PRIMER INTRO
slash your utility bills!
This Get Started primer tells you how.
On any sunny day, summer or winter, enough
sunlight falls on your house or business to
PV Solar Radiation in July
(flat plate, facing south, latitude tilt)
power every device under the roof, including the
furnace, water heater and air conditioner. The prob-
lem is converting all that solar energy to some useful
form, instead of letting it warm the roof and attic.
You can convert that wasted heat into power for
your home and slash your bills for electricity, natural
gas and heating oil. Some of your neighbors may
already have done it by putting solar collectors on
the roof or in the yard.
Before you climb out on the roof with a
measuring tape and notepad, make your house
more energy efficient. Most American homes
were built in an era of cheap energy. Contrac-
tors were guided by building codes written to
assure structural integrity and fire safety rather
than energy efficiency. This means that the
typical American family can cut utility bills 20
to 40 percent simply by upgrading to thermal-
pane windows; sealing doors, soffits, siding
and foundations; and improving insulation. For
the vast majority of homeowners, these are
the most cost-effective projects you can take
on. See page 24 for more ideas about energy-
efficiency upgrades.
Look into energy-efficient appliances, too. The
typical refrigerator built in 1980 costs about $154 in
electricity to run for a year, at today’s average rate of
11 cents per kilowatt-hour. A modern high-efficiency
refrigerator runs for about $55 a year. The average
homeowner would save $99 a year — enough to
pay for the refrigerator in a few years.
Energy-efficiency improvements will save more
money when it comes time to install a solar energy
system. A house that uses less energy needs a
For the typical American homeowner, do-it-yourself
solar isn’t a good idea. These systems directly affect
the structural integrity of your roof, especially in
any kind of wind storm. They tie into your electrical
system or plumbing system. They produce high
voltages or scalding water. Installing the system
involves moving heavy weights onto a rooftop — a
classic worker-safety problem.
For these reasons, it’s important that the work be
done by someone qualified and certified in roofing,
electrical and plumbing practices. Work with an
established local solar installer who can handle the
permit paperwork and build the system to local
codes. See page 26 for more information on finding
and working with a local installer.
What can I afford? The average photovoltaic
(PV) system costs $8 to $10 per watt to install, but,
depending on your location, rebates and incentives
may save you half the cost. If you pay the national
average of 11 cents per kilowatt-hour, it will pay
for itself in about 14 years. But if you live in the
Northeast, or California, or Hawai’i, where electricity
is more expensive, the payback is shorter. If you
pay 19 cents per kilowatt-hour, the payback is eight
years — after that, the power from your system is
free. If you live in sunny Hawai’i, you pay 25 cents
per kilowatt-hour. Your system pays for itself in
fewer than six years — probably four, considering
that you’ll make more power than someone in
Wisconsin. See page 28 for more information on cal-
culating the costs and benefits of a new PV system.
Learn more about
renewable energy
• National Renewable Energy Laboratory:
nrel.gov/learning
• Department of Energy:
eere.energy.gov/education
• Interstate Renewable Energy Council:
irecusa.org
• Installer certification: nabcep.org
Planning and calculating tools
• FindSolar.com: findsolar.com
• PV Watts: nrel.gov/rredc/pvwatts
• OnGrid finance calculator: ongrid.net
• Your roof: roofray.com
Find a job
• American Solar Energy Society jobs board:
ases.org/jobs
• Solar Today: solartoday.org/jobs
Events
• SOLAR 2009 National Solar Conference:
solar2009.org
• ASES National Solar Tour: nationalsolartour.org
Organizations
• American Solar Energy Society: ases.org
• Solar Energy Industries Association: seia.org
• American Wind Energy Association: awea.org
12 and 14 for more detail.
smaller, less-expensive solar array. A dollar spent
on energy improvements under the roof may save
$1.50 or more on top of the roof.
Safety first: Solar systems look pretty simple, and
in principle, they are. There are no moving parts and
almost no maintenance. Once up and running, they
really do provide free energy. A lot of back-to-the-
earth pioneers have had good luck building their
own solar power systems.
A hot-water system may be cheaper still. A
simple warm-weather solar hot-water system may
cost less than $3,000 to install, especially if you
do it at the same time you replace your hot-water
heater. Depending on where you live, it may cut
your hot-water heating costs by 40 to 50 percent.
A large family with lots of kids uses plenty of hot
water for bathing, laundry and dishwashing, so
this can be a significant power saving. See pages
Is my area sunny enough? In North America,
the answer is certainly yes. If it’s sunny enough to
grow crops, it’s sunny enough to make power. Even
the rainy Pacific Northwest has more solar gain
than Germany, where solar power now provides
about 8 percent of the nation’s electricity. And,
as the solar resource map shows, if you live in the
Sunshine State, or the Corn Belt, or the sunblasted
Southwest, you’re gold. r— Seth Masia
