I’m looking into it…
More Pages:
- Solar Energy: How Much Would It Cost To Set Up Solar Panels To Provide Energy For Your Whole House? (8/29/2011)
- Solar Power: How Much Would It Cost To Set Up A Solar Power System For My House-I Need 11 KWH Of Energy Total For My House.? (9/20/2011)
- Solar Panel: Look At The Picture Of This House. How Much Do You Think Those Solar Panels Cost? (9/15/2011)
- Solar Power: How Much Does It Cost To Get Solar Panels To Power Your House? (11/10/2011)
- Solar Panel: How Much Do Solar Panels Cost? How Many Would I Need To Power A 2100 Sq/ft House, Also? (12/5/2011)
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
The first thing is to become energy efficient with minimal costs.
Then review your power bills. Can solar hot water cut the bill down?
The remainder could be eliminated with enough solar power provided you are in a sunny climate.
Solar power can provide 30 years of cheap electricity.
$ 54,000
But it’s a bit of a trick question because it depends on what you have in you home.
I agree – Trick Question!! It would take zero solar panels to make your house energy efficient. Energy efficiency comes from the appropriate use of energy. If your goal is to lower your electrical bill, use less electricity! Then you may chose to produce the remaining electricity with clean solar power.
Working to lower your current electrical use now will allow you to save money on the installation of a smaller solar electric system later. Start by looking at the large electricity users in your home – these are usually heating/cooling and refrigeration followed by appliances, electronics and lights. You can do a lot to reduce those loads by replacing them with energy efficient models.
Remember too that if you are trying to produce HEAT and not ELECTRICITY, you will be looking into solar thermal technology, instead of photovoltaic. So be clear on what you are trying to do. Finally, be sure to check out state and local rebates for energy efficiency improvements. At the very least, most utility companies offer free energy audits with suggestions about how to reduce your consumption.
Good luck!
Kristen
http://www.NewEnglandBreeze.com
It could very well cost you anywhere from $ 50K to $ 60K. All you really need is one large solar panel to do the job. So I’m told, they can power houses twice over.
You’re asking the wrong question. Energy efficiency has nothing to do with the source of power.
To make your house energy efficient, you would install good insulation, pick paint colors that absorb or reflect heat (depending on the local climate), install thermopane windows, and so forth. None of which has much to do with solar panels.
To make your house energy self-sufficient, using solar panels, would depend on just what sort of power demands your house has. A house with a big air conditioning unit will naturally use more electricity than the same house without one, during hot weather. For a rough estimate, you’d pay attention to the electric meter on the outside of your house; Find out when your peak usage is, and how much you use during that peak. That’s the starting point for figuring out a solar energy system.
The next problem is the solar panels themselves. Under absolutely perfect conditions (on the equator, no clouds, at noon) the sun puts out 1000 watts of light per square yard. But very few people live in optimal solar panel conditions. And no solar panel is even close to 100% efficient. A solar panel is rated by how many watts it takes in under optimal conditions. So one might be 170 watts, another is 60, a third is 220, and so forth. Generally, the higher the wattage, the more expensive the panel is. But if you’re only getting 200 watts of sunlight, that 220 watt panel only produces 44 watts. Someone living in Seattle, Washington will need a lot more panels to get the same results someone in Miami, Florida gets.
Another issue is the difference between solar heating and solar electricity. Solar electricity is expensive and involves solar panels. Solar heating generally involves mirrors, and is much less so. Heating water, heating air, both are relatively cheap, though not free. There are outdoor cooking grills you can buy that can sear meat using just mirrors and sunlight.
Then there’s the peripheral stuff. Unless you want your lights, heat, air conditioning, computer, or whatever to only work during the day, you need to also buy batteries, control systems, battery chargers, power inverters (unless you go out and buy all DC appliances), and so forth. None of this is cheap. Overall, you’ll pay less for grid power than for solar, the cost breakdown will just be different. Instead of paying for someone else’s electricity, you’ll pay for the hardware to make your own.
Then there’s political concerns. Many home owners associations don’t allow solar panels. Or demand they be placed out of sight (which is usually out of sunlight too). Some cities have laws that may impact your ability to install panels at all.
I’ve included a link to a good solar panel equipment store page, so you can do your own calculations.
Here in Phoenix where the sun shines almost every day a decent system costs about $ 30,000 to $ 35,000. With subsidized rebates and credits, you can get it down to about $ 17,000. This will vary with house construction specs, size, etc. The payback for this investment is around 20 years. Of course, most of the equipment will probably require replacement by 20 years, so you will most likely never break even, but you will feel good about it so go for it.