First – Cost
It’s incredibly important to look into the cost of the solar power array that you would like to install on your roof. On average a 4k system or a solar panel system that can produce 4000 watts day will cost about $25,000 dollars. Prices vary from area to area so it’s important to talk to several contractors before you sign anything.
You also want to know if your state or local power station will can assist with the cost with rebates or incentives. If you are planning to make your own solar panels then check with your utility to make sure they can be tested and certified to meet their requirements. If that’s the case you can’t connect your solar panel system to the grid. If you are not planning on tying to the grid, say for a cabin or RV system then you are not bound by restrictions, but will not be able to apply for any rebates.

Second – New Technology
If you read the news about solar energy research, you will be amazed at the number of companies that are developing new systems and products. Solar energy research is a worldwide growth industry, with new technologies being made every month. There is a real temptation to hold off on your solar energy project so you can use the latest technology. But not every experimental product with market potential actually makes it to the consumer. Solar panels are no different than any other new product in the process of research and development. Sometimes the best plans just don’t work out as planned, or are just too expensive to produce. So it’s always a bit of a gamble to wait too long for advances in new technology. If wait too long before you buy solar panels you could be unnecessarily wasting several months or years of using your solar energy system.

Third – Old Technology
Are you afraid of buying or make solar panels right before the next new product breakthrough? This dilemma is the other side of the coin from waiting too long for a breakthrough. The fear is that a cheaper and better technology is right around the corner, but you just spent thousands on outdated technology. You can do a lot to prevent this scenario by doing a little research on the internet or the library. There are professional websites that have the latest news on industrial R and D (research and development), and forecast when new products will reach the consumer market. But many of these journals cost several hundreds or thousands of dollars for a yearly subscription, so only libraries can afford them. If your library doesn’t subscribe, ask your librarian to get it for you. Then you’ll need to decide whether you want to wait for the newest product, or go with a traditional energy system that might be more reliable and predictable because it has withstood the test of time.

Consider These 3 Things Before You Buy or Make Solar Panels is a post from: Residential Power

For serious savings, though, it’s definitely worth considering building your own solar panels. This is a lot easier than you may think. If you go the route of building a solar panel, you can lower the cost to as little as $200. Is it possible to build a solar panel for under 200 dollars? If you want to know the answer, take a look at this guide Homemade Solar Panel. In this guide, you will get specific instructions on what is best to build based on the size of your house and your location. Additionally, you will also get step-by-step diagrams on how to build your solar power system.

The cost can be brought down even further by making use of as many tax credits and incentives as you can. These incentives can help you reduce the cost of a solar power system by up to half. Information about these incentives is available on government websites.

If you want to know how much power you need from your solar power system, you’ll need to know how much power your household uses. If you have some of your past electricity bills handy, you can find out how many kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity you’re using in a typical month. If you multiply this figure by 1000, you’ll see the number of watt-hours you’re using in a month. If you then divide this figure by 30, you’ll have your daily electricity usage in watt-hours. If you then divide this number by the average number of hours of sunlight that you get in your location, you’ll arrive at the last figure you need. It’s usually preferable to use the nubmer of hours of sun for the day with the fewest hours sunlight in the year. This final figure shows the amount of electricity per hour that you’ll need your solar power system to generate.

An installed system will usually cost you somewhere in the area of $7-9 per watt. If you multiply the figure from the previous step by $9, you’ll get an idea of how much it will cost for enough solar panels to power your home.

I have a solar power calculator spreadsheet that can assist you with these calculations. Just enter the kWh number from your electric bill, and the speadsheet will give you a figure for the cost of solar panels to power your entire home. The calculator is included in my 6 part mini course on solar and wind power for the home.

So, you can now calculate how much it will cost to get enough power for all your household needs with solar power. Don’t be discouraged if it seems like a big investment. Remember that tax credits, rebates and incentives can make a big difference in this respect. You can make an even bigger dent in the cost by building your own solar panels.

What is solar power generation? To learn more about this topic, you can check out Solar Power Generation.

Solar Panel Cost is a post from: Residential Power

Electrical and heating appliances can run very effectively on solar power, once a homeowner purchases a solar power panel kit from an online or “brick and mortar” retailer. Many homeowners have been considering residential solar power panels as an alternative power supply for their homes.

