PV Gap

Rachel Said:

How much do solar panels usually cost?

We Answered:

Solar panels are currently selling for between $4 and $6 per watt of rated power output. A typical panel that you might install on your roof would be rated for between 100 and 300 watts and therefore will cost between about $400 and around $1500 or so.

A complete solar power system also needs some other components and will have some installation costs and so the total installed cost of a solar system is typically in the range of $8 - 10 per watt of rated power.

Most home sized systems are rated in the 1000 to 10,000 watt range and therefore cost between about $8000 and $100,000 dollars to install. Many states offer rebates and tax savings that can reduce this cost by as much as 50%.

These systems will typically generate between about $300 and $2500 worth or electricity per year.

Solar panels are expected to last between 30 and 50 years and so these systems will likely generate between $9000 and $120,000 worth of electricity over their life time in current dollars. This will vary widely though based on local electricity costs and may well increase greatly in the future if electricity rates rise.

Darryl Said:

How much do solar panels cost per watt?

We Answered:

i have been looking into solar panels for a while, it weird because the prices will fluctuate up and down and i dont know why, it also depends on where you buy them from and the time of year they are purchased
lately there has been lots of sites about building home made solar panels, one of the best i have seen so far is
http://earths-renewable-energy.com/
shows how to build solar panels out of materials that can be bought at home depot or local hardware stores for a fraction of the price ..... definitely worth checking out in my opinion