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People are sick of being caught off-guard without electricity and without hot water. The energy costs have been rising steadily too and this has forced a lot of people to look for cheaper and sustainable alternatives that are also kind to our planet and environment. They want to be independent of the power grid, leave less carbon footprints on the planet and thus they want to take advantage of what nature can do for them in the form of solar power. For obvious reasons, many people want to know the cost of solar panels in Florida.
Florida is the sunshine state, so it makes sense to own solar panels that convert sunlight into energy to power a home or business. The cost of solar panels in Florida is reasonable too, especially with price declines in the cost of installing these panels.
The cost of solar panels in Florida is roughly anything from $12 000 to $15,000 but once you have factored in the tax credits as well other local solar incentives, the price you will pay will be a lot less. We talk about it in more detail below.
Benefits of switching to Solar Panels
Incentives bring prices down
The national- and state governments also offer incentives to install solar panels. In fact, the cost of solar panels in Florida is said to be some 80% lower than it was 10 years ago.
Florida solar panels pay back their cost in less than 10 years and save the homeowner thousands of dollars over their general lifespan of 20 to 30 years.
The people of Florida have what is called net metering. This is where all kilowatt-hours of electricity generated by the panels reduce your monthly electric bills, bringing down your bill to the dollars per month that it costs to maintain a grid connection.
If during the year, your system produces more electricity than you need, the utility company will pay you for the excess.
What is a solar panel system?
These solar panels are made up of connected solar cells and layers of materials. When sunlight hits the silicon, an electric current is created and a direct current flows from the solar cells in your solar panels to the inverter. The inverters convert DC voltage to alternating current voltage, and this is what powers your home.
A solar energy system is also made up of the racking. This is because the solar panels are not installed directly onto the roof. Rather, the rack is first installed on the roof and the panels onto the racking. Then there are the inverters. Solar power is received as DC current, which is then switched to AC power. Included are solar batteries and performance monitoring systems.
Eco-friendly solar panels
You just have to take a drive around your area and you will see that solar power has grown in leaps and bounds and it has tremendous benefits for when you want to sell your property.
Apart from the financial benefits that you can reap, it can be beneficial for you to know that solar energy represents a means to reduce your carbon footprint as it does not release any greenhouse gasses. It is green, sustainable and kind to our planet. And of course, in long run, you save a lot of money too.
Going off the grid
Probably the greatest perk with getting solar panels in Florida is going off the grid. As you know, regular electricity relies on fossil fuels, which happen to be limited resources and this is what pushes electricity prices up. By investing in solar panels, you can be protecting yourself from those unpredictable utility price increases.
Your solar panels will last you roughly 25 years, which is a long time. After this time period, they will still likely produce electricity, however, production will be much slower. The good news is that they do not require much maintenance on your part.
Always be careful to check out your panels’ warranties as you want to be sure that they are covered for environmental damage and any defects over the years.
What you need to know before you buy solar panels
Different types of solar panels
You get different kinds of solar panels, requiring one to do research on them to ensure you are getting the panels that appeal to your pocket and lifestyle. They are –
- Monocrystalline
- Polycrystalline
- Thin-film solar panels
Monocrystalline panels are the oldest type and are made from pure silicon. The solar cells just look black because of the way the sunlight blends with silicon.
Polycrystalline solar panels are newer and are also made from silicon. The cells are blue in color because of the way sunlight reflects on the crystals. Thin-film panels are very new and they can be made from a number of materials. They are identified by their thin appearance and are much thinner than those that use silicon wafers. They can be black or blue.
Apart from the difference in their appearance, there are also differences with the way the solar panels perform, and this also impacts the cost of solar panels in Florida. The most efficient panel is the monocrystalline but with the future of technology improving, the polycrystalline panels are fast becoming more efficient too.
The solar panel with the least efficiency is the thin-film panels with an efficiency at only 11%. When it comes to the cost of solar panels in Florida, the cheapest are the thin-film panels.
The monocrystalline is the most expensive solar panel as manufacturing pure silicon is costly. Also, the panels are heavy and this means higher installation costs. Apart from the cost of these solar panels, there are other things to take into account. You need to speak to the installation team about hail and fire too and how it does or does not affect the lifespan of your solar system.
