Is Solar Power Right for You?

It’s been a slow week for news in the solar world, but a busy week on the phones answering questions about solar. I didn’t have time to check our astrological charts, unfortunately, but I feel like this is an auspicious time to revisit the most basic of solar questions: Should I install a solar electric system in my home? I’ll do this in two parts. This week is just information-gathering. Next week, we’ll get some answers. Adam has some great recent posts on financing and payback analysis–those are later steps in this process.

Here’s what you need to know:

• How much you’re willing to spend. The cost of photovoltaics for your home varies wildly depending on size of system, the state you’re in, and how much of your electric usage you’re looking to offset, but a $25k outlay is a pretty decent figure to work with (or about $40k, before incentives). If you were thinking more along the lines of under $10k…well, take a look at solar hot water, especially if you have a large family and an oil- or gas-fired hot water tank. More on that next week, though.

• Your motivation. Identify why you want solar: is it because your neighbor has it and it looks super cool? Because you want to be living a low-carbon lifestyle? Because you want to save money? Figuring out why you want to take this step should help you evaluate if the investment is right for you. If you find out that it will take 22 years for your system to pay for itself, that might be just fine–or it might start to sound like you’d rather invest your money in something that showed a return a bit more quickly.

• Your average electric bill. Take a look at a recent utility bill. How much energy, in kilowatt-hours (kwh), did you use last month? What about over the last year? The best number to work with is an average. Combine your usage from the last 12 months and divide by 12. Also get a monthly cost average. If you’re spending less than about $100 per month, chances are, solar will not make sense as in investment for you.

• The state of your roof. When was the last time your roof was redone? An installed solar system has a life of about 30 years. So does a new roof. If you need to replace the roof after 10 years, though, you’re adding a great deal of expense–you have to have the panels taken off and reinstalled on the new roof. Many people seem to think their home’s roof will need to be structurally reinforced to hold the panels. This is not the case, unless, as sometimes happens in the southwest, the installer chooses to mount the panels in poured concrete.

• The size, orientation, and shading of your roof. Get a rough idea of the square footage of your roof, and which cardinal directions it faces. Take a good look at any trees or tall buildings near your roof: during which part of the day are they casting shade over your roof? Which part of the roof?

• Review your state’s rebates and incentives for installing solar. Go to DSIRE and click on your state; browse through the rebates. Also, take a look at our interactive map to get a good basic idea of how ideal your state is for solar.

Next week, we’ll analyze the information you’ve gathered to determine whether solar is right for you.