Low budget; how to go solar?

Question

Is it possible for a regular working-class Joe to get solars panels and such to power his home without going completely bankrupt?

Answer 1

There is a website(http://www.knowledgepublications.com/promo/free_solar_panels_ov2.htm) where a guy has made it really simple -you do need to buy his book- however it looks like he has it all there on how to save tons of money and make your own solar devices on the cheap if not free. Good Luck!

Answer 2

No; the average initial setup is in the $50,000 range and if you live in Vermont, don't even think about it. Just imagine all the sunlight you get in January. By the way the few watts you might sell back to the electric company are billed at the rate they pay for wholoesale power; they're not going to pay you 10 cents a kwh

Answer 3

essentially there is no such thing as low budget solar.

The panels cost too much.

A house needs $20,000 to $30,000 worth of panels, inverters, batteries and regulators to supply its normal power demand.

You could skip the batteries and just use $12,000 worth of panels and the inverters... and only have power on sunny days... during the 7 to 8 hours of daylight when the panels actually work.

Answer 4

yes and no
consider all the costs and how far you want to go
solar panels can be purchased in stages or in one large lot
but before any choices are made think of where you want to go with this / grid intertie / / total off grid // or back up system
then what do you want to run... and for how long a period of time ( stand alone uses more batteries) run one room at a time or whole house

Answer 5

No. A 200 watt solar panel costs $950. That is not much power. It is only enough for one refrigerator. 200 watts of power costs less than 2 cents per hour from my electric company.

Only rich people can afford to spend $950.00 to save 2 cents per hour, and then only during bright sunny daylight hours. And only at noon. You get less in the morning and evening, less on cloudy days, and none at night.

Answer 6

It depends on your priorities, and on how many 'needful' things you have in the house, and how efficient they are. The good panels that generate the most juice will cost you tens of thousands, and possibly only produce part of what you need (unless you're super stingy with your use), and the cheap, flexible panels are affordable, but just don't make enough juice.
Is 20 grand to get off the grid worth it to you?
You could just offset by investing money in renewable energy firms. That would help green the grid you're tapping, and possibly return a future stock profit.

Answer 7

You can start with a solar powered generator. You have to shell out $1000-$2000 though but its a wise investment. You can get one on Ebay.

Answer 8

grid tie in
(no expensive and highy toxic batteries)
can be done with any number of panels

will slow down and eventually (with the addition of more panels over the years/months) spin your energy meter backwards!!!!
(the power company will be sending you checks rather than bills)

all you need are panel(s) and a grid-tie inverter and wires