Solar in Vermont, Just Makes Cents!

Interest in Solar Power is as varied as the people who are interested in it.

It is a good financial investment
It is good for the environment
It is like pre-buying electricity
It reduces your carbon footprint

Installing a photovoltaic system is like pre-buying electricity. You pay up front to have the system installed then enjoy the benefits of not purchasing the energy, similar to pre-buying heating oil, wood pellets, or propane. The big difference is you are pre-buying for 20 or 30 years not just one heating season.

The savings you can see in a Solar PV system depend on many things, like the slope of your roof, shade created by trees etc. For our system, a roof mount wasn't possible because of our proximity to our neighbor's land on the south side and also the number of trees on that property line. We therefore, installed a yard mounted system.

Can you really save money?

Some saving scenarios were created by The Green Energy Times and are printed in their August 15, 2013 Issue 21. The Green Energy Times is a FREE newspaper available at various locations in and around the Upper Valley.

One of their scenarios:

If utility rates continue to increase as the same rate as they have over the last 20 years, the average rate for electricity in Vermont over the next 30 years will be 25.4 cents/kWh.

For 4.8 kW PV system on a 45º roof facing true south with no shade assuming a 30-year system life:

Paid entirely out of pocket

Without taking advantage of any incentives-9.9 cents/kWh
With Vermont incentive but no federal tax credit-8.4 cents/kWh
With both Vermont incentive and Federal tax credit-5.5 cents/kWH

The incentives in New Hampshire are even better than Vermont so knock off another 1 or 2 cents for each scenario.

For us the savings may not be as great because our system is a yard not roof mount (the initial investment was more because of site prep-work), but I'm sure it will be substantial.

Good Investment-YES

A 4.8 kW system in Vermont (roof mounted) after state and federal incentives costs about $8340. The value of the electricity generated over the system's 30 year life could amount to as much as $36,000, or a net gain close to $28,000. If you took $8340 and invested in a bond to see a return of up to $28,000 the interest rate would need to be 11.13%, good luck finding that kind of rate.

Energize Vermont-a great place to get your questions answered.

From their website: The mission of ENERGIZE VERMONT is to educate and advocate for establishing renewable energy solutions that are in harmony with the irreplaceable character of Vermont, and that contribute to the well-being of all her people.
We achieve our mission by researching, collecting, and analyzing information from all sources; and disseminating it to the public, media, community leaders, legislators, and regulators for the purpose of ensuring informed decisions for long term stewardship of our communities.- See more at: http://energizevermont.org/about/#sthash.o6EWps1m.dpuf

Our PV and Solar Hot Water Systems
Dave Bonta at USA Solar Store arranged for our solar installations.

From start to Power Up...