Advice On Investing In Solar Energy For Your New Home

There are many ways to reduce your carbon footprint in a new house, but one of the most popular methods is installing solar panels. Before you make the investment in solar panels and start planning the installation process, you need to be certain that they’re good choice for your house.

To get a better idea of the suitability of solar panels in your new home, take the following factors laid out in this article into serious consideration.

Sections in this article

• Your Location
• How Much Energy Does Your Home Require?
• Roof Type and Materials
• How Long Are You Planning on Living in this Residence?
• The Cost of Solar Panels
• Financial Incentives
• Warranties Are Necessary

Your Location

The prime location for any solar panel array, is right by the equator since that area receives the most sunlight and UV rays. Regions located in the south get the most benefit from solar panels while northern regions don’t get quite as much regular sunlight.

It’s important to take your home’s specific location into consideration too. If you have a lot of tree cover, tall buildings or anything else that casts a constant shadow on your roof throughout the day, it can negatively affect how much energy the panels generate. A wide open area optimizes the energy input of solar panels.

How Much Energy Does Your Home Require?

Analyze your monthly electricity bills, and take note of your average usage. If you use a lot of energy and have a high electricity bill, you will likely benefit greatly from installing solar panels as long as you have a suitable number of panels.

Knowing how much energy your home normally uses will allow you to more accurately estimate how many panels you’ll need for your home in order to get adequate returns.

If you don’t install enough panels to generate the required energy to cover your home’s regular requirements, you won’t save as much money.

A solar panel installation technician can help you figure out how many panels you would need to meet the energy requirements of your home.

Roof Type and Materials

One of the best aspects of solar panels is that they can be installed on nearly any roof, but some factors do affect the price of installation and how much energy will be generated.

Slanted roofs set at a 30 to 40 degree angle and pointing south or southwest optimize energy generation. Flat roofs are the most limited in regards to collecting sunlight, but you can find panels that can be tilted to accommodate for the lack of a slope.

The materials that make up your roof can affect the cost of installation due to increased difficulty working on and with the material. Shingled and standing metal roofs are the best options for solar panels since they are strong, can be walked on and they are easy to drill into.

Materials such as slate and wooden shingles are more fragile and can’t be walked on, making the installation process more complicated for the technicians.

How Long Are You Planning on Living in this Residence?

Solar panels can net you a lot of savings on your energy bills, but the dent left behind from the purchase of solar panels and the installation bill will be noticeable for years.

On average, it takes around eight years to break even on the total installation costs of solar panels. If you only plan on staying in your home for a few years, you could end up losing a lot of money.

On the flip side, if you plan on staying in your home for over a decade, until you retire or until you pass away, you don’t have much to worry about in regards to getting a return on your investment.

The Cost of Solar Panels

Solar panels and professional installation fees have gone down significantly in recent years, but they are still very expensive.

Depending on the size, number and type of panels, the size of your roof and the installation costs, you could spend anywhere between $10,000 and $20,000.

While you should shop around for the best estimates, you need to be wary of quotes that come in very low. It may seem like a good idea to go after a very cheap option in order to cover your costs faster, but you could end up with low-quality panels or shoddy installation work.

If your panels don’t even last long enough for you to break even, the entire process will be pointless.

If you know friends or family who have had solar panels installed, ask them for recommendations. You can also read up on reviews online of various solar panel installation companies to find some reputable options.

This guide will give you a good idea as to the cost of installing solar panels on your home with your particular dimensions.

Financial Incentives

The costs of solar panels scare a lot of people off the idea, but there are many options for reducing the impact on your bank account.

Certain regions, organizations and electric companies will offer cash rebates for installing solar panels. Some utility companies will also regularly credit you when you generate more electricity than you use, which feeds electricity back into the grid.

These credits go towards covering your electricity usage during months in which your panels don’t generate enough energy to cover your usage amount.

In America, the federal government offers tax credits for purchasing solar panel systems. In Canada, rebates are given on a per-province basis. As of this writing, installing solar panels in your new home in America will allow you to receive upwards of a 26 percent tax credit. However, the credit amount will decrease to 22 percent if your system is installed in 2021.

Another option is to forego purchasing the panels outright and leasing them instead. Leasing arrangements require a monthly payment for the rental of the panels themselves, but you won’t have to pay for the panels or the installation costs.

Leasing is not viewed as an appealing option but because the savings are minimal and the commitment is still long-term since most leasing contracts last for at least 20 years.

Finally, you can enter into a power-purchase agreement or PPA. Under a PPA, you own the panels, which are typically offered at a much lower price than normal, and installation and maintenance will all be covered by the solar company. In such cases you have to pay to use the energy that the panels generate.

The fees are usually lower than what utility companies typically charge, but any rebates and tax incentives will go to the company that holds the contract instead of you.

Warranties Are Necessary

Even if you find a great and reputable installation company and high-quality solar panels, you will need to get a good warranty to protect your investment.

First of all, it’s vital to get a warranty on your solar panels that lasts at least 25 years. Ideally, the warranty should extend to 30 years or more.

Solar panel warranties should cover both performance and equipment. Performance coverage will guarantee a certain amount of energy production, usually 80 to 90 percent, over a period of ten or more years.

If it does not meet that level of performance, the company will come out and try to improve performance by repairing or replacing panels, changing their angle or performing other maintenance.

The equipment aspect of the warranty covers the cost of repairs and replacements if the panels suffer from damage, failures, wear and tear or factory defects.

Secondly, you’ll need a warranty on the installation of your solar panels, which is provided by the installation company.

This warranty usually lasts between five to ten years, and it covers damage to the panels, damage done to the home during the installation process, failing installation parts, factory defects and more.