Solar energy can be a great financial investment for many. System owners can quickly take control of an on-going expense and save hundreds and even thousands each month, depending on the amount of electricity they consume. But there are some on-going costs associated with solar ownership that can eat into your expected monthly savings. These are common costs in addition to the installation cost that are often buried deep in the fine print of many solar quotes and understandably overlooked by prospective solar owners. In this blog, we’ve uncovered these […]
Updated October 28, 2020Are free solar panels a good deal? You may have seen solar installers advertising ‘free solar panels’ for your home. This sales pitch might sound like it’s too good to be true, however there really are solar installers who offer to install rooftop solar panels without any upfront costs. But, there’s a catch – these free solar panels won’t give you the same great electric bill savings that you get when you pay for the solar system. On this pageWhat do ‘free solar panels’ mean?Are free solar […]
I live in the high desert of southern California. The weather here is perfect for solar electric systems: 300 clear days per year, bright sunshine and low humidity. This makes it ideal for installing a residential solar electric system on my roof to help reduce my high summer air conditioning cost of $340.00 per month. As I researched installing a residential photovoltaic system I learned a number of facts that made it so unattractive that I decided to pass. This brief page discusses many of those issues, in particular, one […]
Consider solar if you have a high utility bill, live in a prime location and qualify for tax breaks or other savings. Lauren Schwahn March 13, 2020 Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This may influence which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here’s how we make money.The rising cost of electricity from […]
The costs associated with generating solar energy have dropped quite dramatically over the past decade. The average cost of solar cells has dropped from a whopping $76.67/watt in 1977 to as low as $0.26/watt in 2016. In places like Dubai that enjoy fine sunshine throughout the year, the cost of solar energy from a new 1.2 GW Sweihan solar project has been estimated at $0.023/kWh. Improved technology and increase in solar panel production have largely driven this drop in prices. However, the falling prices of solar panels only tell one […]
If you think we’ve been doing a reasonable job of curbing fossil fuel use, you are sadly mistaken. Global energy demand grew yet again in 2018, by 2.3%, its fastest pace in ten years. 70% of that was provided by fossil fuel, and only 30% by renewables and nuclear. America is awash in new oil, recently setting a new record of 12 million barrels/day.America is awash in new oil, recently setting a new record of 12 million barrels/day. DOE EEREUntil growth in renewables exceeds that of fossil fuels, and by […]
Julie Griffiths* wanted to reduce her carbon footprint by installing solar panels. The cost would have been a prohibitive £12,000, so she signed a deal to lease part of her roof to a solar power company, which would fit the panels for free. It would pocket the newly introduced feed-in tariffs (FITs) – subsidies paid by the government for the electricity generated. She, meanwhile, would have lower energy bills. At the end of the 25 years, the panels and the tariffs would be hers. It seemed a win-win situation until […]
By Julianne MalveauxSeptember 16, 2020Election Day is only about two months away, and Democrats are hoping to capture the White House and even the Senate, which could mean a renewed vigor to tackling climate change.As we face one of the hottest years ever, the worst California fire season in decades, and perhaps the worst hurricane season ever, the threat of climate change will resonate with the American people. This is why the Democratic response to climate change is robust and includes a national investment to help people install solar panels […]
By Commentary Editor’s note: This commentary is by Kevin B. Jones, who is a professor of energy technology and policy at Vermont Law School, where he leads the Energy Clinic. Vermonters are signing up for solar energy in record numbers. With current federal and state incentives, going solar has never been cheaper and is a great way to have a softer impact on our warming planet. Unfortunately, more and more Vermonters who believe they are buying solar energy from local companies are actually supporting fossil-fueled energy and worsening their carbon footprint […]
According to the hype, solar energy is both clean and environmentally neutral, if not a positive. Well, turns out that’s not quite the case. A fascinating story from Voice of America’s Zulima Palacio points to another side of solar, one that’s neither clean nor green. The focus of the story is Colorado’s San Luis Valley, the world’s largest mountain valley, and at 7,600 feet the country’s highest major agricultural area. As it happens, we’re quite familiar with the Valley, since we spent most of our college years there. The Valley’s flat, […]