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Residential Solar Panels (3 to 8 kW)

• Costs range from $12000 to $17000

• Cost per watt range from $2.45 to $3.31 ($/W)

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Balance of System

• All components of a solar system excluding solar panels

• Homeowner costs: $3000- $1000

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Inverter

• Responsible for converting direct current to alternating current

• Grid-tied solar system

• Ranges from $1000 - $4000 (~10%) of total costs

• Will need to be replaced every 5-7 years

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Labor Cost

• Required Building and Electrical permits

• Neighborhood/Homeowners association requirements

• 15% of total cost

• Payback period: 11.40 years

 

Operational Cost

• Includes monitoring, maintenance, repairs, and insurance

• Ranges from $4000 - $8000 or ~20% of total costs

 

Virginia Rebates/Incentives

 

• Federal Investment Tax Credit: Deducts 30% of total system costs

• 26 % in 2020, 22% in 2021

• Tennessee Valley Authority : homeowners can sell electricity to TVA and receive premium payment

• Net Metering: Every kilowatt-hour of solar electricity sent back to the grid results in credits on electricity bill

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Maintenance

• cleaning/maintenance ranges from $150-$330

 

Montgomery County

• All residents will apply for Virginia Rebates/Incentive

• Homeowners will receive sponsorship package on a first come, first serve basis (application)

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Above Information was deduced from: 

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[1] “2019 Virginia Solar Incentives, Tax Credits & Rebates | EnergySage.” [Online]. Available: https://www.energysage.com/solar-panels/solar-rebates-incentives/va/. [Accessed: 16-Dec-2019].

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[2] “Calculate solar panel installation cost 2019.” [Online]. Available: https://www.solarreviews.com/blog/how-much-do-solar-panels-cost-to-install-in-2019. [Accessed: 16-Dec-2019].

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[3] “How Much Do Solar Panels Cost - Energy Informative.” [Online]. Available: https://energyinformative.org/solar-panels-cost/#system-costs. [Accessed: 16-Dec-2019].

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Net Costs - Preliminary Calculations: 

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According to U.S Census data there is 35,777 housing units in Montgomery County, Virginia

Considering funding & housing interest, we estimate 20% of total housing units to install solar/wind system = 7155 household units

 

Solar power generation rated capacity = 350 W

 

[4] “U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Montgomery County, Virginia.” [Online]. Available: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/montgomerycountyvirginia. [Accessed: 16-Dec-2019].

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Cost Range $2.45-$3.31, Average = $2.88

 

DF= 0.85, Is = 4.5

 

Energy output per house

 

Eannual=(7155 solar panels)(350 W)(0.85)(4.5 kWhm2-day1kWm2)(365 days1 yr)=3.5 x 109 Whyr=3.5 x 106 kWhyr

 

Solar Panel Costs 

 

(7155 solar panels) x (350 W/ 1 panel) x ($2.88/W) = $7212240

 

Total rated capacity (MW) for the solar energy installed

 

(7155 solar panels) x ( 350W/ 1 solar panel) =2504250 W →2.50425 MW

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