The Benefits of Solar for Your Home
As interest in clean and renewable energy surges, more households are making the transition to solar power. Innovations in solar energy generation, continual improvement of photovoltaic cells, and solar power technologies have proven that solar is able to provide substantial inexpensive, green electricity that can sustainably power everything from street lighting to architecture. Millions of homeowners are already taking advantage of the many benefits of powering their daily lives with the sun’s energy.
If you are considering installing a solar energy system to your home, The HERS® Index shares how to take on residential solar installation and its financial benefits.
Is your home suitable for solar?
A fair amount of planning is necessary before making the switch to solar. The first question to consider is the suitability of your home. Some homes are not able to fully exploit solar panel installations because of their location. For others, the installation may be too costly due to repairs and modifications that have to be made to the roof to allow it to support the panels.
The suitability of a roof installation depends on several factors including:
- Exposure to sunlight: Does your roof receive enough sunlight to meet your household needs? The amount of electricity generated by your solar panels depends on the amount of direct sunlight that your roof receives. Eliminate shading from trees and use a suitability checker like Google’s Project Sunroof.
- Roofing material: Strong and durable roofing materials such as concrete tile, asphalt shingle, standing seam metal, or composite are ideal for solar panel installation.
- Roof age: You should install solar panels on a roof that is in good condition and does not need to be replaced before the 40-year expected useful life of solar panels is over.
- Size, shape, and slope: Typically, solar panels perform optimally on roofs facing south with a 15-40-degree slope. The size of the roof determines the size and number of panels you can have installed and consequently the amount of energy generated.
If roof installation proves unfeasible or too costly, you may consider yard installation if you have the space or community solar.
What are the benefits of going solar?
Home solar installation is a worthwhile investment for most homeowners. Its benefits are both environmental and financial. They include:
- Reduced carbon footprint: You get to do your part in saving the world and reversing climate change by reducing your consumption of fossil fuels.
- Increased property value: Homebuyers are increasingly willing to pay a premium for a home equipped with a solar system. Your home will also sell faster. If you are planning to sell your home, you should first determine if the market in that area favors buyers or sellers. A struggling economy or a large inventory of listed homes can make it difficult to sell your home, so a valuable improvement like solar panels can increase your selling price significantly.
- Lower monthly energy costs: Free energy from the sun will reduce your monthly energy costs. The reduced energy costs are stable and reliable in the long term since sunshine, unlike fossil fuels, is infinite.
What is the process of going solar?
For now, it is recommended that you contract a certified professional to install your solar panels so the installation process is easy and painless. You can begin by using a mapping service to determine the suitability of your roof for solar installation before contacting a licensed electrical contractor specializing in solar energy for a professional assessment and quote.
Final thoughts
The science is indisputable: Rapid transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources like solar is the only way to save the planet. Tax incentives, favorable policies, and evolving solar power technologies are some of the efforts being made to make solar power an affordable and efficient energy source for all households. As a result, solar energy capacity has been growing at a rapid rate in recent decades. It’s time you started taking advantage of solar energy for your home.
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