At Home Solar Power Generation

(Flickr photo, "Solar Windblades" by Tom Swift46) 

Host introduction: This week on Our Northwest's Building Green series, we consider adding solar to our new or existing homes. Mary Hawkins spoke with Mike Nelson, director of the Northwest Solar Center about state and national incentives to install solar systems, and about solar generation as a revenue source for the average homeowner. Listen here.

Mary Hawkins: If we thought of ourselves as small energy companies instead of individual energy consumers who wrote a check out to the utility company every month, I think perhaps our attitude toward energy would change significantly, don't you? 

Mike Nelson: Oh yeah, I think you're absolutely right on that. And that's really what this technology does for the first time. It gives each and every one of us the opportunity to become a generation station. We can become a contributor rather than a user and that changes the game dramatically. 

When people ask me is this cost effective, it's sort of like saying, is it cost effective to own your own home? If I buy a solar electric system, once it's paid off I have a generation station that's effectively making me money. If I buy my electricity from a utility company, at the end of 20 years, I've got a drawer full of receipts. 

Hawkins: So, why is now great? 

Nelson: Because we have great incentives in place in Washington State. You can get paid up to 5,000 dollars a year for energy you generate yourself in Washington State by your utility company. I install a say 5 kilowatt solar system or 4 kilowatt solar system on my roof - that'll generate 5,000 kilowatt hours a year. I can get paid as high as 54 cents a kilowatt hour for that electricity - and you get paid this year, next year, all the way through 2020. That's 5 years of receiving payments as high as 5,000 dollars a year. 

Hawkins: And in terms of initial outlay of costs - photovoltaic technology has gotten cheaper, right? 

Nelson: Oh, yes. It's continually dropping in cost. Right now you can expect to pay somewhere between 7 and 8 dollars a watt for an installed system. 

Hawkins: And what does that mean? 

Nelson: You'd pay somewhere between 25 and 30,000 dollars for a 4 to 5 kilowatt system. Suppose we paid 30,000 for it. Over the next 12 years, it's going to generate 60,000 worth of electricity. And you get to take the federal tax credit of 30 percent off the top, which amounts to additional value that you get back in the first year of 12 thousand dollars. So, if I install a 30,000 solar system, finance it over 30 years - and it will last 30 years - I get a the first year out a check for 12,000 dollars - that's a pretty significant return on investment. 

Hawkins: we think of solar as a technology for very, very sunny places, but that's not necessarily true. I could do this in Northwestern Washington. I could do this anywhere east of the Cascades. correct? 

Nelson: Right. 

Hawkins: As long as I had a pitch to my roof that could pick up solar for how many hours per day? 

Nelson: Quite honestly, because we have primarily overcast skies during the winter, the sun angle isn't as critical as most people think. Anywhere between a 20 degree slope and a 45 degree slope is very acceptable. So you can mount a solar system flush with the roof on just about any typical south facing roof. 

Hawkins: Mike Nelson's own home has an east and west slope - so he has somewhat larger panels mounted to compensate for lost energy. Site is very important to your solar decision because shadows can drop your energy gain exponentially. 

Because of tax and power production incentives, now is also a great time to explore wind at many sites around the Northwest. Like solar, wind turbines are a long-term investment that can put money back into your pocket. For more information about tax incentives & solar and wind technology, go to Our Northwest at N-W-P-R dot org. I'm Mary Hawkins.

EPA's how-to site: Residential Solar. 

Washington State renewable energy tax incentives 

Federal tax incentives for renewable energy

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