Springing into Solar
There’s a reason why spring is the hot time for hiring in the alternative energy field – people are ready to invest in solar! While you’re planning your spring cleaning, consider adding solar panels to your to do list. Spring is a great time to optimize the extended daylight hours as the final spots of snow melt away and allow solar panels to absorb more light.
With systems that we design and install, there is very little maintenance. Photovoltaic solar systems are inherently very low-maintenance, requiring the system owner only to wash the solar modules down with water when they get dirty so light can get through. If you already own panels, spring is a good time to give them a quick spray to remove any dirt and debris left from winter.
Another exciting reason to welcome spring? President Obama has agreed to have solar panels installed on the White House this season, which officials anticipate will include 25-75 panels and will convert sunlight into 19,700 kilowatt hours of electricity a year. That would equal about $2,300 in saving per year for a residential home in Washington, D.C. Although the cost to outfit solar panels on the White House would cost approximately $100,000, that money would be earned back in just five years.
Ready to spring in to solar? Give us a call or fill out the Contact form!
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Product Showcase: Mage Solar
It is absolutely critical that all of our solar energy systems be completely reliable, and Mage systems are no exception. Mage Powertec Plus modules are comprised of mono- and polycrystalline cell technologies to keep cell efficiency up to 17.3%. Mage modules allow tolerances of up to +5 watts to guarantee maximum power, while other modules of lower quality deliver less than they claim.
We offer a 10-year product warranty, but it won’t be needed with a Mage module; they’re guaranteed to produce 90% of their nominal power for 12 years and 80% for 30 years – three decades! Mage modules also surpass the most stringent safety procedures.
Are Mage Powertec Plus modules the best solar panels for you? Contact us and we’ll help you decide.
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European solar market trumps US but there is a bright spot.
According to a report by the Solar Energy Industry Association (SEIA), published March 10, 2011, the US solar energy industry had a banner year in 2010 and is a bight spot in the US economy as the fastest growing sector. In contrast to the US GDP growth of 2.8%, the US solar market grew 67% in value in 2010 (SEIA executive summary).
US demand growth was, however, outpaced by a global market boom driven primarily by Germany and Italy. It’s reported that the growth in Europe was due to the large government incentives available at the time. However, those incentives have since expired.
The US solar market grew from $3.6 billion in 2009 more than doubling in 2010.
It’s expected that the US opportunity to expand its share in 2011 while the global market slows down. The numbers of installations are likely to double in 2011 in the US. Much of the global PV industry is turning its eye to the US with great expectations.
In 2007, only four US states installed more than 10 megawatts of PV. Now, 16 states have accomplished that feat, notably Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada and New Jersey installed more than 50 megawatts. In 2010, New Jersey more than double it’s installations, ranking the 2nd largest state for solar installations with more than 100 megawatts in a single year.
“This report shows that solar energy is now one of the fastest growing industries in the United States, creating new opportunities for both large and small businesses. Every day, Americans across the country are going to work at well-paying, stable jobs at solar companies, from small installers all the way up to Fortune 500 companies,” said Rhone Resch, SEIA president and CEO. “This remarkable growth puts the solar industry’s goal of powering 2 million homes annually by 2015 within reach. Achieving such amazing growth during the economic downturn shows that smart polices combined with American ingenuity adds up to a great return on investment for the public. The bottom line is that the solar energy industry is creating tens of thousands of new American jobs each year.”
While New Jersey has outpaced even California, Maryland isn’t even on the map.
Maryland was one of the first states to adopt a Renewable Portfolio Standard in 2004. A solar “carve-out” was added in 2007, requiring that a percentage of the renewable portfolio standard must originate from in-state solar generated electricity; the percentage gradually ramps up to 2% by 2022. In April 2008 Governor Martin O’Malley signed Senate Bill 209, which accelerates the RPS to require that 20 percent of the state’s electricity supply come from renewable sources by 2022. In 2010, the Maryland legislature adopted provisions that further accelerated the RPS requirements in the early years (2011 through 2017), resulting in more residential and commercial solar installations during this period.
MDV-SEIA, the Maryland, Washington DC, Virginia chapter, is working on policy changes to fast track change, making it possible to hit the state requirements by 2022.
Overall, the state is at 27% of its 2022 goal.
Way to go New Jersey! Let’s get going Maryland! Be part of the solar revolution, green jobs and solar savings!
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Upcoming Local Solar Workshops
Interested in solar but want to learn more? Feel free to attend one of our upcoming local solar workshops!
