Potential solar energy consumers should get lots of bids from different installation contractors, and study electricity pricing data.
The price to put a solar panel on your home has dropped in recent years, spurring a growth in residential solar energy installations. But at least one researcher said consumers still need to be diligent before deciding to put a panel on their house.
More than 15,000 Connecticut homes get some of their power from solar panels, and around two-thirds of those homes went solar in the past two fiscal years, according to the Connecticut Green Bank. According to The New Yorker, much of that growth in solar energy has been facilitated by a drop in the cost of installing a solar energy system at home.
Jamie Howland studies climate and energy at the Acadia Center, a non-profit clean energy research organization. He said the declining price of a solar installation can make it a good deal, but "consumers have to do their homework and be careful."
Howland said customers should chart out any additional costs before going solar. If your roof is old and in need of replacement, for instance, do that before putting a panel on it. If there will be extra costs for things like tree removal, factor that in.
Most importantly, Howland said, get lots of bids from different installation contractors, and study electricity pricing data. "Companies can use whatever assumptions they want when they're telling you how these things are going to pay back," he said. "They can make assumptions about what electricity prices are in the future that might be higher than what others might make."
If you're curious about the average price of electricity and how that's changed over the years in Connecticut, that information is available online through the office of U.S. Energy Information.
If you want see what other homeowners paid to go solar, the state maintains an online list detailing the cost of most installations carried out in Connecticut.
