What are your opinions on solar panels? Is it a good idea to have installed? I plan on staying in my home for quite some time and have been debating on adding this to our home.
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There are a dozen different considerations --
Is your house appropriately constructed to support the panels in a proper orientation?
Do you live in an area where there is sufficient sunlight to make the panels make sense?
How will the panels affect home values, and will the neighbors object (or do they all already have them)?
What sort of rebates and subsidies can you get from your state and your utility company?
And I'm sure a bunch of others.
My brother-in-law in California has solar panels and they seem to be a good deal for him.
FHB
At the least consult the article in Fine Home Building December 2015 - January 2016. Good information.
Liars Can Figure
Solar is awash with slick salesmen who make seductive pitches - all based upon rebates that you might not get and a rate structure that can change on a moments' notice. This recently happened in Nevada, where a proposed change to the rate structure led to a stampede of solar "businesses" disappearing overnight.
Likewise, solar power (as described int eh Fine Homebuilding article) is a thing of the past. UL has already evaluated, and listed, several "micro-inverter" panels. Leaving aside the technical details, it is enough for me to say that this new arrangement is far easier to add to your home.
It is critical to ask "why do I want solar?" Be aware that most solar arrays will NOT provide power unless utility power is present. If a storm nocks out the power company feed, you're left in the dark.
Also, even in "net metering" areas, the power company will NEVER send you a check .... all they will do is reduce your bill to zero. Under current proposals, utilities are asking to add new fees, in effect charging you for the service of selling your electricity to your neighbor.
They are charging you for providing electricity at night and on cloudy days too.
if the budget makes sense, and you have a quality product install correctly, you would be very happy with the results.
If i remember correct you have a 30% tax credit (material and labor) up until 2018 for qualifying solar installations.
previous post are correct in saying that unless you are "off grid" with battery bank, if the power is out for your neighbor the power is out for you as well.
depending on where you are, you will either see a credit to your power bill that will continue to grow as long as you consume less than your produce or in other places you will actually get a check (here its yearly) for your positive balance.
there are specific styles and orientations that are ideal or more efficient, but they can install a system on virtually any roof.
A Few Comments, and Buyer Beware.
It used to be the case that photovoltaic (PV) panels had very limited use: off-grid homes, gate openers, etc., typically where the cost of connecting electricity was prohibitively expensive and/or irregular power supply was either acceptable or compensated for in other ways (battery storage, etc.). Rebates and subsidies have changed that. While the rebates and subsidies are in place, take full advantage while you can if it makes financial sense to you. In many cases, over-equipping your home with PV with the intention of selling the excess power makes no sense because:
a) The utilities make plenty of power for far less expense than they pay to buy your power, so there is no motivation or market need to buy your power unless regulated,
b) It's usually off-peak power that PV generates when the utility companies don't need it, and;
c) At the price the utilities will pay, it is not financially viable for you to sell that power anyway.
Having said that, some utilities are regulated to buy PV and wind power at inflated prices, so it might be worth the extra expense for you to oversize. Check it out first.
A couple of tips:
1. Make sure your roof is in good condition for the solar installation. Rebates and subsidies are not provided to remove and re-install solar equipment when you need to get new shingles or other type of roof and that can be an expensive, additional cost.
2. Most inverters and batteries (if equipped) have a life expectancy of about 7 years. There's no rebate for replacement inverters and batteries and these can get expensive.
3. Life expectancy for the PV panels is 20-30 years with a very gradual reduction in power output with each progressive year after installation. Plan for it.
4. Keep the panels clean, check the output and wiring and cut back overhanging trees causing shade regularly. It only takes a small amount of shade to radically effect the output from PV panels. Rats and squirrels also occasionally like to have a chomp on the wiring unless it's protected.
5. Installers generally are going to try and sell you as much PV as they can. The power generated versus cost and return doesn't make a lot of sense if the panels are not facing directly south, but the rebates and subsidies encourage PV installation in almost all areas and directions. (Not the fault of the installers.)
6. Most installers are capable with waterproofing a shingle roof around PV installations (check the penetrations on a regular basis though) and there are very effective mounting methods for standing metal seam roofs, but be diligent in particular if you have flat or Spanish tile on your roof. It's an area that can be expensive to fix if the installation is not done correctly.
Utilities also tried to promote solar water heating. It was the most effective return on investment if a homeowner was getting into renewables before rebates and subsidies were available. The rebates and subsidies significantly altered the market there. Far more cost effective now to simply add a few more PV panels to power a conventional electric water heater. Solar water heating is a very small, niche market again after strong growth 5-10 years ago. Many solar water heating companies (particularly overseas based companies) that invested heavily in the US market have pulled out, leaving many of the early adopters with expensive systems that are no longer supported in terms of parts, advice or technical expertise. There are many disgruntled and disappointed consumers who feel like they have been robbed with solar water heater installations. (If you are looking at solar water heating, it's probably best to stick with US-based companies that have been in business for some time and have gone through a few ups and downs in the market.)
It was also advisable to make your home as energy efficient as practical prior to installing PV to keep the cost of the PV installation required as low as possible. This is no longer necessary.
One quirk that is becoming apparent over time with those homeowners who have installed PV, is that many are using more electricity now than if they had have remained customers with conventionally generated electricity. There's a name for this, but I can't remember what it is offhand. Be aware, as mentioned above, that rebates and subsidies can disappear very quickly too. Nevada, Spain and parts of Australia are good examples. What looks financially attractive today can vanish in an instant with a change of government or policy.
A solar panel can never produce enough electricity to pay for itself. The companies that sell solar are really selling rebates and tax credits. When you buy a solar system you're forcing your friends and neighbors to help pay for your system as well as making them share your monthly bill. Unless you have a battery system to store the power your house will use none of the power your panels generate. Instead, the power your panels generate will flow to the grid where the electric company will be, because of politics, forced to pay you retail for your power. The farther north are the less efficient your panels will be and the more of your electric costs your neighbors will have to pay. Ask yourself if you'd buy the system if you had to pay the entire costs yourself.
Be sure the rebate money is there. I had a solar contractor write me a proposal based on the Florida rebate along with the federal tax credit, then when I looked into it a bit farther, I found Florida ran out of rebate money years ago and you won't get a dime.