The Top Benefits of Going Solar

While you’ve probably heard a lot about going solar and why everyone should be jumping on board, you might still be hesitant about doing so yourself. Many people don’t realize just how many benefits there are. You might have heard about the environmental benefits, but haven’t heard much else. Or maybe you’ve heard about the amazing cost benefits, but you aren’t really sure if you actually believe that to be true. Let’s look at some of the top benefits of going solar to figure out if there really are as many advantages as there appears to be, and then you can be more informed when deciding if the switch to solar is the right choice for you.

Solar is a “free,” renewable, and constant source of energy

One of the advantages of solar panels is that beyond installation and maintenance, the energy they generate is completely free, as you don’t have to pay to use the sun. As long as the sun continues to shine, we’ll always have it as a source of energy. Your house or office building can be completely supplied by solar, making it self-sustaining. There is no obligation to pay electricity distributors, and you can go totally off-grid if you want. It’s also totally renewable, unlike fossil fuels, which need to be dug up and manufactured and are a limited resource.

Aside from the manufacturing of solar panels, they don’t have any other pollution

From the expenditure side, the energy generated by a solar panel does not result in the emission of greenhouse gasses. The manufacturing of a solar panel system will generate some pollution, but the amount it will generate is far less than what will be created from fossil fuel production, and as soon as it’s done being produced, the panels will never create any more pollution. With the switch to 100% renewable energy, we could begin to reverse the horrifying effects of greenhouse gasses and slow down climate change to a crawl, which is a more pressing matter now than ever before.

Solar prices continue to decline, making them cost-effective

While many people still see solar energy as fairly expensive, the prices continue to drop, and they are now more cost-effective than ever before. Not only are the prices of the panels decreasing, but solar energy is cheaper than traditional energy in general, making it even more cost-effective. With solar becoming more and more mainstream, solar energy is becoming cheaper to accommodate all kinds of lifestyles and make it even more readily available. Moreover, because solar energy is free and unlimited, solar power is immune to the ever-fluctuating prices of traditional energy, which are currently suffering from the fossil fuel industry losing its resource at an alarming rate.

Solar energy helps create self-reliant communities

Related to advantages such as self-sustenance and cost-effectiveness, the widespread deployment of solar panels can benefit self-reliant communities that are not dependent on electricity distributors, energy generators, and the entire energy markets. Decentralization due to self-reliance drives down the prices of electricity. Note that generating electricity from fossil fuels and nuclear energy have myriad of costs associated with transportation and distribution. Also, because solar panels can operate off the grid, it has significant benefits for people living in rural areas or confined communities.

Fighting Fossil Fuels

Fossil fuels are the main reason for climate change, and renewable energies are the main thing fighting back against them. By going solar, you’re helping to stop the massive use of fossil fuels, which will inevitably run out, anyway. Fossil fuels, unlike solar energy, will run out around fifty years from now. By switching to solar, you’ll never have to worry about the knowledge that your energy is limited because solar energy is renewable.

Solar panels are becoming increasingly more efficient

Some of the important criticisms of solar panels include production costs and inefficiency. However, ongoing developments in technology, including production procedures, improvements in the factors of production, and the discovery of unique solar cell materials, could supersede these conditions in the future. Investments in research and development due to the communicated interest of energy companies and governments to build alternative energy capacities are forcing the progress further.

Economic Growth

In 2014 alone, more than 17,000 jobs were created as a result of the solar energy industry. And these jobs continue to grow, with up to 250,000 being generated in the last year. By going solar, you are helping create more of these jobs and creating a new growth in the US economy. The more solar panels get installed, the more installers companies will need to hire to keep up with the industry’s growth.

The Cost Benefits of Going Solar

You may have heard that going solar has enormous cost benefits, but are left wondering how, and what exactly they are. You may be excited to know that yes, it’s true that the cost benefits are enormous, and that in this article, we’ll be outlining exactly how and exactly what these benefits are. Also keep in mind that you’re not the only one benefiting - the environment is, too.

Lower Your Utility Bills

The number one benefit of going solar is that your utility bills will get lower. Most people find themselves upset when they see their utility bills each month, but with solar energy, you may finally get out of that rut. While the initial cost of installation is a hefty sum, the overall savings are in the thousands. If you go off-grid, you won’t be paying for your energy every again. If you’re on-grid, while you might still need to pay for your energy if you aren’t producing enough and need to buy it from your power company, the cost will still be far less than it would be on traditional energy, and you’ll never have to worry about the constantly increasing cost again.

Get Net Metering From Your Power Company

If you do choose to go on-grid, and you end up producing more energy than you actually need, you can get credited by your utility company. This means that you’ll have a lower electric bill because you’ll receive money in the form of credits from the power company.

Tax Credits and Rebates

This is one benefit that you’ll need to jump on right now to get all of its advantages. The federal tax credit in the United States is currently at 30%, but only for the rest of the year. And by 2022, it’s scheduled to be completely gone. So if you want to take full advantage of this tax credit, you’ll need to install solar in the next few months. On top of that, if you generate excess power, you’ll be able to sell it back to your power company to make some money.

Increase the Value of Your Home

The second you install solar, the value of your home instantly goes up. If you want to invest in solar but think it’s a bad idea because you don’t want to live in your home five years from now, the solar will easily pay for itself when you sell your home. As much as a $20,000 increase in your home’s value can be taken advantage of just by installing solar.

Sunlight Doesn’t Cost Anything

While your power company will be sending you a bill no matter what, the sun won’t. On top of that, the sun is also an unlimited resource, so you don’t have to worry about it disappearing, and you also don’t have to worry about the prices for your solar power skyrocketing. You’ll have two decades of assured energy