If you are thinking of going green, solar panels might give you an interesting solution. Quietly they will convert sunlight into electricity, giving you DC voltage as the final output. For your home devices this voltage should be inverted to AC.

To process the DC voltage into AC voltage there are some additional parts needed. Basically what parts to buy are determined by what set up you prefer to. The first option you may consider is on-grid or grid-tie system. On-grid is widely preferred by people because it is cheaper than other systems. Having on-grid means you send the solar electricity to the utility grid.

What makes on-grid system cheaper? It is because we don’t have to store the solar electricity in solar batteries so the only main parts we need to buy is solar inverter only. By eliminating the batteries we cut down the solar cost because these batteries are expensive, however this system also has a downside: During power outages you will be left alone without electricity supply.

If you need power during electricity blackout you can pick up the second option. Similar to the first option the solar electricity is also routed to the grid but a battery backup is added to the solar inverter. Note that this system is more expensive because you need to buy the solar controller, solar batteries and also solar inverter that is different from the inverter we use in the first option. They contribute a significant increase to the solar cost.

For people living in isolated places there is only option left. Due to no power lines available you can only get the off-grid system. This system is totally independent and use solar energy as its main energy source. Here you will need to buy solar regulator, batteries and solar inverter. In addition to the main parts you will need to buy small accessories as well such as terminal connectors, wiring, fuses, etc. This also applied to the other two options above. To back up your solar electricity you can add a gas generator or wind turbines to the system in case of cloudy days.

Now let us see how much really they will cost you. To make a rough estimation you can think about $15K to $60K. The cost will actually depend on how far do you want to substitute your fossil powered electricity. A 100% substitution is not recommended at all because the cost will kill you.

The other factors that also contribute to the price are the quality of solar parts and installation cost. Solar inverters for example has a wide quality range and solar installation cost differs from one company to another.

If you want to reduce the cost there is a good solution offered by the US government. Installing green energy in your house will allow you to get 30% federal tax benefit plus other tax benefit given by the states. By sending the electricity to the grid you also get some credits from the utility company.

There is no need to fully go with 100% solar electricity, even starting with 15% substitution will make a difference. You can always expand your system later on.

If you assume that you need a one time investment only for this system you are probably wrong. Some solar parts have lifespan shorter than the others so you may need to replace some of them after years of operating time while other part such as photovoltaic panels can pass 20 years without problem. It is recommended to add this factor into your solar cost planning.

If you are in doubt you can always search for online help. There are a lot of solar companies out there and they will be glad to help you finding the best solution for your home solar system.

Please visit solarcost.org to find more tips about solar homes and other relevant articles related to the solar energy.