No Time Like the Present

If you’ve been considering the benefits of a solar electricity (photovoltaic) system for your home, there’s probably never been a better time to get serious about the project. From improved technology to rebates and tax incentives, the stars are aligned to give you maximum benefit for your money.

Better Systems

While the early solar energy systems of decades past may not have been entirely ready for prime time — with regard to performance or aesthetics — the technology has come a long way in recent years.

Brendan Neagle is vice president of business development at Borrego Solar, which has offices in Berkeley, San Jose and Petaluma. He explains that constant innovation has improved efficiency and reliability, both of the solar panels themselves and of the inverters, which take the DC power generated by photovoltaic cells and convert it to AC power for home use. Due to the inherent qualities of the silicon crystals used in the panels, he says, “it’s not likely that we’ll see dramatic improvements in efficiency without breaking laws of physics,” but little by little performance improves. The real benefit, he says, is that while performance is much the same on the panel side, today’s panels are much more durable and better made than earlier models, and even older systems continue to give good service.

“There’s now empirical data that systems that went in 20 or 25 years ago are still producing power today, he says.”So this allows the major electronics companies like Sharp and Evergreen and Sanyo to say, we can stand behind this with a warranty on the power production of this panel for 25 years.”

Most of the technology breakthroughs have happened on the inverter side. Says Neagle,

“The inverter technology has changed rather significantly in the last 10 years. The inverters 10-15 years ago were not as reliable and not as efficient; since then the inverters have become very reliable and very efficient, so any DC watt you create on the roof, you can convert to an AC watt very efficiently. You typically lose only about 5%.”

In practical terms, he says, this means that while solar used to be used chiefly for charging batteries or off-grid applications for homes far from utility service (in short, when other options were scarce), “Once the inverters became efficient, it became a good application to use solar power for anything you run your home or business on. That wasn’t the case 15 years ago. It’s that technology change that really made this industry take off.”

Along with the efficiency come such innovative features as the ability to monitor the system’s performance over the Internet. And besides, vendors are working hard to produce more aesthetically pleasing products that blend better with the home and community - including solar shingles. “A lot of the manufacturers have come up with some really good-looking systems,” says Neagle.

Rising Electricity Costs

Another reason now might be the time to install that system: Steadily rising electricity costs, a trend that’s unlikely to reverse. Compounding the problem is that every day our lives grow more dependent on a host of electronic gizmos, adding to our power consumption and ultimate sticker shock - especially since PG&E and other utilities now bill for power usage in a five-tier structure, with prices increasing dramatically the more we exceed our baseline allotment.

Consequently, says Neagle, most but not all of Borrego’s Bay Area customers are in upscale areas with fairly heavy power consumption. “The return on investment for them tends to be better than for those who are only using 3-400 kilowatt hours per month,” he says. But even for relatively light users, he says, “It will always make sense to put in solar panels. There’s no way to do the math from a long-term perspective to show the systems don’t pay for themselves.

And while conservation measures are always a good idea, he says, “efficiency measures are never going to replace the need for solar power. We’re all going to be using electricity, and trends show people are using more and more electricity as our lives become more dependent on electronic devices. Figuring out how to generate that power through solar panels is what our clients believe is the right thing to do.”

Cash Incentives

The other factor making this a great time to go solar is the plentiful supply of federal, state and local incentives, which can offset about half the cost of the system.

The Federal Investment Tax Credit, currently slated to expire after this year, gives a tax credit of up to $2,000 for systems installed in 2007.

The California Solar Initiative contributes $2.50 per watt to the cost of installing a solar energy system. Your city or county may offer additional incentives.

And, if you’re worried that improving your home with a solar energy system will come back to haunt you at property tax time, worry no more - by state law, 100% of the system’s value is exempted from property tax.

In short, if you’ve been hesitating, this is a great time to act. When you’re ready to start talking with solar pros who can not only install an efficient, trouble-free system but navigate the paperwork and building codes, contact our solar energy pros. We’re here to help.