Question:
what would it cost to invest in solar energy?
Zelfi333
2014-09-16 21:59:09 UTC
I live in southern Saskatchewan Canada where I get a yearly average of 6 hours of sunlight a day.
We do not have trees blocking any sunshine on the roof.
The farm that I live on uses an average of 117 kilowatts per day.
I am finding that an average house uses 24 to 29 kWh per day.
I only want to use solar energy for the house.
I have roughly 500 square feet of roof on the house. The roof faces the east and the west.
I want to stay on the grid.
I am with saskpower.
And according to a formula I found, the size of pv system I would need is roughly 20. What does that mean?
Basically I would like to know what price range I am looking at for an average or slightly above average unit to power ONLY the house. We would probably need things to angle the panels properly on the roof. I don't know what else you might need to figure this out for me but just ask and I will comment on your answer/question.
Five answers:
John W
2014-09-17 12:54:09 UTC
Solar power is still more costly than grid power so without government subsidies, it isn't an economic option unless grid power isn't available. Although zone 4 extends into Saskatchewan, it is still 4.5 usable hours of sunlight so your estimate of 6 hours is high. As you intend to stay in the grid then a grid tied system is your best option as it avoids the inefficiencies of the batteries and a sporadically used inverter as well as the cost of the batteries. However, you should try to reduce your home energy consumption further. To produce 29 kwh per day in 4.5 hours with the 95% efficiency of a fully loaded net tied inverter ( one advantage of grid tied systems is that the inverter is under full load when in operation ), you would need to have 6.784 kw of solar panels. At roughly $3 a watt installed ( these prices are dropping all the time, $5 a watt was the usual metric used ), you're talking about roughly $20,350. A 100 watt panel is roughly 2x4 feet or 8 square feet and you do need to aim them to the South, but they can be pole mounted, if they are on tracking mounts, you'll get much more usable hours per day.



Note lead acid batteries are 50% efficient at charging, 95% efficient at discharging and inverters under sporadic household use average 65% in efficiencies. As you can see, a battery based grid free solution would not only involve the purchase of batteries but much more power would have to be generated.
bw022
2014-09-17 07:14:58 UTC
A typical 10kW solar house system costs around $35,000-$45,000. That does not include maintenance or replacement of damaged panels. You may be able to get a grand from your province or utility company for a small percentage of the costs. This considers of 40 or so 250W solar panels at just under 1.5 square meters each, costs of a DC to AC converter, wiring, and installation. That is around 600 square feet. What you can actually place on the roof depends upon the construction of the roof, weight allowance, snow loads (which can be high in Saskatchewan), etc.



You can't run a home solely on solar. Panels only produce power when it is sunny outside. It produces no power during the night, cloudy days, snow, rain, etc. Such system do not include any type of battery storage -- meaning you only get power during the day. At night, in the winter, on overcast days, etc. you have to get power from the grid. The only way to avoid this would be a battery system -- which will cost several times the cost of the solar system, needs to be replaced every few years, and takes up a lot of space. There is no way that batteries can store enough power to last through the winter months -- when the panels will produce little or no power (sun too low in sky and too much snow).



Further, 10kW is its peak production. This assumes the angle of the sun is directly overhead. As the sun moves across the sky or its angle across the horizon changes -- production is a lot lower. This is particularly true in higher latitudes. It typically also means that on sloped roves, only one side can effectively have panels.



Finally, even a 10kW system is not that much. It is about the typical usage of a house, but most people use power at night. It would power your hot water heater, some fans, fridge, etc. with maybe 50% to spare. Again, none of this power comes at night or in the winter months -- typically when people use power.



If you wanted to run a home in Saskatchewan solely on solar power... you need some way of producing far more power during the summer months and storing it during the low-sunlight months and the winter (when you are likely producing no power). This would mean you would need a system four or five times more than this ($150K+), a large open yard to place the panels, and a battery system able to store three months of power (likely 20,000 kWh). At current battery prices that is going to cost $2M+.



The issue is storage. Batteries run $500 for a kWh. That means a typical nights power needs about $20,000 worth of batteries to store up. 90 days and nights... millions.



Most home solar systems produce power during the day during non-winter months when folks aren't home and generally using power... and sell excess power back to their utility companies. A typical 10kW system can produce around $5,000-$6,000 a year depending upon your day-time power usage, utility company and going rates. This helps offset the cost of power purchased during the winter months.
Willster
2014-09-21 10:32:54 UTC
I'd contact Kelln Solar in Lumsden, which has 35 years of experience.
anonymous
2014-09-17 06:53:53 UTC
Solar energy as we now it is a free and green source of energy. But the investment in such system might cost u more than your expectation. I would say you should go for it still it might cost u a couple of ks
pressureEarth
2014-09-17 07:06:55 UTC
Government funded- free through taxes.

Private - cost a bomb.


This content was originally posted on Y! Answers, a Q&A website that shut down in 2021.
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