Looking to Install Solar Energy at Home

As a society, we are working hard to abandon fossil fuels so that they no longer have a vice like hold on our energy consumption needs. One of the best ways to help alleviate the stresses on fossil fuels is by making your home or business more energy friendly and produce some of its own energy. While wind power has some traction in that, one of the best ways to provide energy to your home is through solar power!

Solar energy is abundant and renewable. Your only opposition is heavy cloud cover and night. Solar energy is what’s known as a “constant” energy source. When it’s produced it needs to be used or stored. Those little solar lights that line garden pathways store the energy through the day in a battery system, and then release it in the evening.

With the energy you gather at your home, you are able to do one of two things. The first option is do exactly like those little lights and have a longer term battery system installed. This will store the energy and allow your house to access it when it needs it. While this option is available, it might not be the best option. Batteries eventually need to be replaced and you may not gather as much excess energy as you would think. The second option (and the one most commonly taken) is that any excess energy created from your solar panels will be sold back to the electricity company! Yes, it’s not at a great price, but you can see drastic reductions or potentially even small profits on your electricity bills. It depends on your electricity company and their willingness to buy back energy.

Cost to Install Solar at Home

Alright. The first thing is, the cost varies. If you’re looking for a baseline, it can cost anywhere from $2000 to $50,000. Some thinking makes out the cost per watt to be about $8. This lets you extrapolate how much a system to cover your entire energy costs would be.The cost is going to vary on the following aspects:

Location: The size of solar panels you require is going to depend on your location. If you live somewhere with less cloud cover, you need less panels. If you live somewhere like Seattle or Chicago, you’re going to get an average of maybe 3 hours of energy production per day.

Energy Needs: Obviously if you have a bigger house or business and use more energy, you’re going to need more panels to compensate. If you have any high electricity usage items that are continuously running like freezers, hot tubs or air conditioners, it will make a big difference.,

Local Energy Companies: Why does this matter? A lot of local energy companies are willing to subsidize you for installing your solar system. This is because you will sell back excess energy to them to help augment their energy grids. This can significantly cut down the cost of installation and in the right region can cut over $10,000 off installation.

Solar Energy Companies:

Here are some of the biggest companies you can expect to run across when deciding if you are going to install solar energy in your home or business:

SunPower - One of the biggest solar cell manufacturers in the world!
Sunrun - Sunrun is a newer company that only covers about one fifth of states. However they have been very successful in those states and seem to be expanding and ready to assist you in installation.
Solarworld USA - Solarworld has been working and manufacturing solar panels in the United States for the better part of four decades now and they aren’t thinking about stopping.
Suniva - Suniva is known for having very high-efficiency solar cells. They have an excellent reputation from the people who have used them.