The cost of a new Solar Hot Water System is parallel to the cost of paying
utility bills for about 5 years in your home.
Residential solar hot water systems can cost between $5,500-$8,500 installed, depending on the size and requirements.
North Carolina offers a generous 35% tax credit for solar systems, and
there is also a 30% federal tax credit available.
Are you a good candidate for a solar application?
In order to obtain optimum results from a solar thermal or photovoltaic system, your home
or business should get at least 6 hours of sunshine, between the hours of 9AM and 3 PM on the southern
exposure of your home or land. This area should have unobstructed, unshaded exposure. The solar panels can be
mounted either on the building itself, or pole/rack mounted on land.
Solar Thermal Hot Water: This is the most popular and widely
used form of renewable energy. Solar hot water can be produced by using solar panels to heat hot water for
use inside homes and businesses. The hot water is usually stored in hot water tanks and then circulated through piping for
use. It can be used for the following applications: - Domestic Hot water
- Space heating
- Radiant floor heating
- Pool heating
Photovoltaics: Solar cells are arranged together to form a solar module. Modules are
arranged to create an array which could create an electrical system of solar energy. Installation can run from $9 -$12 a watt,
installed. Three options of using photovoltaics are grid connect, grid connect with battery back-up, and off-grid.
A grid-tied starter system can be designed to supply a small portion of electricity while the remainder can be purchased
from you utility company. Future expansion of your solar system is relatively simple, and can be added on at your
own financial pace.
To start, get a rough estimate of your
home's energy use, look at your electric bill's KWH usage over the last 12 months. That should give you a rough
idea of how much energy was used in the last year.
Passive Solar And Daylighting:
Today,
more buildings are being designed to take advantage of a natural resource called passive solar. This
occurs when the south side of a building is used to absorb and store the sun's heat. This energy can be harnessed
by using large, south-facing windows and materials that are built into the walls and floors to help absorb the sun's
heat during the day. When this occurs, the heat is slowly released at night, which is a form of passive solar design
called direct gain.
Daylighting is the use of natural sunlight to brighten up a building's
interior, and is usually part of the passive solar design.
Another passive solar heating design
involves sunspaces and trombe walls. A sunspace is much like a greenhouse
and is built on the south side of a building. It lets sunlight pass through windows or other forms of glazing, which warms
the space. A trombe wall is a very thick, south-facing wall which is painted black and absorbs a lot of heat. There is a single
pane of glass that is installed a few inches from the wall and holds in the heat, which heats up during the day and is slowly
released at night.
If you are thinking about using Solar Energy, let
Energy Earth provide you with a comprehensive consultation to assess what the best options are for you!
