Did you know that you can save as much as 95% off your utility bill every month when you add a solar setup to your home? If you are thinking of investing in solar panels for your home, we highly recommend having a solar plan in place before you get started. We put together this short guide to share our top tips on how to make a solar plan for your home.
Read on to learn more.
What Is Your Home’s Energy Efficiency?
Before you get started, you have to research what your current energy usage is. Take a look at your lighting and evaluate if you should switch to more energy efficient lighting such as LED bulbs. You also need to take a look at how much power your HVAC unit currently uses to heat and cool down your home.
All of this will affect the amount of solar energy you need to power up your house.
Solar Potential
Next up in your plan is assessing your solar potential. You will need to determine how much of the sun’s energy reaches your roof and property to see if you are in a location that will be able to harness the energy from the sun.
There are mapping services and tools to help you determine if your location is a good candidate for solar power. You will also have to take into consideration the age of your roof because if you need a new roof in the near future, this is something you’d want to take care of before installing solar.
Observe how many shade trees are nearby (this includes trees on your property and your neighbors). Contacting a contractor is the best way to see the potential for solar in your home. You can get more information here if you want to have an opinion from the experts.
Look Into Incentives and Financing
Most people do not have the money for an entire solar system up front. Thankfully, there are plenty of finance options offered by solar installation companies.
There are also eligible tax credits from the government which will help you save money. Take a look at your local county as well to see if they have any incentives for going solar. Many power companies will pay you money or give you credits each month if you produce more power than your home uses.
Permits
When you hire a professional, they will help you take out the necessary permits to build your solar. Going the DIY route is possible, just make sure that you are in compliance with your state. Keep in mind that if you accidentally miss a permit, you might be at jeopardy of having to remove your entire system.
The Solar Playbook: How to Make a Solar Plan for Your Home
Now you can take the tips above to create your own solar plan. Before you install solar panels all over your roof, you need to have a plan in place.
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