Solar Panel Break Even Point

http://www.solardave.com/index.php/solar-panel-break-even-point-video/
SolarDave: What is the payback time for a solar panel system (4KW) in Colorado?

Sam Weaver: 4kWatts is about average and I will generally say something like 14 to 18 years. And it depends on all types of factors like exactly how you roof is tilted but to take the guess work out of that use this financial analysis and plug in the specifics of the customer and the shading that have and I will present a payoff graph and that payoff graph will show for that customer in that house with the average price electricity increase that we have seen over the last 5 years where their payback will actually be.

Another thing that we do, you can either look at the payback that you get just from the electricity saving you get or the way home assessors do to say their is value of having this energy saving device on your roof and the rule of thumb that they use is $20 dollars in value for every $1 of avoided cost. I think that number is a little bit high and that is from a 1999 national assessors document that is how they say to treat energy saving devices and I do a second plot - this shows that if you assume you get $15 in net increased home value per dollar of savings it says you will pay this system off in 8 years.

So in other words the system value actually holds its value well as the price of electricity does up over time so it is the kind of thing where as long as I stay in this house for 8 years or more I probably made my money back on it the system.

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[FORMETOKNOWONLY]

Not a cost effective model at this point yet...sorry, but I need a better break even point than 18 yrs.

[TopMagneticGenerator]

It will take 15 years to recover from this investment

There is a website that explain it all

Just search in Google - Top DIY Solar Panels Review

Click the first result and skip the advertisements above

[1safare]

you dont get 14% return on your money as you have lost your initial investment. say you spend 11k on solar panels. After 9 years you will have 13.5k back, If you put your 11k in a 2% savings account you will have 13.146k back, so if you can wait 9 years you have the same saving. But if the govt changes rebates etc you wont. If you move before then you lose out or need maintenance.

[PaulusIsHere]

I live in the UK so I have no idea what the USA or other countries kW/cash return is.

But Im spending about £11,000 on 4kw Solar Panels currently, income per year from the panels will be around £1500-1600 along with about 20-30% reduced electricity bills. Yeah I have a south facing roof :).

All I can say is a 14-15% return on your money is amazing. You don't get that return from a bank and you don't get that security from the stock market.

If I could dump more money into it I would.

[FORMETOKNOWONLY]

@BromleyGaffer Even if you are correct...8 years is TOO long.

[BromleyGaffer]

@FORMETOKNOWONLY 8 years. Not 18.

[PDXBikes]

@PDXBikes

The "break even point" when you are getting the property cheap, or being able to build on a corner of the property you already own but was previously inaccessible to power lines or would cost more to put lines in and in getting the associated permits is where paybacks get cut way short, and can actually be brought back in construction savings alone.

[PDXBikes]

14 to 18 years is only marginally cost effective considering the service and maintenance cost of the panels, but there is some value added to the real estate too. The real bonus is when there is not reliable power going to the property in the first place and you are not having to pay for power lines being routed into the property. This allows construction on very low cost land compared to land where utilities are regularly available.

[SOLARTRADERdotCA]

@MandLVideo If the payback is only 4 years taking a loan would easily allow you to generate income off your system. Where do you live if you don't mind me asking? In Ontario which has the best incentive in North America, rooftop systems typically pay off in 8-10 years on a 20 year contract. Other places have beat our incentives?