Solar Electricity

Solar electricity is something of a paradox: it is an expensive means by which we generate electricity, yet it is one of the most popular choices of the poorest people in the poorest nations, for example, villagers in remote villages of India.

The reason for this is simple: although solar electricity costs quite a lot, in rural areas and in less developed countries it’s cheaper to install electric panels than to string electric lines to villages hundreds of miles from central power plants.

Solar electricity is also much cheaper than conventional electricity in certain areas of the United States. For example, when building a new home more than a couple tenths of a mile away from a power line, it is often cheaper to install a solar system – especially if your home is energy efficient and the local utility won’t foot the bill for grid connection. Contact your local utility to determine their line extension policy and pricing. Some companies may not charge much to connect.

If you are building a home more than half a mile from a power line, it often makes more sense to install a solar electric system than to connect to grid power. Although some local utilities have generous line extension policies, many typically charge $50,000 or more to run a line to your home. That $50,000 investment to hook your home to the grid will buy you an enormous solar system. Moreover, the $50,000 or higher fee to connect to the grid doesn’t pay for any electricity.

It gets you utility poles, an electric line, a meter, and a connection to the grid. You’ll be charged for electricity on top of hookup fees. In contrast, a $25,000 - $50,000 solar electric system provides you a lifetime of electricity (although you will need to replace batteries every 7 to 15 years, depending on how you maintain them).

Solar electric systems make sense in states where utilities offer generous financial incentives to install them. In California, customers can receive rebates from various local and state agencies, totaling about half the cost of the system. Such generous incentives dramatically reduce the cost of solar electricity, driving it down to about 12 cents per kilowatt hour. Log onto www.dsireusa.org to determine whether you are qualified to receive a rebate.

For financing a renewable energy system, log onto www.homepower.com. In the search bar type in financing a renewable energy system and two websites for solar financing will display: www.sungevity.com/Home-Solar-Quote and www.akeena.com.


Solar electric systems fall into three main categories: grid-connected, grid-connected with battery backup and stand-alone.

In grid-connected systems, the house draws electricity from the grid when the household needs more electricity than it is producing, and feeds electricity into the grid when the system is producing more electricity than the house needs.

In a grid-connected with battery backup system, the solar array produces electricity that feeds live circuits in the house during the day. Excess electricity is shunted to the batteries. When the batteries are full, excess electricity is diverted onto the electrical grid.

In the stand- alone system, there must be batteries because there is no connection to the grid. It stands-alone! In addition to the batteries, there is usually a back-up generator. It can be run to charge the batteries when they run low. Some people also install wind turbines to serve as a second charging source.

Solar electrical systems are a great source of clean, reliable electricity and provide the owners with energy independence. No matter whether you live in a metropolitan area, small town or rural location, solar electricity can meet your needs and help replace waning supplies of oil and natural gas (EcoBroker 2007).

References/ Resources:

“ Active Solar Heating”
United States Department of Energy
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
http://www.eere.energy.gov

The Homeowner’s Guide to Renewable Energy
Dan Chiras

Your Green Home
A Guide to Planning a Healthy, Environmentally Friendly New Home
Alex Wilson

American Solar Energy Society ( ASES )
2400 Central Avenue, Unit G-1
Boulder, Co. 80301
(303)443-3130

Some local Eastern Sierra contacts are:

1. Sierra Solar: Jim Harper: 760-937-0307
sierrasolar@schat.net

2.Highpoint Solar: Scott Smith: 760-914-2555: highpointsolar@gmail.com

3.High Sierra Energy Foundation: Rick Phelps: 760-934-4650: phelps@highsierraenergy.org

Please share your thoughts by leaving a comment or by calling me, toll-free, at 1-800-231-0622.

For information on Mammoth Lakes real estate, please log onto my real estate website at www.easternsierraproperties.com