Does it sound good to you that property powered by solar panels is worth more than the ones that don’t? This is a fact that Photovoltaic (PV) panels reduce or eliminate the power cost from the grid. There is a protection against future rate of inflation, as the Department of Public Utilities has already approved it.

Solar PV system is allowed tax incentives which help the owner to save money. The properties which are fitted with PV panels are in great demand as compared to properties which has conventional power connection. Such properties sell faster as per the studies; as a matter of fact, it is almost 20% faster.

A solar electric system enhances the value of the property by almost $20,000 for each $1,000 in annual reduced running cost supported by the Appraisal institute. The rationality is that the money from the reduction in operating cost can be used on larger mortgage with no change in the monthly cost of ownership.

The home solar system over scores other properties improvements in percentage of cost recovered. It has been seen that most of the solar systems recover more than 100% cost, the total savings over a period over 25 years is 220% to 350% return on the initial investment. The savings can go beyond this if the energy cost from the public utilities continues to increase.

The recent study done by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has established that the solar homes sell faster by 20% and even 17% more than the conventional homes in California. This is a fact that solar energy is neat and clean energy without any emission which contributes to the pollution. Solar energy is free and clean and is available throughout the year and even can be stored in battery banks.

In one particular subdivisions, all the 257 solar homes were sold in just a year which is two years faster than expected. When interviews were conducted with the potential home buyers, it was interesting to note that buyers preferred homes which had solar fittings. The average cost of solar homes were between $380,000 to $500,000, due to heavy demand even some homes fetched a huge price of $600,000.

With the passage of time, it is certain that rates of solar homes will appreciate as the electric cost has been increasing daily. It is also a fact that with the increase in electric bill, solar energy will be the best alternative and can power 80% of a home energy needs. It is also expected that the warranty for solar module could be at least for 25 years.

Since there is already huge shortage of grid power, solar energy is getting the desired attention and even home buyers have also understood the fact. Most of the home buyers are ready to pay even 100% of the original cost for a retrofit solar system with 20 to 1 ratio only with the increase with inflated electrical price.

There is a strong feeling that such homes can recover cost in few years, if by any chance they want to sell the property.

If you have any thoughts of having a solar electrical system in your house, it will always be better to have a look at the changes that you could make in your living habits and energy consumption, that could suit the new system. You can save a considerable amount of money by employing eco-friendly power systems.

Along with saving money, you are doing something good for the nature also. First thing you should do before installing a solar electrical system in your house is, to make the necessary changes to cut down the dependency on grid power and fuels. Solar power is the future power source and before installing a solar electrical system, you should know how much power you require.

Irrespective of whether your system is small or big, it will require certain equipments for its panel operation and to harvest power.

PV Panel Mounting

Mounting has to be done in a proper manner and has to be done in a secure place, to protect it from winds and other hazards. It should be installed in such a way that it gets maximum exposure to solar rays and the location should be decided by taking all these factors into account.

Wiring and Collector Boxes

If multiple panels are used, there arises a need for a safe and secure way to connect all these panels and you can use the Collector Box for this purpose. The wiring should be of the required type and size, otherwise you may lose significant amount of power due to wire resistance.

Collector and Fuses

Wires from the panels run to the collector box and from there to the solar charge controller. Here we use combiner box, which is basically used to collect wiring from multiple solar panels and from the combiner box, a set of wires run to the solar charge controller.

For protection from overheating and overload, a breaker switch (fuse) has to be employed on each solar array. Electrical controllers are used to control the electricity generated and then the electricity will be fed to the battery.

The solar charge controller wiring should be in accordance with the panel size. Along with this an over current protection system has to be employed to protect personal hazards and to protect the major components of the system.

Inverter converts the DC power generated into AC and the wattage of the inverter should be in accordance with the total watts of power required at one time.

Deep Cycle Battery Bank

Without using deep cycle batteries, you can only use the power in real time, i.e. you can use the power only when the sun is out. Deep cycle batteries are very different from car batteries as they can survive the frequent charging and discharging cycles, typical of renewable energy systems.

Battery storage capacity is expressed in amp hours and the number of batteries should match your energy requirements. More and more people are now turning to solar systems for their energy requirements and we recommend you to get a comprehensive home solar guide that will help you in each and every step of your solar installation.

Installing a solar electrical system is not a tough job at all and all you should do is to have enough knowledge about an efficient and safe installation.

A grid-linked solar array can costs over $35,000, even after taking into account the rebates that government allows on solar energy systems and therefore, it is quite natural that its owner gets jittery, when the meter of the solar panel indicates low output.

The performance of solar panels is at their best if there is a bright sunlight and the power generation drops down drastically once the sunlight fades. When someone has spent lot of money on solar panels, he would like to ensure that the power generation from the solar electrical system is at an optimum level and that he would get a reasonable return on his investment.

It is quite apparent that apart from cloudy weather, leaves, dust and droppings of birds would also contribute to lower power generation. For those having a grid-linked solar array, a 10% reduction in output means quite a heavy loss in dollar terms over a period of time.

