Costs And Other Considerations When Choosing Solar Power For Your House

“Prices of utilities to soar this year” was the television headline. “Power prices rise yet again,” was another. The announcements were followed by predictable interviews with people on fixed incomes who will have to make big changes if they want to keep using electricity. Unfortunately these people are unable to even consider alternatives such as the cost of solar power and the benefits they may reap over time.

The electricity companies in our state use only coal fired power stations and none have been built since the 1980s due to pressures from green groups. In that time our population has risen considerably and political pressure led to unsustainably low prices for a while. Now we have to pay for that with prices returning to what they claim as full retail levels.

There comes a time when those with the financial resources behind them can look at the figures for solar power and see whether the pay back period will be reasonable from their point of view. There are a number of factors to take into account. The first three questions would be: What is your current cost of power? What is the current cost of a solar power system? And how much power would a particular system produce in your area?

Equally important are the projected increased costs of power for your district and any subsidies you are able to get from State and Federal government which will subsidize your costs.

In some areas power companies will pay for power that is returned to the grid. Some areas are very fortunate as the power company will pay two to four times the retail cost for excess solar power they produce. The reasoning for this is that the power company is not having to pay for the infrastructure costs for green energy. Other places are not so fortunate. Producers in one country I know of can only sell at wholesale rates named by the company but have to purchase at retail rates.

The last factor to consider is the life span of the hardware in relation to the company and country they are made. Some panels are guaranteed for 25 years while inverters are guaranteed only for much less time, say five years. That gives us some idea of the expected life span when we know the company has had a long history of experience in the field of producing solar products. A useful generalization is that after the guarantee period is over a reasonable number will start to fail. However the bulk of products could be expected to last up to double the guaranteed time period.

However where the company has been producing solar panels and inverters for only a short time and where this production may not be a core business for them then further cautions should be taken. It is easy for a new company to claim a similar guarantee knowing that they will close down as soon as circumstances change. The guarantees in these cases should be considered sales gimmicks rather than definitive promises.

Considering solar power costs is only one aspect when choosing a solar power provider. Government incentives, grid connect feed returns and the reputation of both the sales company and the production company are equally important when making your purchasing decision for your solar powered house. Choose wisely.