Why Are Solar Panels Good?
Are you hearing more and more about solar panels and wondering why are solar panels good?
Are you seeing more of them popping up on rooftops around your neighborhood? You might even find yourself getting interested in solar panels and solar power and wondering if now is the right time to get them.
Maybe you still think solar panels are too expensive, too much of a hassle, too complicated, and too unreliable.
Well, it has never been cheaper to install solar panels and the government will still pay for 26% of them.
Here are a number of the key points that make solar panels and solar power so advantageous and so exciting.
- Solar power is a clean abundant form of energy
- The technology just keeps getting better and better
- You can increase the value of your home
- Solar power can protect you from rising electricity costs
- Solar panels can even put money in your pocket every month
- Right now the government is wiling to pay for 26% of your solar installation
Solar Power is the cheapest form of electricity today, even with that said they are only about 15% – 20% efficient. That means they still have a lot of potential improvements to make them much better in the future.
Imagine the day when to power your home you only need 1/3 the amount of sun, or 1/3 the amount of solar panels, that day is coming.
Why Are Solar Panels Good For Me?
There are a number of advantages to going with solar power for you personally.
Going with solar can save you money every month on your electric bill.
Solar power can help you be energy independent.
In some areas, you can actually make money from your solar panels in addition to the electricity you are using for your home.
There are programs, that can have you set up with solar panels and saving money immediately with no upfront costs to you, and help protect you from rising costs of electricity.
Solar Panels can increase the value of your home.
Solar Panels Can Save You Money
The programs that can get you saving money with solar panels with no upfront cost are,
Power Purchase Agreement – an agreement with a solar panel company where they install solar panels on your roof and you agree to purchase power from them.
Solar Lease – an agreement with a solar panel company where they install solar panels and you lease them from the company and use the electricity they produce to lower your electric bill.
Solar Loan – This is where you finance your solar system but work with a solar company to help tailor your loan to maximize your benefit with the 26% federal tax credit and work your loan payments to be less than what you are currently paying for your electricity.
All of these programs can have you set up and running with solar power with no upfront cost and see a reduction in your monthly bills.
The solar loan will allow you to claim tax rebates and other incentives since you will actually own your solar panels in addition to increasing the value of your home.
Solar Panels Can Actually Make You Money
To make money will solar panels you really do need to own your system, either through a loan or direct cash purchase. This is why many articles say that you shouldn’t go with a power purchase agreement or solar lease.
The benefits of owning your solar panels are a lot.
First, you will increase the value of your home. Generally, by the cost of the solar panels, so in a way, it’s like you just put this money in the bank, and with the government still giving a 26% tax credit, that’s 26% off the cost of your solar panels going right into your home equity.
In addition to the federal tax credit there is also:
- Net metering – get paid by selling excess energy back to your utility company
- Feed-in Tariff (FIT) – get a cash reward for the energy you produce
- SCREC’s – earn solar certificates that can be sold on an open market
In some areas, you can benefit from additional government incentives, federal state, and local to help offset the cost of going with solar panels. This is in beyond the 26% federal tax credit.
Why Are Solar Panels Good For The Environment
The main reason solar panels are good for the environment is that they are a clean source of energy, long-lasting technology, and help to offset the need for other damaging forms of energy production.
Solar Panels Do Not Produce Pollution
They do not produce air pollution, noise pollution, or other environmental pollution when they are in service. They are not consuming a resource in order to produce power, their fuel is the sun a never-ending source of free energy.
They produce far more energy over their life than what it takes to make them. A single panel with 5 hours of direct sunlight can produce about 1.5 kWh, 365 days a year for 30 years. So a single solar panel is likely to produce 16,425 kWh of power over a 30 year period. This is just an average and certain areas can produce much more than this.
Many panels are expected to still be working well past 40 or 50 years. Many people state that solar panels last 25 to 30 years but that is typically how long the warranty is that doesn’t actually refer to the point when solar panels are no longer usable.
Yes, solar panels do decrease in efficiency over time but are by no means unusable.
Solar Panels Are Recyclable
Although solar panels do contain some specialized materials that are harmful, unfortunately, we just don’t have a 100% clean way to produce energy from start to finish but solar is one of the lowest impart forms of energy we have. Most of what makes up a solar panel is metal and silica. Silica is one of the most abundant materials on the planet. Right now most of the solar panels are recyclable, and as more solar panels roll out there will be an increased demand to recycle them completely.
The Technology Is Improving
Solar panels getting better and better. Some people mistakenly think it’s bad that solar panels aren’t all that efficient currently only about 15% when in actuality this is awesome!
Compared to fossil fuels whose efficiency has just about peaked, solar panels have a long road ahead of increased performance. This is going to be everything from cheaper and lighter to more durable to producing far more energy than they do today.
I mean right now you can power your home with panels that are only 15%, so when they get 30% efficient that means you will only need 1/2 the amount of sunlight, or 1/2 the amount of space. Not to mention when they get better than that. Imagine the day when a full roof of solar panels produces not just enough energy for you but for 3 other houses as well.
Some solar technologies that are being developed are spray-on solar panels, transparent solar panels, and organic solar panels.
Why Are Solar Panels Good For The Economy
Switching to solar power helps people save money, earn money, become energy independent, create jobs, and helps further even better technology innovations.
The solar industry is a growing one, it creates jobs and helps families save money. Solar power helps decentralize the power grid, lowers the demand for local services, helps keep the grid from losing power over distance, and allows people to make more money while helping others save money.
All of these adds up to a win for local communities.
In recent years the solar industry has seen job growth by nearly 25% annually and with the current solar energy production accounting for only 2% of the total energy produced there is a lot of growth ahead.