Energy Efficiency Is The Cheapest Source Of Renewable Energy

If you've been worried about our environment or looking to save money, I strongly suggest giving residential solar energy a try. No pun intended but the future of residential solar energy is very bright. As the name suggests, residential solar energy is the use of solar energy for the home. In the past solar power was only available to large companies, now residential solar energy is widely available. One of the largest draws of residential solar energy is its ability to save people money. Rather than sacrifice comfort by raising the thermostat, or spending money on getting the attic insulated or using double pane windows, residential solar energy is the better option because it will cut your electricity bills and also ensure that you can live comfortably throughout the year. I believe residential solar energy is the future and a properly designed home solar power system can pay for itself in a matter of years. Residential Solar Energy Residential solar energy refers to using clean, sustainable power from the sun to generate electricity for homes and apartment buildings. When used for residential purposes, solar power can provide hot water, warm pools, and overall heating. Residential Solar Energy is among the best investments a homeowner can make. Returns on a residential solar energy system can be as high as 20-25%. If you want to produce ALL of your electric power with residential solar energy without relying on your utility, you will need to consider exactly how much power you will need, and you will need a battery backup system to store power when sunlight isn't readily available for generating power with your solar system. Additionally, apartments using residential solar energy will typically save large amounts of money on utility bills, which may contribute to rent and utility savings for residents. Giving people the option to save money while helping the environment will hopefully give solar energy a bright and sunny future in the residential world. Federal And State Incentives Most importantly, there are federal and state incentives for most type of residential energy systems that you can install at your home. Especially on the federal level, there are many tax breaks and rebates that you can get from the federal government when you install residential renewable energy systems in your home. Incentives and tax Credits can cover up to 70% of the cost of Residential systems and up to 85% of the cost for Commercial systems. The new 30% federal tax credit has created a dramatic boost to the residential solar energy market. In some locations, with combined federal, state and local incentives, the payback on the initial residential solar energy investment can be as short as 6-10 years. This way, although you may make your initial investment, you will be able to get most of it back in the forms of incentives. We have noticed many banks providing financing at very low interest rates, and even government programs providing no-interest loans for solar home retro-fitting. The tax credits (residential in my case) are nevertheless substantial, and "doing the right thing" has its own merit, but these considerations can only carry so much weight in a spending decision of such magnitude. Learn how to build you own home solar energy system and generate residential solar energy for less than... $200 !