- Thurs., March 10 at 6 PM: Green Drinks Columbia at Ranazul, 8171 Maple Lawn Blvd., Maple Lawn MD 20759… Come to learn about solar in a short presentation and mingle with eco-minded folks. The first 20 people get a free drink and we are raffling off a free energy audit! Bring friends and get more chances to win!
- Thurs., March 24 at 7 PM: King Farm Community Workshop, 300 Saddle Ridge Circle, Rockville, MD 20850… Learn about how affordable solar power can be in a workshop tailored to Montgomery County residents, and specifically King Farm.
- Mon., April 18 from 8 AM to 4 PM: Towson University. In this community sustainability conference, come and learn about solar energy, local environmental initiatives, and hear from students and faculty about Towson’s efforts at going green!
- Thurs., April 21 at 6:30 PM: Anne Arundel County’s Quiet Waters Park Lecture Series. Visit this workshop to learn about our efforts in the community in Anne Arundel County, and for more information on solar power for residents and business owners.
They are all free! Hope to see you soon, and please feel free to forward widely.
For our online, on-demand solar energy workshop, please visit our tutorial!
For more information on any of these workshops, or to submit an idea for a future venue, contact Evin Phoenix, Community Outreach Coordinator at ePhoenix@solareworld.com
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Product showcase: SunPower
Solar Energy World offers the best products on the market to homeowners throughout Maryland, Washington DC and New Jersey. 
Throughout the year, we’ll feature various products we use on solar installations.
For our first product showcase is SunPower®.
SunPower is the perfect combination of brawn and beauty. What makes them one of the best products on the market?
Best Technology
Since SunPower panels are the most efficient, that means they require less space. According to third party testing, SunPower produces more electricity than other solar solutions*.
Not all watts are created equal. Solar systems are often described in terms of the amount of power they are capable of producing in a given instant (measured in watts or kilowatts). The most important factor to take into account, however, is the amount of actual electricity the system is expected to generate during its lifetime (measured in kilowatt-hours). When compared to other brands, SunPower panels produce the most electricity in a wide range of conditions.
Higher efficiency ratings mean more energy savings.
Strong Return on Investment
Among the many benefits of a SunPower solar system, the fact that it offers the greatest returns may be the most important.
SunPower generates up to 16% more electricity when compared to other solar solutions.
Solar is one of the wisest investments you can make today. According to Business Week, homeowners can expect a return on investment of 15% or more per year on their solar system.
Most Experienced
With a network of best-in-class, certified dealers, homeowners can have peace of mind. SunPower dealers are the most thoroughly trained in the industry. Every certified dealer is handpicked and put through the most rigorous training.
Certified SunPower Dealers handle every step – permitting, incentive applications, testing, connecting with the utility and serving maintenance needs.
Schedule a free in-home appointment to learn more about SunPower.
*Arizona State University: 7% more than Poly-Si (Test dates: June – Aug 2008); Loughborough University (CREST): 9% more than Poly-Si (Test dates: 2007-2008);University of Stuttgart (IPE): 7% more than HIT (Sanyo), 16% more than thin film (Test dates: June 2006 – May 2009); University of Cyprus: 7% more than a-Si (Mitsubishi), 16% more than Mono-Si (BP Solar) (Test dates: June 2006 – May 2009).
Solar Energy World is a Premier SunPower® Dealer
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How to calculate ROI on your solar panel system
Usually, you only hear the term ROI—or return on investment—in business terms. It’s a pretty typical measurement that measures whether or not a particular investment is worth its cost. In other words, ROI measures if something is profitable.
You can easily calculate the ROI of your solar panel system. Here’s the formula we use when we do a solar analysis:
Average Monthly Solar Savings / Net Investment (cost after tax credits, grants and SRECs)
In other words, we figure out how much you save on your electricity bill each year, and compare that to what you actually have to spend to install a system. Compare that with any other investment you might make. When the stock market is good, we’re usually happy to be earning more than 10 or 20 percent return. When the stock market is bad, we hope we’re not losing money, and that we can get a modest 3 – 5 percent return.
An average solar panel system, though, provides an average return of twenty-eight percent! And that’s only after 3 – 5 years!
Here is a great return on investment comparison from SunPower:
* Solar ROI based on 3kW system in San Jose, CA with a $265 monthly electricity bill
** Traditional investment returns based on average nominal returns between November 1983 and November 2008
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Under the Hood: The Solar Inverter
We receive a lot of technical questions about solar panel systems from our customers. So we thought it might be a good idea to explore some of the technical parts of a typical system. Welcome to our latest feature: Under the Hood!
