ive been thinking about getting solar panels for my home. Is it a good idea i want to hear from you guys who?
Image by Rich_Lem
There are dozens of these on rooftops here in the Denizli area around Pamukkale. They’re probably thermosyphons (passive solar water heaters).
www.greenbuilder.com/sourcebook/HeatCool.html#PASSIVEDHW
Question by joseph b: ive been thinking about getting solar panels for my home. Is it a good idea i want to hear from you guys who?
have them on your home. my house is about 1700 square feet. About how much would it coast me to go completely solar? i have ac, water heater, couple of televisions,refrigerator and all that good stuff.
Feel free to answer in the comment section below
6 Responses to ive been thinking about getting solar panels for my home. Is it a good idea i want to hear from you guys who?
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We looked into that about 6 yrs ago when we built our home. The cost was astronomical. If I recall, something in the order of $ 90,000 for our 2200 sq ft ranch to go 80% off-the-grid.
I like the idea of ‘going green’, but “green” often costs double, or even triple. You won’t be “saving money” for at least 30+ years, and that’s only if the costs of the panels remains stable. I would hope they would have declined by now, but they haven’t moved much in the last 10 years.
I read a report in Scientific American about a year or so ago that suggested the cost to produce panels now is less then $ 500 per panel. So why the 1000+% markup? Answer: Because it’s “green”.
Coach Alice ATC/PT
March 22, 2013 at 6:32 pm
It’s an excellent idea! But, whether or not it would be financially sound on your pocketbook is a totally different story…it can be extremely expensive, but it would take a minute to see the payoff. Wait a little bit…once more people start doing it, the demand/price will also go down.
AngelLoves2Love
March 22, 2013 at 7:18 pm
yes it is a good idea. i dont know where you live but in NY there is a law saying if you produce more energy than you use the electric company actually has to pay you the difference. i would strongly recommend it.
Tom
March 22, 2013 at 7:21 pm
I’m planning on it myself. They have solar panels that go on patio covers that look great. Here’s a few things to consider. How much sun you get in your area? How long you plan on staying in that home? How much electricity you use.
Call some local companies to come out for free estimates. There are rebate programs that you can take advantage of. You may have additional rebates from local utility companies as well. Make sure you know your usage so you can get a system that will cover how much you use. If your water heater is electric you should also consider solar water heater with a back up (gas/electric) system as well.
There are also passive solar heating like this (but only works when sun is on it) http://www.symliving.com/store/ListProduct.asp?idCategory=3
qreusjorj
March 22, 2013 at 7:49 pm
The costs to convert to solar or wind are all over the board depending on how ambitious and serious you are. There are ways to do it pretty inexpensively if you are willing to put a little time and sweat into learning and doing. I had wind generators that I built pretty much from scrap years ago and they were looking pretty pitiful and not really doing much to provide power. I asked the question you are asking now and was pointed to the link below by someone else who had gotten the EBook and found them helpful. You need to know if solar is the best route for you based on where you live, what your energy requirements are and other related issues before you’ll truly know the cost of building and installing the panels. http://02891bx0ljjhip97yaof1cbq54.hop.clickbank.net/?tid=BLOGGER
If the link above seems too sales pitchy to you here are a few places to start that just give basic information:
http://www.findsolar.com/index.php?page=rightforme
http://www.builditsolar.com/
And when in doubt, it doesn’t hurt to see if you can find solar cells and other pieces and parts for sale on ebay.
Wind Generator
March 22, 2013 at 8:18 pm
Our house is 1800 square feet. We have NO air conditioning, no pool, no electric heat, no electric stove except the oven. A 3 kW grid tied system supplies substantially all of our kWh for the year, and the net cost was $ 12k in 2006. It would have costed less today, because panel prices have dropped somewhat, and the cap on the federal 30% rebate was removed. It’s at http://www.angelfire.com/ca2/roderick/solar/photovoltaic.html if you are interested.
If I were you, I would go for insulation and energy conservation first, then solar hot water if you have money left, then solar electric if you still have money left. Call a professional for a bid – they can gauge your particular energy needs, and how suitable your house is for solar.
roderick_young
March 22, 2013 at 8:50 pm