Saving Money With Solar Energy
One of the primary deterrents to solar energy installation is its initial expense. Right now, for the average American home, it’s still more expensive to buy the equipment for a solar home energy system, than a traditional fossil fuel home energy system. Here are a few facts to consider, however, when looking at the “bigger picture” of solar energy installation:
1. Using the sun’s energy by capturing it and using it in solar panels will help your home value appreciate.
2. In about half of its lifetime, a solar home energy system will have paid for itself (lifetime of 25-30 years on average).
3. You are installing a clean, non-polluting system that, since there are no moving parts to break or replace, will be either low maintenance or maintenance-free.
4. You may be able to sell your excess energy to your local electric company should you generate more power than you can use.
5. There are government sponsored rebates and incentives that you may qualify for.
If you’ve been keeping up with home building trends, you’ve undoubtedly noticed more and more home owners are interested in “going green,” resulting in a remarkable trend toward using as many renewable resources, including solar energy, for construction, as possible. Not only will this trend result in a rising value for “green” homes, it will also push costs for solar energy and other environmentally-friendly building supplies down.
If you’re convinced that solar energy is the way to go when building or remodeling your home, but just not sure if you can afford it…or are willing to pay the initial costs, consider doing the installation yourself. Getting solar panels installed by a contractor can be very expensive…look for bids that are easily 10 times what it would cost you to do it yourself. Solar energy panel construction isn’t terribly difficult…no rocket science involved. It’s basically a specially constructed solar panel (wooden box, photovoltaic [PV] cells, wire, soldering iron, connections, tempered or plexiglass and silicone sealant) to capture the sunlight’s energy on the PV cells that activate electrons. As the electrons move and are directed, they create the electrical chain that you then put through a charge controller in the form of a DC charge. You then capture the charge in either a deep cycle storage battery, or run it through an inverter to transform it into 110 volt AC current. You can find many DIY models on the Internet…some that offer free tips and tricks with instruction, and some that charge a small amount. One site that provides clear instruction at a very reasonable cost is Earth4Energy.
Using passive solar energy, however, is an easy way to cut your energy costs. Look at the best ways to use solar energy, directing sunlight to your home’s windows, floors and walls, so you can distribute the heat throughout the winter, and reject it during the summer. No panels, electrical or mechanical devices are involved in passive solar energy. However, there are five elements of passive solar design that you need to succeed. Those five include your collector (area, generally glass, where sunlight comes into your building), absorber (dark, hard surface where sunlight hits and is absorbed as heat), thermal mass (this is the material below or behind the absorber), distribution (how solar heat is circulated), and control (roof overhangs, differential thermostats, awnings and blinds.)
Using passive, active, or a combination of the two, you can save money with a solar energy installation. Yes, you’ll likely pay more initially, although doing your own installation can certainly reduce that cost. But you’ll be reducing environmental damage to the planet, and you’ll also save money on your utility bills as fossil fuel expenses continue to escalate.
On Earth Day 2010, Rhone Resch, who is the CEO and President of Solar Energy Industries Association said: “Today we need to take action to accelerate the deployment of solar. If you are a homeowner or business owner, consider putting solar on your property or buying clean energy through your utility. And if you are a policymaker, consider incentives, like extending the federal Treasury Grant Program, that are working to stimulate more investment in solar.”
Whatever thing, large or small, that each one of us can do to support and encourage the development and usage of solar energy will make a difference for generations to come.
Learn more about solar power costs. Learn more about solar energy topics by visiting Timothy Peters’s site at: www.HomeSolarPowerExplained.com
