A Consumer's Guide: Get Your Power From the Sun. (December 2003). U.S. Department of Energy.
California Solar Initiative Program Handbook. California Public Utilities Commission, January 2008
Buying a Photovoltaic Solar Electric System:A Consumer Guide. California Energy Commission-Renewable Energy Program, March 2003
Solar Energy Can Save You Money
When the sun is shining, your solar system generates electricity, which means you will purchase less electricity from the local utility. Over the course of one year, your utility will track the amount of electricity your system has fed into the grid and use this credit to offset the costs of power purchased from the utility during peak usage or at night when your system does not generate electricity.
At the end of the year, the utility will "true up" how much electricity you used, and offset it to how much your system fed back to the utility grid. If you produced more than you consumed, your bill will be close to zero. If you used more electricity than you generated, you will only pay the difference.
As an example in the State of California, the California Solar Initiative currently contributes up to $2.50 /watt for solar electric systems less than 50 kilowatt (kW) and owners may apply for this incentive as an up-front cash rebate known as the Expected Performance Based Buydown (EPBB). Program Administrators calculate a customer's rebate using the expected performance of the owner's system based on equipment ratings and installation factors such as geographic location, tilt, orientation and shading. Customers receive their incentive payment in a lump sum after their system in fully installed and interconnected.
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Solar Energy for Your Home
The sun is waiting to turn your roof into its own miniature electrical power plant for your home or business. Using solar electricity as a clean energy power source not only lowers your energy costs over time, but is environmentally friendly- generating electricity free of harmful CO2 emissions and other greenhouse gases.
Powering your home or business with clean, renewable energy has never been easier. Going solar also makes smart financial sense with many state and local government programs offering incentives and rebates to subsidize the cost of equipment and installation for both Solar Electric and Solar Heating and Hot Water systems.
In addition to local or state financial incentive to , you may be eligible for a federal tax credit from the IRS. Solar electricity, or Photovoltaics (PV) converts sunlight directly into electricity allowing you to harness the power of the sun to help reduce your electricity bills by up to 60 percent or more! Find out more about California incentives for installing solar panels or solar heating for your existing home or about buying a new home in one of California's solar smart communities.
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How a Solar Electric System Works
Solar electric systems, also known as photovoltaic (PV) systems, convert sunlight into electricity.
Solar cells are the basic building blocks of a PV system and consist of semiconductor materials. When sunlight is absorbed by these materials, the solar energy knocks electrons loose from their atoms. This phenomenon is called the "photoelectric effect." These free electrons then travel into a circuit built into the solar cell to form electrical current. To see a simulation of the photoelectric effect, please view our animation. Only sunlight of certain wavelengths will work efficiently to create electricity. PV systems can still produce electricity on cloudy days, but not as much as on a sunny day.
The basic PV or solar cell typically produces only a small amount of power. To produce more power, solar cells (about 40) can be interconnected to form panels or modules. PV modules range in output from 10 to 300 watts. If more power is needed, several modules can be installed on a building or at ground-level in a rack to form a PV array. About 10–20 PV arrays can provide enough power for a household.
PV arrays can be mounted at a fixed angle facing south, or they can be mounted on a tracking device that follows the sun, allowing them to capture the most sunlight over the course of a day.
Because of their modularity, PV systems can be designed to meet any electrical requirement, no matter how large or how small. You also can connect them to an electric distribution system (grid-connected), or they can stand alone (off-grid).
Source: U.S. Department of Energy - Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
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Solar Incentives by State
Solar Energy Library
Source: Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency
The Basics of a Solar Electric System
PV technology converts sunlight directly into electricity. Electrons are excited by particles of light and driven toward the surface of the PV cell by an electric field inherent in the semiconductor material of the PV cell. The more sunlight striking the PV cell, the more electricity produced. The basic building block of PV technology is the solar “cell.” PV cells are wired together and placed in a frame to form a PV “module.” Modules are wired together in groups of similar voltage called “panels.” The collection of one or more panels form the PV “array.” Modules come in different sizes and range from about 10 to 300 watts in power output. Peak output is the amount of power they deliver under conditions similar to a cloudless day. The wattages listed in catalogs are determined under “Standard Test Conditions” (STC). STC values are somewhat generous. Real world conditions typically result in 10 to 15 percent less energy produced under full sun.
A variety of materials and construction types are used to make photovoltaics. The most common types on the market today are crystalline-silicon, amorphous-silicon and thin-film photovoltaics. Crystalline silicon PVs (both single- and polycrystalline) are more efficient than amorphous-silicon PVs. However, amorphous-silicon PVs use less of the expensive silicon, and as a result may cost less for the same amount of power. Be aware that performance warranties offered by amorphous-silicon and thin-film photovoltaics manufacturers are currently shorter than those offered on crystalline-silicon PVs, and because they have lower efficiencies, will require greater surface areas.
