5 Benefits Of Solar Energy For Your Bay Area Home
More and more people nowadays are looking for sustainable and ecologically-friendly ways to live. An increasingly popular and widely available option in the market is to reduce our daily dependence on fossil fuel energy and turn instead to renewable ones. One of the best ways to do this is to harness solar power. There are quite a few benefits of solar energy.
Solar technology uses the near-infinite power of the sun by capturing sunlight, converting it into electricity, and storing it in photovoltaic cells. It can provide clean and unlimited energy to power homes across the country.
Since 2008, costs for solar-powered energy solutions in the United States have drastically declined as demand for more consumer-level renewable energy systems increased. Homeowners have grown conscious of the ripple effect that their daily actions, such as high levels of waste production and energy consumption, have on the environment. As a result, many people are turning to solar energy to reduce some of that burden.
If the benefits of solar energy to power your home with a clean and endless supply of energy aren’t already clear, let’s take a look at a few more benefits.
What Are The Benefits Of Solar Energy Powering Your Home?
If you are looking for ways to improve the sustainability of your home, here are five significant benefits of solar energy for your home:
1. They Will Reduce Your Carbon Footprint
The benefits of solar energy don’t just stop at you, but positively impact Mother Nature as well. According to the United States Green Building Council (USBGC), buildings are responsible for approximately 39% of carbon emissions of the United States. Solar energy is a renewable, sustainable source that has zero emissions, so drawing from this resource helps bring total emissions down.
2. They Will Lessen Your Dependence On The Grid
By reducing your electrical requirement from your local power plant, you also gain a little independence. How much “free” electricity you can generate will, of course, depend on the capacity of your solar panels. While not everyone has the resources to build an entire solar farm, you can reap the benefits of solar energy by capturing and storing enough to power your lights, small appliances, or for keeping on standby in case of emergencies.
3. They Will Increase Your House’s Resale Value
As more people are embracing sustainability and trying to incorporate it into their lifestyles, solar energy for your home will increase its attractiveness to future prospective buyers. If you are planning to sell your house eventually, you will earn back some of the initial investment through capital appreciation. In addition, you may be able to sell it quicker than a neighbor who doesn’t have any solar supplementation.
4. They Pay For Themselves
Buying solar panels and batteries, or purchasing solar-powered heating systems are not expenses, but instead, they are investments. While it doesn’t have interest gains such as investing in stocks or currencies, the returns reveal themselves in your savings. If you live in an area that has particularly high electrical rates, solar can offset plenty of those costs. In the long term, you earn back your investment when your overall utility costs go down.
5. They Come With Tax Incentives
As of 2020, the United States federal government currently offers a 26% credit on taxes for owning small solar energy systems. Incentives at the national level have been in place for decades to encourage homeowners across America to invest in solar energy cells. In California, state tax laws also offer incentives to residents by excluding from the property tax assessment the addition of systems like solar-powered heating and photovoltaic cells to your home. You can take advantage of this exclusion up to January 2025.
Calculate your potential electric utility cost savings with a free online solar savings calculator.
The Takeaway
Home solar systems are not an off-the-rack solution. They require careful study, active involvement of the homeowner, and diligent maintenance over the years. However, with only the handful of benefits of solar energy we covered, the upside is undeniable. While there is an investment cost involved in the short-term, it seems a small price to pay, considering all that you gain back in the long-term.
Are you looking for solar-powered energy and roofing solutions in Northern California? We have been powering houses with renewable energy for 25 years. Let us help you find the right system for your home.