A solar inverter, also sometimes called a PV inverter, converts the direct current (DC) electricity from a photovoltaic array into alternating current (AC), which is what your home uses.
There are three types of converters:
- Stand-alone inverters, used in isolated systems where the inverter draws its DC energy from batteries charged by photovoltaic arrays and/or other sources, such as wind turbines, hydro turbines, or engine generators. Many stand-alone inverters also incorporate integral battery chargers to replenish the battery from an AC source, when available. Normally these do not interface in any way with the utility grid, and as such, are not required to have anti-islanding protection.
- Grid tie inverters, which match phase with a utility-supplied sine wave. Grid-tie inverters are designed to shut down automatically upon loss of utility supply, for safety reasons. They do not provide backup power during utility outages.
- Battery backup inverters. These are special inverters which are designed to draw energy from a battery, manage the battery charge via an onboard charger, and export excess energy to the utility grid. These inverters are capable of supplying AC energy to selected loads during a utility outage, and are required to have anti-islanding protection
(source: Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_inverter)
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How solar energy creates jobs
There’s been plenty of talk in the news in recent years about “green” jobs, and we’re happy to say that solar energy is a big part of the green job revolution. Earlier this year, the Climate Progress blog pointed out that growth in the solar industry grew by 36 percent, creating 17,000 new jobs nationwide. And the Solar Energy Industries Association estimates that in 2009, the solar industry contributed to more than 40,000 jobs. That’s quite impressive.
(source: SEIA US Solar Industry Year in Review 2009, April 2010)
It’s not just at companies like Solar Energy World (though we’ve been steadily growing for over a year now) who are providing these jobs. The growth of the solar industry means domestic manufacturing jobs, and is actually one of the bright spots in the United State’s long declining manufacturing sector. It’s engineers, who are tasked with continually improving panel efficiency. It’s also electricians, sales people, architects…the list goes on.
When you install solar panels, you’re not only helping the environment. You’re helping to keep our economy healthy and growing. Even as we continue to increase our dependency on foreign oil, more and more people are switching to solar. And as the oil supply decreases, and prices go up, solar energy becomes more and more economic for everyone.
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How to Choose a System that Fits Your Home
As we’ve discussed before, there are many factors that can affect your decision to go solar, including which type of system is right for you—solar electric or solar hot water.
Perhaps the most important question you need to ask yourself is how much you want to save on your electricity bills. This might seem like a rhetorical question. Everyone wants to save as much as they can, but the next question to ask is what kind of system will get you there.
A solar electric system is capable of generating enough energy for your entire home, enough to create a scenario where you sell electricity back to the utility company (this is called net metering). To achieve this, however, your home must have a southward facing roof and very little shade from trees in order to ensure that your system generates as much power as possible. Additionally, you need to have a roof large enough to accommodate enough solar panels to generate as much electricity as you use on a monthly basis.
Because your home may not meet these requirements, a solar hot water system (also called solar thermal) may be a better fit. Solar hot water systems use the sun’s energy to heat the water in your house, which is generally one of the largest consumption appliances in your home. By using a solar hot water system, you could potentially reduce your electricity bill by as much as 80 percent. Plus, solar hot water systems don’t require direct sunlight to work, making them ideal for homes that don’t get a lot of direct sunlight.
Whether you go solar electric or solar hot water, there’s a system out there that will fit your home. A solar analysis will help you decide which one is the best fit, saving you money in the long-run, without costing you a fortune right now.
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Measuring the Efficiency of Solar Panels
Solar energy systems have the added benefits of very high efficiency, durability, and service life – they’re engineered for sustainability. This means fewer replacements and repairs, saving even more energy and precious resources.
A solar panel’s efficiency is measured by the percentage of power the panel converts absorbed sunlight to electricity. Because panels vary in size, the power produced is measured against the size of the panel. For this reason, it’s better to have a smaller panel that produces more energy. It is better to have a 2.5’ x 5’ panel that produces 4.5 kilowatt hours (kW) than a 3’ x 6’ panel that produces the same amount.
Sadly, not all solar panels are created equal. The highest quality panel operates at 42% efficiency. There are panels that produce energy at far lower efficiency rates—most of which are purchased through retail. This is why we don’t recommend building your own system.
Generally speaking, the more you invest up front on a solar panel system, the greater your return will be year after year. Overtime, the higher efficiency panels perform better, giving you a better bang for your buck.
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