Solar Panels

On Wednesday we had 14 Suntec 175 watt panels put in on our roof -- a 2.45 kW system.We'll be hooked up to the grid with a meter that can run both backwards and forwards, and the electricity we generate will be used to cancel out our electric bill.  These panels should totally cover our electricity use, averaged out over the year. We're looking forward to our inspection on Wednesday so we can start generating power!

Here was the installation:


 First, the new roof. That was done by Saturday.



Then, the racks for the panels started going up around 9:30 AM on Wednesday.



Here are the panels ready to go.



And this is how they got up there -- one-arm carried up the ladder.



Done! By about 2:00 in the afternoon.

The incentives right now are pretty amazing. After all is said and done, we will pay only a third of the cost of the system. And we'll have saved that much on our electricity bills in about 7 years. After that, we should have at least 20 years of free electricity!

$21,438 Total cost of system
- $4,931 federal tax credit (30%)
- $2,838 MD state grant (based on wattage)
- $5,000 Montgomery county tax credit (flat amount)
- $1,000 signing bonus (in the form of a Home Depot Gift Card)
-    $250 per person we refer (already got 1 neighbor!)
-    $600 solar renewable energy credit in the 1st year
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  $6,819 Total cost

Come by and check them out! Go solar! And if you use Astrum Solar, tell 'em we sent you. :)