Why Buy Solar Panels?

There are several reasons why you should buy solar panels. The most overlooked yet most practical reason to use solar power is its ready availability. A few years back, the residents of California learnt a vital lesson from the power shortages. The residents of California found out the hard way, that their energy companies were not hundred percent reliable. On March 11, 2011 the seismic waves of an earthquake knocked out the atomic energy facility in Fukushima, Japan leaving the residents without electricity. Worse yet, the kennel of the nuclear reactor remained precariously unstable for weeks exposing millions of people in south-east Asia to the danger of a nuclear disaster; similar to that, experienced by the residents of Chernobyl in 1986.

Safety and conservation of our ecosystem is another pertinent reason to buy solar panels. Other reasons to install solar panels include saving energy bills, reliability of solar power and an increase in the value of your home.

 

Top 10 Advantages to Buy Solar Panels

Earn Money

You bet! Going green is no longer simply a matter of being environmentally conscious; in fact, you can fill up your piggy bank, if you do it right. If you produce more energy than you consume and feed the surplus electricity into the power grid, you can and should have the energy company pay you for it. This is where the real germ lies, in tapping solar power.

Of course, when you first buy solar panels and install them, the initial costs may seem daunting; however, with a 10 to 15% positive cash flow, your total costs of investment can be recovered in 5 years or less.

Tax Credits, Rebates and Incentives

The Federal Residential Energy Efficient Property credit alone can knock 30% off the cost of the solar panels installation, if the unit qualifies. In addition, your solar panels installation can qualify for other federal and state rebates designed to promote renewable and sustainable energy production.

Rewarding Long-term Financial Outlook

The continuous operation till this day of many of the solar panels installed in the 1950s presents glaring proof of the durability of solar power devices. When one examines this fact in conjunction with the improved technology of solar panels, the only possible conclusions are promising. Even in the worst case scenario, contemporary solar panels will guarantee at least 25years of energy costs savings.

Cost Stability

Unless you are no longer checking how much the electric company is grabbing from your account, it is impossible not to notice the steady 5.5% average annual increase in electricity. In addition to the annual increase, electricity rates also vary in the summer and winter seasons to reflect changes in consumption.

The way to stabilize your electric bill is to buy solar panels and have them installed properly. Volatile electricity prices can wreak havoc on your finances especially when you are operating on a strict budget.

Long-term Income Tax Savings

In addition to the several state rebates and incentives granted to people powering their homes with renewable energy from the sun, the federal government also grants a 30% income tax credit.

Increased Property Value

You could make an extra 20% on the price of your home if you decided to sell. A 20% increase in value is definitely a handsome reward especially considering the extra financial advantages of installing solar panels.

Energy Independence

The US is currently the largest importer of crude oil in the world. In 2009, the USA imported a staggering average of 10million barrels of oil per day.

Imagine the consequences of such heavy reliance on foreign energy supplies. The oil embargo imposed on the west in the 1970s by OPEC, has already demonstrated how the disruption of oil imports can easily spike electricity prices.

Solar power grants the means to gain independence from the whims of the OPEC cartel.

Environmental Preservation

Solar panels capture the energy of the sun, store it safely and convert it into electricity without producing any toxic by-products. The typical solar installation produces 5KW. Assuming all 5KW produced is consumed for a full year. This translates to 1,825KW/h which computes to over 1.1 barrels of oil equivalent (boe). If solar power is used; instead of burning these fossil fuels in a car for example, it will save the planet an estimated 300,000 miles of carbon monoxide emissions.

Ease of Maintenance

Once the solar panels are installed, very little work is required to keep it running. The photovoltaic cells must capture sun rays, so a few branches blocking the sun may have to be trimmed. The winter snow melts easily off the dark surface of the photovoltaic cells, so cleaning off the snow won’t present a problem. Unless you buy solar panels for mobile installations, there isn’t any worthwhile maintenance involved.