Complicated roof designs raise the costs
The cost of solar panels in Florida will be more for a house with a complicated roof design. The material of your roof will also affect the cost of installation. As you can see, there are quite a few things to consider with solar panel installation and even a roof’s shape and size can influence the cost of solar panels in Florida.
How many panels will you need?
Determining the cost of solar panels in Florida will always start with the question – how many solar panels will a person need for their household or business? The idea is to get rid of your electricity bill once and for all.
What size solar system is going to give you enough power to meet your particular household consumption levels? The average homeowner will need roughly 30 solar panels to essentially get rid of their electricity bill. However, the number of panels you need will also depend on some other things such as choice of solar panel and your location.
It is a costly investment – initially
There are many factors when looking at the cost of solar panels. The cost of solar panels in Florida is influenced by the type of solar panels installed and the size of your buildings. Certainly, over recent years, solar panels and the entire industry have grown tremendously and solar panels are much more affordable now.
It is the savings on your electricity bill alone that is a massive drawcard for many people. The cost of solar panels in Florida can seem a bit costly at first, but they are a long-term investment, so that even though the costs of the panels can seem too high for many ordinary people, the costs are in fact far more cheaper than in previous years and over the years the initial cost become totally and utterly worthwhile.
In 2020 in Florida, the average cost for a 5 kilowatt (kW) solar installation is roughly between around $15- or $16,000, but with tax credits, this amount will be less by quite a bit. When working out costs, you start by looking at how many solar panels your home will need. Of course, sunlight in your area affects what size system you will need, but Florida has no problems with not seeing the sun and Orlando in fact gets about 235 sunny days each year.
Choose the installation company carefully
Because of the demand for solar energy, there are many solar panel installation companies in Florida. For such a huge investment, it is important to research all the different installers and to also get quotes from them.
You could say that it is the panels that are believed to be the most costly part of a solar system, but labor takes up quite a bit of the costs as well. People are often inclined to go with the big companies that charge more because of their overhead expenses, but sometimes you can get excellent deals with the smaller companies if you do your research.
The cost of solar panels in Florida cut with incentives
As it is, the Solar and CHP Sales Tax Exemption that is administered by the Florida Department of Revenue, will save you 6% on your purchase, so if for instance you pay $15,000 for your system, you can expect a saving of $900 which is an excellent amount to save.
The Property Tax Abatement for Renewable Energy Property offers a 100% exemption on property tax for properties installing a renewable energy system.
Also, if paying for your solar panels is not an option, you can look at solar loans and leases. The people of Florida have access to loans that are unique to the Sunshine State. The Solar and Energy Loan Fund provides unsecured personal loans to the people of Florida towards home improvements such as these solar panels.
So factors that can affect the cost of solar panels in Florida are labor fees, cost of materials, maintenance fees and also the savings you get through federal, state and local tax credits. Your roof’s size and its layout will impact your solar installation cost.for the excess kWh multiplied by
Once your solar power system is working nicely, it is essentially self-sufficient. Regular cleaning of your system will ensure it runs more efficiently, and many people arrange for professional cleaning services as well as yearly inspection costs.
The cost of solar panels in Florida will often include a warranty to cover the system’s performance. Always make sure to check what kind of warranties are in place for the solar panels you have installed.
Work out your costs with a solar panel cost calculator
You can see that there are quite a few costs involved with these solar panels but when you go onto different solar panel installation company websites, you see that they offer a solar panel cost calculator.
The cost of solar panels in Florida can be estimated for your particular property in the sunshine state. The calculators for instance will use Google Earth images to look at your roof’s shape and size and it will also determine local weather. It is also capable of, according to your electric bill information, to estimate how many solar panels you will be needing to fit your energy requirements.
Conclusion
Let’s be honest, installing solar panels is never going to be cheap, but nonetheless, they are a seriously good investment. With so many sunny days each year in Florida, small wonder that so many people have already installed solar panels.
The Sunshine State also offers some great incentives to get you started if you think that the costs to install them are way beyond your financial means. The Cost of solar panels in Florida may seem too expensive for you to start with, but the ITC is a federal tax abatement, but you have to make hay while the sun shines as these incentives are only available for a limited time.
