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How Much Does it Cost to Install Solar Panels?

by Nevena

The installation of solar power is an environmentally friendly and money saving approach to supplying power to your home, and it creates an independent way to provide your own electricity for the long haul. Although the installation cost for solar panels can be prohibitive for many people, even that initial charge can vary from one home to another and the enormous future savings in energy costs more than make up for those costs.

1. Purpose

The solar power used for residential homes today can be classified into three types, thermal and passive solar energy, and solar panels. Significant savings are realized when thermal and passive solar energy is utilized because they are used to provide power for the heating of water which usually creates a large expense for the home. Solar panels allow for an even greater savings.

2. Benefits

With the use of the solar panels located on the roof of the house or elsewhere, the rays of the sun are trapped and utilized to create electrical power. In this way you will be providing your own electrical power, and as long as you create enough to meet your household needs, and you have fully paid for the initial costs of the installation, you will be receiving electrical power free of charge.

3. System Components

There are four different components to the solar panel system that must be purchased. First there are the panels themselves which bring about the transformation of sunlight to electrical power. The number of panels purchased should be adequate to provide the electrical power required for the home. Secondly, a component referred to as an inverter takes this power and creates usable electrical power for the home. Thirdly, electrical wiring is required, and fourthly a mounting system will be needed to assemble all the components.

4. Factors to consider

Certain factors such as the quantity of electricity used in the house will affect the cost of solar panels. The number of solar panels and inverters you will need will vary with the appliances you use and the quantity of energy each consumes. Items in the home such as a hot tub and big theater systems will require more energy than a home without these items, and will consequently utilize more solar power to operate.

5. Costs Involved

The cost of installing solar panels in a home of average size will range from $30,000 to $70,000. The actual cost will vary with the location of the house (the installation of such systems in remote areas which do not have grid systems, is much less expensive that areas with available grid systems), the kind of panels purchased, the size of the house, whether new or used products are used, and the size of the solar system itself.

The usual costs of running solar panels will vary from $7 to $9 per watt, and that largely decides the size and cost of the system used. Solar panels can be installed in both new and old homes, is covered by home owners insurances and Federal and State governments offer energy incentive plans that can substantially reduce the initial installation costs.

S. Combs contributes articles for the http://www.residentialsolarpanels.org blog, her personal hobby blog centered on ideas to aid home owners find solar installers and learn how to to conserve energy with solar power.