New Homes Benefit From Solar Panels

With climate control worsening, it's more important than ever for modern homes to be as energy efficient as possible. That's why many new home builders are turning to solar power, especially on newly constructed homes. New home buyers in Vacaville, CA, can read on to find out about the benefits of having a new home constructed that has grid-tied solar power built into its design.

Newly built homes begin to depreciate almost immediately, but adding solar panels to the roof can help homes maintain their value. The Appraisal Journal estimates  that every dollar of energy savings contributes $20 to the value of the home. The exact amount of the increase in a home's property value varies based on the size of the home and its solar array.

With existing homes, even the best solar companies sometimes struggle to find ideal positions for their panels. Older roofs may not be able to accommodate optimal solar arrays since vents and other obstacles could reduce the amount of available space. Plus, photovoltaic (PV) panels collect the most energy from the sun when they are positioned toward the south. If the home builder knows that solar power collection is one of the homeowner's priorities, he or she can make sure the roof is constructed to maximize solar gain.

Grid-supplied electricity is already expensive, and it's only going to cost more in the future. The cost of PV panels and high-capacity, deep-discharge batteries, on the other hand, is coming down. Property owners will be able to recoup the cost of installing a solar power system in their newly built homes quickly. The average 5 kW solar PV system saves American homeowners $44-$187 every month, which can amount to between $10,000 and $40,000 in savings over the system's 20-year lifespan.

Most property owners who request new-built homes don't pay for them up front. They take out mortgages. If the solar system is installed as part of the construction process, it's included in the mortgage. That built-in financing eliminates a lot of hassles for homeowners. Instead of waiting until later down the line and having to take out additional loans, they can pay for the solar array as part of their mortgage loan, making it easier to qualify and keep track of finances.

California utility companies offer homeowners who go solar a selection of financial incentives , including participation in the state's Net Energy Metering Program (NEM). The NEM provides credits to solar customers who feed excess power back into the electric grid. All the major power suppliers, including PGE, SDG&E, and SCE, participate in the NEM.

The federal government also has a program called the Investment Tax Credit (ITC), which allows property owners who install solar arrays to claim up to 22% of the installation cost from their annual tax burdens. Time is of the essence for California property owners who want to take advantage of the ITC. Next year, the tax credit will be reduced to 10%, and the program will be phased out completely in 2023.

Some property owners are hesitant to install solar arrays because they assume the panels will decrease their roofs' expected lifespans. In fact, the opposite is true. The panels don't sit directly on the shingles or tiles, but on secured, water-sealed rails or ballast systems. From there, they provide an extra level of protection from harsh weather conditions, including hail. 

Modern PV panels are excellent at withstanding inclement weather. In most cases, they're even more durable than roofing materials. Covering a south-facing roof with a full solar array can help to reduce homeowners' future roof maintenance costs.

As solar roofs become the norm rather than the exception, they will have widespread benefits not just for property owners but for the entire world. The average PV system reduces the household's carbon footprint by roughly 100,000 lbs of CO2 over the course of the system's 20-year lifespan. That may not sound like much, but it adds up.

The use of local, sustainable power generating technologies helps to reduce communities' reliance on fossil fuels, which, in turn, lowers greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Since GHG emissions are one of the driving forces behind not just global warming, but also ecosystem degradation and biodiversity losses, the cumulative effects of building most new homes with integrated solar power could be impressive.

When property owners request new solar installations from their home builders, those home builders rely on local contractors to get the job done. Going solar creates good jobs and contributes to the local economy in ways that drawing from the conventional power grid does not. As more homeowners switch to solar, experts believe it will also stabilize energy prices.

The conventional power grid relies largely on electricity produced using fossil fuels, which generates a lot of air pollution. Concentrations of fine-particulate air pollutants and ground-level ozone in California are high in part because of ever-rising GHG emissions from human activities. Going solar helps to reduce air pollution.

The reduction in air pollution accomplished by switching to solar can support better health outcomes not just for homeowners and their families but for the rest of the people in their communities as well. Reducing emissions improves air quality, which is good news for anyone with asthma or other chronic respiratory diseases. 

Planning to have a new home built in Vacaville and still not sure if it's worth paying the extra money for an integrated solar power system? Homeowners can get all the information they need to decide whether going solar is the right decision for their families by checking out sunpower solar by Ambrose. Ambrose Solar can install a full system in just one to two days, and their SunPower technology is proven to last longer and provide a better value for homeowners than competing solar technologies.