The Pros and Cons of Using a Residential Solar Power Panel

Capturing the sun’s rays and converting them into electrical energy is the main purpose of using a residential solar power panel. Since the sun is a renewable energy source, there are great benefits to the homeowner who choose this to power their home. Solar power is received for free and is readily available in areas where there is enough sunlight to power these solar panels.

Residential solar power panels is the money it will save you on your electric bill. While solar power itself is free, there is the cost of the solar panels themselves and the installation. Thanks to advancements in green technology, residential solar power panels are becoming more affordable for the average homeowner.

Some homeowners have opted to purchase several smaller systems to help power certain areas of their homes to help them save money. There have been cases where energy from the solar panels has been powerful enough to return “grid-based” power back to the electric company. Because of the incentive of using safe, alternative energies and the associated economic savings, some people use solar power exclusively to power their homes.

The residential solar power panel system must be positioned properly so as to collect the sunlight. The area should receive adequate solar energy to power these solar panels so those living in areas where sunlight is scarce are at a disadvantage. Another thing is that solar power panels can occupy large areas of space so enough panels can generate adequate electrical power. However, further developments in solar panel technology can come up with smaller panels that will be able to generate larger electrical capacities.

Despite the disadvantages, the advantages of using solar power panels far outweigh them and the use of these solar panels will continue to be more popular as a viable alternative source of energy for the home and eventually the industries.

Residential Solar Power Panels: A Solution To The Energy Crisis? is a post from: Residential Power

Savings in the Math

Saving money on energy costs is possible. The cost of a home solar power system is upfront as you install the system and never have to purchase power again. At first, the $20,000 or more that you spend on such a system will be more expensive than several years of electricity. With energy costs on the rise, you could see savings sooner than you think. Your government may offer an environmental tax credit, saving you even more money. These tax credits could decrease your upfront installation fees of your home solar power system saving you even more money. With tax incentives, your home solar system could start paying you in about a decade.

If you produce more electricity than you use, you can actually sell that electricity back to the energy company. For the average household, most home solar systems won’t produce quite enough electricity to make this feasible, especially in the winter months when there is less sunlight (and less electricity is produced as a result). With a few more environmentally friendly changes, homeowners can add to their savings. Upgrading your insulation, windows and other items could amount to savings of thousands of dollars in home energy costs. If you switch from incandescent light bulbs to fluorescent you could save hundreds more dollars in energy consumption costs.

”Getting off the grid” is often not cheap, and requires diligent changes in your life style, that will pay off in the long-run. To be sure, the next several years will see an increase in the interest of homeowners to use green technologies to power their homes. They will not only use less electricity, but more homes will produce their own electricity as well. Adding a solar power system to your home or business is one way to get on board with America’s drive to become less dependent on man-made sources of energy.

Solar Power System – A Way to “Get off the Grid” is a post from: Residential Power

Of course, it partly has to do with the general crisis in the economy. Yet there is another aspect, namely the global warming. Many folks hesitate to throw their money on buying a gasoline-powered vehicle.

I am sure we will soon see a breakthrough for electric cars. There is really only one weakness with electric cars: batteries haven’t been powerful enough. However, more efficient batteries are in the works. And once you get these into production, there is no reason to buy an old-fashioned gas-powered car.

By the way, the energy efficiency of an electric car is far superior to the efficiency of gas-powered vehicles. One of the reasons for this is that an electric engine works only when it really needs to. Such an engine doesn’t need an “idle”, for example.

Imagine that most cars are now running on electricity instead of gasoline. OK, you don’t need to be Einstein to realize this is going to mean a greater demand for electric energy. And I guess none of us wants to get a higher utility bill? The answer is: get independent, get solar power! Solar panels for homes are the best thing since sliced bread. Photovoltaic panels can be set up on the roof of your house.

And then your house and your vehicle are both solar-powered. There is no pollution and once the system is set up, the rest is a free ride.

You may think that this will be something very expensive to install. Well, that used to be the case but not anymore. The cost of making solar cells is going down rapidly. Everyone knows that there is a huge demand for cheap solar power products. Therefore several companies are working hard to make them.

One company, Nanosolar, has found a way to make solar panels in an assembly line process. The process is a bit like printing newspapers. A semiconducting material which looks like paint is sprayed on to a metal foil. This is a very fast and easy process once set up.

Imagine the enormous potential of using rooftops to collect solar energy!

Solar Panels For Homes: Make Your Own Electric Power is a post from: Residential Power