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Why Go Solar?

Free electricity is just the most obvious benefit of going solar. When you go solar, you flip the switch on several benefits you may not have even thought about. Rooftop solar power gives you a lot more than just electric bill savings, although there’s no question that savings are one of the biggest benefits. This page will provide you with a better understanding of the many benefits of solar, some of which you may not be aware of.

Flip the Switch on Electric Bill Savings

A 9 KW solar power system for a typical 2,000 square foot Florida home will produce about $61,000 worth of electricity over 25 years, the length of most solar panel power production guarantess. The panels should continue to produce electricity for 40 to 50 years.1

Protect against rising electric rates. According to the Energy Information Information, U.S. residential electricity costs have increased at an average rate of about 4% per year since 1970.2 While that may not sound like much, an electric bill that was $40 in 1970 is $221 today, more than five times higher.

Get some electric rate increase insurance. Having your own rooftop solar powerplant gives you an insurance policy against unpredictable future utility rate increases.

Flip the Switch on Increased Home Value

Solar instantly increases your home’s resale value. Independent studies show that solar power systems increase home resale values. In the largest study to date, university and government researchers found that homeowners who purchased rooftop solar power systems typically got back the entire net purchase price of their solar power systems when they sold their homes.3

And helps your home sell faster too. Another government study found that homes with rooftop solar power sold almost six months faster than similar homes in the same community without solar power.4

Flip the Switch on a More Secure Future

Plan for retirement. If you own a solar power system, electric bills are a big household operating expense that can be substantially reduced—or almost eliminated—before you retire.5 Your solar panels will produce electricity for 40–50 years or more. Now is the time to get started.

Charge an electric car with free solar electricity. Not surprisingly, solar power system owners often own at least one electric car. Or plan to buy one. Just 9 to 10 solar panels will provide enough electricity to drive an electric car over 14,000 miles a year.6

Lower your home cooling costs. Solar panels are best mounted with a few inches of air space between the panels and the roof surface. In addition to keeping the panels cooler, this also allows the solar panels to act as a shade canopy for the roof. This reduces the air conditioning load (and cost) by keeping the attic a bit cooler. We usually see extra electric bill savings of 3% to 5% from reduced load on the air conditioning system.

Flip the Switch on Sustainability

A 9 KW home solar power system produces enough electricity to avoid about 13 tons of utility powerplant carbon dioxide production each year. That’s for a coal-fired powerplant. For a natural gas-burning powerplant, over eight tons of atmospheric carbon dioxide are avoided each year.7

And no, those numbers aren’t typos. A rooftop solar power system really does avoid several tons of atmospheric carbon dioxide each year. Knowing you are eliminating a huge chunk of your carbon footprint is a feeling that’s hard to put into words.

Flip the Switch Today

You’ll make better use of money you’re already spending on utility electricity every month. Right now, you’re paying for utility electricity every month with nothing to show for it at the end of the month.

Wouldn’t it be better to put those very same dollars into a solar power system that produces free solar electricity, increases your home’s resale value and provdes all the other benefits described above? Switch from renting your electricity to owning your own rooftop powerplant. Get started today.

Get My Free Solar Power Quote

Notes

  1. Value of electricity production is based upon a premium (19%+ STC efficiency) south-facing 9 KW solar panel array flush mounted on a 5/12 pitch roof in Jacksonville, Florida, producing 13,507 kilowatt-hours of solar electricity during the first year worth $0.12 per kilowatt-hour, 0.7% yearly decline in solar electricity production, and 3.835% average yearly electricity cost inflation, the historical average for U.S. residential electricity costs from 1970 to 2017. Actual savings could be higher or lower depending upon a variety of factors including roof orientation, efficiency of specific solar panel model used, deviations from long-term average weather patterns, and the actual rate of chage in future electric rates.
  2. U.S. residential electricity costs increased at an average rate of 3.835% per year during the 47 years from 1970 to 2017. See “Average Retail Prices of Electricity,” Annual Energy Review, U.S. Energy Information Administration. July 2016.
  3. Hoen, Ben and Wiser, Ryan, Principal Authors (2015). “Selling Into The Sun: Price Premium Analysis of a Multi-State Dataset of Solar Homes,” Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, MS 90R4000, Berkeley, CA 94720. January 23, 2015. Prepared for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (Solar Energy Technologies Office), U.S. Department of Energy. The “entire net purchase price” recovered by homeowners in the study means the total installed cost of a solar power system after subtracting the federal solar tax credit.
  4. Farhar, B.C. and Coburn, T.C. (2006). “A New Market Paradigm for Zero-Energy Homes: The Comparative San Diego Case Study,” National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 1617 Cole Boulevard, Golden, CO 80401-3393. Volume 1 of 2, December 2006.
  5. Many electric utility companies are changing their rate structures to include a nominal monthly connection charge that is independent of the amount of kilowatt-hours used. So even if your system is sized to allow your household to achieve net zero energy consumption on an annual basis, you may still have a small utility electric bill each month.
  6. Electric cars average about 3 miles per kilowatt-hour of electricity consumed. According to the Federal Highway Administration, the average driver drives 13,476 miles per year. 13,476 miles ÷ 3 miles per kWh = 4,492 kWh per year, or 374 kWh, on average, per month. One 320-watt solar panel facing south on a 5/12 pitch roof in Northeast Florida will produce about 40 kWh per month.
  7. A premium 9 KW home solar power system installed on a south-facing 5/12 pitch roof in Florida produces about 13,500 kilowatt-hours a year. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, a coal-fired powerplant creates about two pounds of atmospheric carbon dioxide for each kilowatt-hour of electricity generated. Even so called “clean burning” natural gas-fired powerplants create 1.22 pounds of atmospheric carbon dioxide for each kilowatt-hour generated. Natural gas isn’t really a clean fuel. It’s just less dirty. One pound of utility powerplant carbon emissions creates 3.67 pounds of atmospheric CO2 because two atoms of atmospheric oxygen bond to each carbon atom.