People go solar for two reasons. Either they want to save money, or they want to be environmentally friendly. They could be doing both too. Savings can only be maximised by a solid investment plan and a long-term energy strategy.
Save On Electric Bills With Solar Panels
Although the upfront cost for solar panels is high, they return that money quickly since you don’t have to buy electricity from the utility. You can even sell extra energy generated from your solar panels to the utility, which is a bonus.
Even if you take a solar loan to buy solar panels, you don’t need to worry about it since that loan will be offset by your daily energy production from the solar panels. You just need to find that sweet spot where you have enough solar panels to produce the energy you need to power your home, but not so many that they add extra cost to your bills.
You can also purchase a solar panel system with cash. With cash payment, you’ll have a worry-free mindset since you’ll know that the system is already paid for, and you don’t need to pay any additional fees to finance the system over time.
When selling extra electricity to the utility, keep in mind that electricity rates are bound to increase over time which is good news for you since you’ll get paid more for the same amount of electricity sold. This way, your savings will also pile up with time, and you won’t be affected as much by rising electricity rates.
Save Even More
Besides saving on electricity bills, you can save more money by trying out other things. We’ll tell you some tips to save more:
- Unplug small appliances that are not in use.
- Run your HVAC system less frequently.
- Water your yard only when needed.
- Install low-flow faucets.
- Replace old light bulbs with LED lighting.
- Run only full loads in your washing machine, dryer, and dishwasher.
- Upgrade to energy-saving appliances.
- Turn down the water heater temperature to 49 °C.
- Use heavy curtains to assist in temperature regulation.
- Keep your fridge at least three-quarters full.
Use Less Electricity
Think about it, if you use less electricity, most of it will come from your solar panels. However, if you go overboard, the power supply will switch to the utility, which will start billing you. You can save more electricity by:
Net Metering
You can add extra electricity from your solar panels to the electric grid with net metering. By selling that excess electricity, you get credit from your utility company. This will help lower your monthly electricity payment in the future.
Install Battery Storage
By investing in battery storage, you would be doing yourself two favours. Firstly, that stored energy will be used in times of need when the solar panels aren’t working, if the weather conditions are harsh, or when it is night.
Secondly, even if you don’t face such situations, you can always sell that excess energy to the utility or, better yet, be completely self-sufficient in power generation, drastically lowering your electricity bills.
Optimise Your Time-of-Use
In a time-of-use electricity plan, you align your energy consumption with off-peak and peak hours to save money by getting lower electricity rates. Some ways to do this are:
- Turn off unnecessary power when leaving home to decrease peak hour usage.
- Run energy-hungry devices, like washing machines, in non-peak hours.
- Charge your electric vehicle in off-peak hours.
- Get a thermostat that sets specific times for heat/air running so that high electricity use during peak hours can be avoided.
Peak and off-peak hours mainly depend upon:
- The season.
- Your location.
- Your electricity company.
But what remains constant is that electricity demand is low in off-peak hours and high in peak hours.
Solar Panels Needed?
Solar panels are the way to go if you want to save cash and do something good for the environment. Not only do they lower your carbon footprint, but they also return the invested money used to purchase them very quickly. They also help you earn if you generate extra electricity. All in all, they are the ultimate energy producers which save capital and generate almost no emissions.