The Cost of Solar Energy
The price you'll pay for solar power will depend on a number of variables.
Where you live, how much power your household uses, whether you buy your panels new or used, how much sun your property receives, incentive programs available to you...... |
and so on will all have an impact on your solar power cost.
The short answer to the cost of solar energy question is...a lot...The day that I checked (May 2007) the price it was 4.86 USD per watt
Here's how that translates
An average home in the U.S. on the 38th parallel uses 25 KWH per day or 9,125 KWH per year.
Making some changes such as changing to energy efficient appliances, gas appliances, fluorescent or LED lighting, laptop computer, using flat plate collectors for heating water, etc. will bring that figure down.
Let's say you get it down to 15 KWH per day.
At $4.86 per watt and a demand of 15 KWH (or 15,000 watts) a solar system would cost......
- $72,900. YIKES!
10KWH per day the cost would be - $48,600.
5KWH per day would cost a mere - $24,300.
The good news is...oh yes, there's some very good news. Currently there are incentive programs available in nations around the world many of which pay for half the cost of going solar.
check here for incentive programs if you live in the US
Also...yes, there's more...A great deal of research has been and is still being done to reduce the cost of solar power. After all it's a clean, free, totally renewable resource.
The cost of materials and production has plagued the solar industry from the beginning. Numerous governments, universities, research facilities and businesses have participated in research to bring the price of solar down to be more competitive. A lot of exciting progress has been made in several different directions that promises to bring solar into the ring.....soon.
Solar Energy is collected in two different ways.
The First
is a system that uses the thermal (heat) rays of the sun.
A Flat Plate Collector is a long flat dark rectangle that is mounted in a sunny area. Heat is collected and transferred to a practical use such as heating water or cooking a meal. These systems are relatively low-tech and can reach temperatures of 82 degrees celcius (180F)
A solar water heating system can reduce your utility bill by as much as one third with a relatively small initial expense. Costs are more quickly recoverable with a flat plate system.
A toasty car on a cold sunny day or a shower of warm water from a dark container left in the sun are examples of the thermal effect of the sun.
In Africa, a friend had to wait til after midnight to shower at his work site because the water stored in the overhead tanks was too hot!
The Second
is a system that collects the light rays and through the photovoltaic process converts that light into energy.
| A higher technology and more expensive method of using the sun's energy. Once a photovoltaic system is installed it can be expected to last for 30 or even 40 years with a little (very little) maintenance. |
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If you live in the US check out this estimator to give you an idea of the cost of solar energy in your area.
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Step #1 ~ Cost of Solar Energy
Find practical ways toreduce your energy consumption -
Step #2 ~ Cost of Solar Energy
Determine how much energy your household uses. To do this check your power bill which will state in KWH (kilowatt hours) how much energy your household used during that billing timeframe. Planning a solar power system around the months with the highest demand ensures that your household is adequately powered throughout the year. Step #3 ~ Cost of Solar Energy
Decide what kind of system you intend to install. Here are some pages that'll help Grid Tied System or Independent System or perhaps you'll want to only heat water or a swimming pool.Maybe blackout protection is all you need.Step #4 ~ Cost of Solar Energy
Determine whether there are incentive programs in your area that you can take advantage of. If you live in the U.S. check here for incentives in your state-
Step #5 ~ Cost of Solar Energy
Find 2 reputable dealers who sell and install solar energy systems in your area. Get a quote from each for the entire job.
Pat and Mary of Sausalito, California began by installing a water heating system only. Next they made their house as energy efficient as possible including switching to energy efficient appliances and using gas appliances whenever they could ( stove/oven, dryer).
For the following year they measured the monthly power consumption of their household. (A full year shows the big picture including fluctuations in monthly demand)
This method gave them all the information they required to purchase the system that best filled their needs and spend only as much as was necessary.
Check these Energy Conservation Tips out!
A solar photovoltaic system can reasonably be expected to last 30 - 40 years.
Adding a solar power system to your mortgage spreads the payments into bite sized chunks.
When you burn your mortgage agreement (after it's paid off of course) your solar energy system is paid for and your utility bills are non existent or dramatically reduced. And who wants to even guess what the price of non-renewable energy will be in 25 years!
We humbly predict that by the year 2011 solar will be affordable for most of us.
One place where a solar energy system is competitive with conventional systems is outdoor swimming pool heaters. Mostly because outdoor swimming pools are usually only heated during the hottest and sunniest seasons it can be well worth your time to look into solar swimming pool heaters.
Thank you for visiting our cost of solar energy page.
Keep coming back for the latest information on solar power.
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