Nevertheless, those who have gone out to a farmhouse or living in a house on a hill, the solar array makes living comfortable by providing lighting, music and enables pumping of water. They will not get disturbed if the batteries do not get charged on a particular day; they can always be charged the next day.

Living in the countryside setting is a lifestyle choice for those who love serene atmosphere, fresh air and enjoy watching eagles flying and birds chirping. However, it is entirely different in winter. Cloudy skies can pose a problem for the solar panels so also snow in the north or on mountains.

It is very important that these seasonal problems are anticipated well in advance and necessary steps are taken to ensure that there are no disruptions in performance of solar cells in the Photovoltaic (PV) array. Solar panels are effective, generating maximum possible output provided they are exposed thoroughly to bright sunshine during rest of the year.

The general perception is that in mid – winter, as daytime is shorter, the panels are exposed to less sunlight and consequently, there will be drop in power generation from the panels. Surprisingly even in severe cold, when there is enough sunlight, Photovoltaic panels function quite efficiently.

The situation is just the opposite during very hot weather; when both power drops and “heat fade” occurs. This is because when it is, too, hot solar cells function far below the optimum level leading to considerable drop in power generation and in winter, however, this problem does not arise.

Moreover, when in snowy conditions, the reflective light emanated compensates to some extent for the poor direct light. Those living in the outskirts and whose solar array is connected to the grid system should, therefore, take adequate precautions in winter, get a snow rake and keep the solar panel on a “soft squeegee strip” to prevent damage to the costly solar panels.

On a bright winter day, when most of the snow collected on the roof of the panels is cleared, the solar panels begin to function normally. As the snow melts, the heat generated will melt away the remaining snow and in the process, the panels also get a free wash! In addition, one should keep the birds away from the panels and wipe the surface of the solar array from time to time to clear the dust.

It may be also advisable to keep a frame and turn the array over it in order to prevent snow from collecting on the surface of the array. During the day or after snowfall, the array can be turned back to charge the batteries. Learning how to clean solar panels is not such a difficult challenge. A couple hours of cleaning and wiping will yield a substantial savings in the long run.

The Pros

1) A cheap power solution if you are living in a remote area.

If you choose to live in the woods or up in a mountain, it will cost a bomb if you were to have power cables pulled all the way to your home. The combined manpower, poles, cables etc might cost more than $100,000.

2) No more power utility bill.

Since you are not drawing power from the grid, no more utility bill at the end of the month.

You also severed your dependency on fossil and coal energy. Any energy price hike in the future will not affect your family lifestyle.

3) Reduce your carbon footprint substantially.

An off-grid home will not remove your carbon footprint complete. Carbon will still be produced when making the solar cells.

Nonetheless, the amount of carbon your home generates is much lower than the national average.

4) Improve personal relationship with your family.

You and your family will tend to spend more time together because you have to share limited power supply. For example, sharing a heated room together during winter time or an air conditioned room during summer.

5) Doing your part to clean up the environment.

When you are using renewable energy such as solar, you are taking proactive action to become friendlier to Mother Nature.

6) Changing your habits to consume power more efficiently.

You and your family will start to acquire energy efficient habits. For example, you will use a clothesline instead of a dryer to dry your clothes, using a solar room for heating in the winter or using exhaust vents to cool a room in the summer.

The Cons

1) The investment in a totally off grid system with solar power can be very expensive.

Be prepared to invest upward of $40,000 or more for a complete solar system with professional consultation.

2) High maintenance cost.

The running cost to maintain the system is also very high. If the system fails, it can be a major problem because you do not have an alternative power source.

3) Limited power supply.

You and your family will have to forego certain comforts of life. No more large plasma TV, home theater system, Playstation or Wii.

4) Cost per kilowatt-hour for an off grid system is twice compared to an intertie system.

This is due to the additional cost to setup and maintain the battery bank.

5) It is difficult and expensive to dispose off used or dead batteries.

After a certain time frame, the weak or dead batteries have to be replaced. Due to its toxic material, special care has to be taken to disposed of them. Again this will incur large expenses.

6) A bank will not finance an off-grid house.

For some reasons, banks do not like to give out mortgages for an off-grid houses. Forget about trying to refinance it also.

7) It is very hard to find a buyer for an off-grid house if you decide to move.

It is very much harder to find a buyer for your off-grid solar powered home. Unless you are very lucky to find an environmental enthusiast, you have to drop your selling price substantially (usually with heavy losses) to attract any buyer.

DIY Home Solar Power Guide

Do you want to know how to use solar modules to reduce your home energy consumption? If you do, check out Michael Harvery’s Earth 4 Energy guide.

The manual comes with step by step instruction on how to make a solar panel with minimal cost. For more information on Michael’s e-book, read the Earth4Energy review on this blog.

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Related web pages:

1) Earth 4 Energy Review – A quick review on the top selling renewable energy guide from Clickbank.

2) Green DIY Energy Reviews – Is Green DIY Energy Another Scam?