Archive for the ‘Home Solar Power’ category

How much does solar installation cost?

September 20th, 2009

The simple answer is it depends.

Ran across this article by Margaret Collins over on the www.getsolar.com blog about how much it costs to install a solar system.  http://bit.ly/3pLHsE. This article goes over the basic factors with links to more detailed  Sounds like basically, “it depends.” She covers issues that deal with which state you live in, the kind of roof, your site, and your energy use.

eco_avatarOver on EcoDepotUSA.com there is a solar/wind calculator in the right hand column that can also help your estimate the cost of your solar or wind installation. You start out by typing in your zip code, then fill in the blanks about how much electricity you’re currently using.

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Posted in Energy, Home Solar Power, Home Wind Power, Planning, Solar, Wind

Solar heated hot tub!

September 4th, 2009

A solar heated hot tub is great if you also want to install either a domestic
hot water solar system or a solar heating system for your home as it
allows any excess heat to be used. In other words, it’s great if you do it in conjunction with the installation of a Solar Hot Water (SHW) system to capture any excess heat.

Building an SHW just for a hot tub by itself is not cost effective. Also, just heating a hot tub or pool disallows the Federal Tax credit.

Basically involves routing your tub water thru a heat sink. The heat sink uses the excess heat genetated from your SHW after your domestic hot water is satisified.

Heat_sink_hot_tub_solar

So, bottom line, if you’re going to install a SHW system for your home, and you want to capture any unused heat, you might as well route that unused heat through your hot tub. Going green doesn’t necessarily mean sacrifice after all!

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Posted in Case Studies, Energy, Home Solar Power

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Xcel Energy & Black Hills Energy solar rebate programs

September 1st, 2009

I just received a message from Mike Brown of Eco Depot USA outlining two scenerios that take advantage of Xcel Energy and Black Hills Energy PV Solar Rebate programs.

Xcel pays $3.50 a watt for an installed system up to 10 kW (that’s up to $35,000).

Black Hills pays up to $45,000 for a 10 kW system (that’s up to $45,000).

He says a typical home requires a 5 kW system . Installed turn key cost $32,500.

So the Xcel rebate on a 5 kW system would be $17,500. Then there is the Federal tax credit of 30% or net of $4,500.

So the total installed cost of a 5 kW system after rebate and tax credit would be $10,500. The typical payback time for that would be 7-9 years.

Extrapolate that out for Black Hills Energy $4.50 a watt and payback is 5-7 years (32,500 – 22,500 = 10,000 – 30% = 3000.00 = $7,000.00 after rebate and credit).

Here are a couple links to the utility company programs:

Excel Energy solar rebate program

Black Hills Energy solar rebate program

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Posted in Case Studies, Home Solar Power, Planning, Solar

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