy it back during winter.

   it’s a little technical setting up a solar system but you can do it yourself after a bit of research.

   affordability is a concern, however. the typical cost is between $3 to $4 per watt, which is quite a lot. so unless you live in a place where typical electricity is very expensive, or some place thats too far away from the grid-network, you won’t be better off using solar power.

8. Thanks for mentioning ‘electricity’ and ‘heating’ separately. Solar can produce both electricity and heat, but the solar ‘panels’ are different. Solar electric panels are referred to as ‘photovoltaic’ modules aka PV. Using PV to produce energy to heat your home is not cost effective. Using solar thermal technology, on the other hand, is the way to go. Solar thermal collectors heat air or water. While solar PV relies on an electric conversion, solar thermal collectors are fairly straight forward – enough so that you could actually experiment with building your own solar room heater.

   Home Power Magazine is by far the best magazine for do-it-yourself solar, wind and microhydro projects. Also, check out BuildItSolar.com for instructions for projects. Finally, just as stated above, investigating renewable technologies is exciting, but be sure to give the most time to researching energy efficiency options. Conserving energy is the most cost effective way to reduce bills and protect the planet.

   Kristen
   http://newenglandbreeze.com/

9. yes! If your goal is to reduce or eliminate your electric bill and have it be cost effective, a grid tied solar system is the way to go. There are no batteries involved with a grid tied system.
   Here’s how it works. Once your solar system is up and running, your home is receiving electricity from both your solar system and the electric company. In a given moment your home 1st looks to the solar system to provide your energy needs. If in that given moment your electric demand is greater than what the solar system can deliver, the balance is provided by the electric company. There will also be moments that the solar system is generating more electricity than you need. This excess power is then sent out on the electric grid for others to use and the electric company will pay you for this energy. This give and take relationship is kept track of by a bi-directional meter ( the utility co installs for free) and at the end of the month both are tallied and you are either billed or credited the difference.

   The goal is to size your system correctly so that at years end your net bill is zero. If for example your utility bill is 100.00 per month you would probably need a system that costs around 18k (for DIY) or 25k ( professionally installed). Your electric co and the federal gov will give you a combined rebate at around 50% of your overall cost. If you factor in electricity’s historical inflation rate of 5%, your return of investment would be around 5yrs for DIY and 9yrs for professionally installed. The system has a life span around 30yrs. If you do the math, the DIY numbers are quite impressive.

   Warning, stay away from build your own panel sites there are numerous problems inherent with that scenario. As far as installing a system your self you will definitely need guidance. I know for a fact that there will be a web site launching ( energy education) in late feb that will be able to guide you in all your solar endeavors. Visit my blog at http://www.solarmandan.com that time and look for the link. Feel free to post any other questions you may have.