Solar
The benefits of installing a solar hot water system are indisputable
Solar helps your bottom line. Because energy from the sun is free, you save on electric bills and eliminate worry caused by increased fossil fuel costs or electricity rate increases. What’s true on a personal scale is also true for the state and country as a whole – the more money we save on importing fossil fuels, the better our economy will be.
Natural energy is green. The average household switching over to solar saves burning over 9 barrels of oil each year (eliminating over 4 metric tons of greenhouse gas from being put into the atmosphere). Solar is clean, safe, and renewable. By going solar, you reduce consumption of coal and emission of C02 and greenhouse gases (contributors to global warming).
Solar will never run out. If our country relies more on solar and less on imported energy sources, we’ll become more independent and stable economically. When natural disasters and grid power outages occur, energy from the sun is a reliable backup and you will still have hot water. Fossil fuels may have a limited supply, but the sun will consistently provide heat and energy.
Solar is low maintenance and offers long-term reliability. Once installed, most solar thermal panel systems require virtually no maintenance and, in most cases, will quietly and efficiently provide solar heating for 15 to 20 years.
Solar installations qualify you for both federal and state tax credits. (See more information here.)
You become the envy of the neighborhood because you’re saving so much on your electric or natural gas bill. It’s true. Homeowners who install solar hot water systems inevitably inspire others in their neighborhood to follow suit.
Payback
On average, those who go with solar recoup the cost of their solar thermal panel equipment and installation within 4 to 8 years. On top of that, when you factor in government economic stimulus packages and renewable energy tax credits, the system begins to pay for itself even earlier.
A typical electric water heater has an 8 to 10-year lifespan. Solar thermal panels last much longer. With fossil fuel rates continually fluctuating and remaining notoriously unstable due to worldwide economic uncertainty, the question really isn’t so much whether you can afford to go solar, but whether you can afford not to.
If you’re a homeowner, you invest in as little as 45% of the cost of your system after federal and state solar investment tax credits. Business owners pay even less – approximately only 12% of the cost of their systems.
Solar Energy Alternatives
We’ve joined forces with three local solar companies (listed below) to be able to offer our customers additional Solar Energy Alternatives. Readyman Services installs solar water heating elements, and our partners deal with the solar electric components.
Solar Partners:
Islandwide Energy
XMX Energy
Renewable Energy Technologies
Our primary supplier for solar materials is Inter Island Supply. To check out product offerings and understand how the various solar thermal systems work, click on their “Water Heating” tab.