Solar Solution
There are a number of steps to follow when planning to power your home with solar energy or other renewable energy. After choosing which option is the best suited for you to use solar, follow the steps afterward that apply to you.
- A. Investigate your home's energy efficiency
- B. Assess your solar potential and any limitations
- C. Assess your options for going solar
- D. Estimate your solar electricity needs
- E. Obtain bids and site assessments from contractors
- F. Understand available financing and incentives
- G. Work with your installer and utility to install the system and set up agreements
A. Investigate Your Home's Energy Efficiency
Before starting the process of powering your home with solar energy, homeowners should investigate their energy use and consider potential efficiency upgrades. Homeowners should be well aware of their total electricity usage, and consider low-cost and easy-to-implement efficiency measures before choosing solar.
Explore the following resources to reduce your electricity use:
Home energy audits: A home energy audit can help you understand where your home is losing energy and what steps to take to improve the efficiency of your home.
Appliances and electronics: Use your appliances and electronics more efficiently, or consider investing in highly efficient products.
Lighting: Switch to energy efficient lighting, such as LED light bulbs.
Heating and cooling: If you use electricity to heat and cool your home, your heating and cooling needs will significantly affect the amount of solar energy you need. Weatherizing your home and heating and cooling efficiently will reduce the amount of electricity you need to produce with solar.
B. Assess Your Solar Potential
Before deciding on the best way to use solar electricity at home, assess the potential solar energy that can be produced at your address. Because PV technologies use both direct and scattered sunlight to create electricity, the solar resource across the United States is ample for home solar electric systems.
However, the amount of power generated by a solar energy system at a particular site depends on how much of the sun’s energy reaches it, and the size of the system itself.
Several mapping services and tools are available to help you determine your home’s solar energy potential. Some of the services also offer information on the estimated system size, potential costs and savings, and local contractors.
These tools are an excellent starting point and can help you determine whether your home is suitable for solar, and if not, the best path forward for still benefiting from solar. While these tools are helpful, they don’t account for all of the variables that need to be considered for your particular system. For that, you will need to work directly with a solar installer who can provide an accurate assessment of your solar potential as well as detailed recommendations, estimates, and equipment expertise.
Consider the following:
Nearby shade trees. Contractors will also help evaluate shading, but also consider your own or your neighbor’s trees that are still growing and could shade your system in the future. The age of your roof and how long until it will need to be replaced. If you expect to need a new roof within the next few years, you may want to consider making that improvement before installing solar. Neighborhood or homeowner association (HOA) restrictions or approval requirements. Some states now have “”solar rights provisions”” limiting the ability of HOAs to restrict solar installations or limit solar access. These provisions vary state to state, and by municipality; check into your own HOA covenants and state laws.
However, the amount of power generated by a solar energy system at a particular site depends on how much of the sun’s energy reaches it, and the size of the system itself.
Several mapping services and tools are available to help you determine your home’s solar energy potential. Some of the services also offer information on the estimated system size, potential costs and savings, and local contractors.
These tools are an excellent starting point and can help you determine whether your home is suitable for solar, and if not, the best path forward for still benefiting from solar. While these tools are helpful, they don’t account for all of the variables that need to be considered for your particular system. For that, you will need to work directly with a solar installer who can provide an accurate assessment of your solar potential as well as detailed recommendations, estimates, and equipment expertise.
Consider the following:
Nearby shade trees. Contractors will also help evaluate shading, but also consider your own or your neighbor’s trees that are still growing and could shade your system in the future. The age of your roof and how long until it will need to be replaced. If you expect to need a new roof within the next few years, you may want to consider making that improvement before installing solar. Neighborhood or homeowner association (HOA) restrictions or approval requirements. Some states now have “”solar rights provisions”” limiting the ability of HOAs to restrict solar installations or limit solar access. These provisions vary state to state, and by municipality; check into your own HOA covenants and state laws.
C. Assess Your Options for Using Solar
Purchasing and installing a system that you fully own and maintain is no longer the only option if you want to go solar. Even if you rent your home or don’t want to purchase a rooftop system, there are many programs will enable you to still benefit from solar electricity.
Below are some of the options available for using solar energy at home; check with local installers and your utility for programs available in your area.
Below are some of the options available for using solar energy at home; check with local installers and your utility for programs available in your area.
PURCHASING A SOLAR ENERGY SYSTEM
Purchasing a solar energy system with cash or a loan is the best option when you want to maximize the financial benefits of installing solar panels, take advantage of tax credits, and increase the market value of your home, and a solarize program is unavailable or impractical.
The solar installer will connect the system to the grid, and receive an interconnection permit from the utility. When the PV system generates more power than the homeowner requires, the customer is often able to sell excess electricity to the grid, and when the homeowner’s electricity needs exceeds the capacity of the system, the home draws energy from the grid as usual. Learn more about grid-connected home energy systems.
The solar installer will connect the system to the grid, and receive an interconnection permit from the utility. When the PV system generates more power than the homeowner requires, the customer is often able to sell excess electricity to the grid, and when the homeowner’s electricity needs exceeds the capacity of the system, the home draws energy from the grid as usual. Learn more about grid-connected home energy systems.
Purchasing a solar energy system is a good option if one or more of the following apply to you:
- You want to purchase a solar energy system to install at your home
- You are eligible for state or federal investment tax credits
- You are willing to be responsible for maintenance or repairs (note that most solar energy systems offer warranties, and many installers offer operations and maintenance plans)
- You want to reduce your electricity costs
- You want to sell unused electricity produced by your system back to your utility through a net-metering arrangement
- You want to increase your home’s value
- You have the upfront capital to purchase the system or access to a capital through a lender (note: many banks, utilities, and solar installers offer financing arrangements for solar systems).