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ConsumerReports | Shedding Light on Solar Power
http://www.consumerreports.org/energy-saving/shedding-light-on-solar-power/[font face=Serif][font size=5]Shedding Light on Solar Power[/font]
[font size=4]With the price of panels and installation falling and an extension of the federal tax credit, now is a good time to consider solar[/font]
By Josh Garskof
June 30, 2016
[font size=3]Under a bright June sky in 1979, at the height of the nation’s energy crisis, President Jimmy Carter stood on the roof of the White House to dedicate solar panels installed there to heat water for the staff kitchen. That powerful gesture, which gave America a taste of its clean-energy future, was as symbolic as it was historic: At the time, converting a typical American house to solar power was extremely rare and cost roughly half as much as the house itself.
A lot has changed in the intervening 37 years: Solar costs have dropped so much that today it’s possible to generate all or most of a home’s electricity—for decades to come—for about the purchase price of a new economy car. Solar installations have increased dramatically. And President Obama has installed new panels on the White House roof.
There has probably never been a better time to switch to solar. Thirty-one states and the District of Columbia have regulations that are solar-friendly enough (and electricity rates high enough) to make residential solar financially attractive (see map below), and last December Congress extended through 2021 the generous federal tax credits on solar projects that had been set to expire at the end of this year. Residential solar installations increased almost 60 percent between 2014 and 2015, and in 2015 America averaged one new residential solar installation about every 100 seconds.
Those who want to wait on the sidelines for further price reductions could be disappointed: The cost of solar panels has started to plateau and, while installation labor and other soft costs continue to fall, the phasing out of state tax incentives and utility rebates and grants has largely offset those savings. Adding an element of urgency to the equation are proposals in a number of states that would radically shrink the utility-bill savings of switching to solar power (see “How Utilities Are Fighting Back on Solar Power”). Because, generally speaking, existing solar customers haven’t been subject to those changes, getting your deal done before new regulations are implemented could save you hundreds of dollars each year.
…[/font][/font]
[font size=4]With the price of panels and installation falling and an extension of the federal tax credit, now is a good time to consider solar[/font]
By Josh Garskof
June 30, 2016
[font size=3]Under a bright June sky in 1979, at the height of the nation’s energy crisis, President Jimmy Carter stood on the roof of the White House to dedicate solar panels installed there to heat water for the staff kitchen. That powerful gesture, which gave America a taste of its clean-energy future, was as symbolic as it was historic: At the time, converting a typical American house to solar power was extremely rare and cost roughly half as much as the house itself.
A lot has changed in the intervening 37 years: Solar costs have dropped so much that today it’s possible to generate all or most of a home’s electricity—for decades to come—for about the purchase price of a new economy car. Solar installations have increased dramatically. And President Obama has installed new panels on the White House roof.
There has probably never been a better time to switch to solar. Thirty-one states and the District of Columbia have regulations that are solar-friendly enough (and electricity rates high enough) to make residential solar financially attractive (see map below), and last December Congress extended through 2021 the generous federal tax credits on solar projects that had been set to expire at the end of this year. Residential solar installations increased almost 60 percent between 2014 and 2015, and in 2015 America averaged one new residential solar installation about every 100 seconds.
Those who want to wait on the sidelines for further price reductions could be disappointed: The cost of solar panels has started to plateau and, while installation labor and other soft costs continue to fall, the phasing out of state tax incentives and utility rebates and grants has largely offset those savings. Adding an element of urgency to the equation are proposals in a number of states that would radically shrink the utility-bill savings of switching to solar power (see “How Utilities Are Fighting Back on Solar Power”). Because, generally speaking, existing solar customers haven’t been subject to those changes, getting your deal done before new regulations are implemented could save you hundreds of dollars each year.
…[/font][/font]
