Calculate your energy savings with a solar calculator
Among the most often asked questions we get on this blog are: (1) how much do solar panels cost, and (2) how much could you save switching to solar power? Fortunately, there are tools you can use to determine whether to invest in solar panels.
Using a solar calculator like the one found at International Solar Group, simply input your monthly electricity bill amount ($80-700) and you’ll get a simple answer that breaks down the amount you’ll pay over $25 years, the size of the system you’ll need, the approximate retail cost of the solar panel system and time it would take to recoup your investment.
What I like about the solar power calculator is that it, in effect, gives you a worst case scenario with respect to solar panel cost. It does not take into consideration the federal and state rebates and other incentives that may be applicable (particularly because these vary from state to state).
For example, we ran the figures for our home. Our average monthly electricity bills are $100. The calculator indicates that, over 25 years, we’ll pay about $87,000 in utility bills! By installing a 4.3 kW solar panel system, we’d have to invest less than $27,000 (retail cost), and would end up saving more than $60,000! Of course, as noted above, we could take advantage of tax incentives to significantly lower the cost of the solar panels. And, the value of our home would increase by about $18,000 as a result of our energy savings.
We’d like to suggest that you use more than one solar calculator to give you a range of expectations. Here’s another one from Prosolarcourse.com:
Installing solar panels can save you money
While solar calculators can give you estimates of how much you could save switching to solar power, don’t forget to include other factors such as how you can reduce CO2 emissions and gain security by installing solar panels.
A 4.3 kW solar panel system, like the one we would consider above, reduces CO2 emissions to the same extent as planting 2 acres of trees, or driving nearly 16,000 miles less per year!
Finally, keep in mind that solar panel prices have dropped dramatically in the past two years, by more than 50%. Efficiencies are increasing as well. Over time, a small solar panel system may be sufficient to meet 100% of your electricity needs. If you conserve energy, you can save even more.
Tags: reduce CO2 emissions, save electricity, solar calculator, solar calculator tool, solar panel cost, solar power calculator, switch solar power
