You Don’t Have To Be “Green” To Use Solar Energy

A man from Marlow has been in the news recently because he has reached 10,000 kWh of electricity produced by his solar panels, which he had installed 4 years ago. He is a very good example of the sort of person who would use solar energy before the feed in tariff was introduced, and so a good way of measuring how things have changed.

Now you can make money and help the environment.

Solar Energy Costs

Four years ago, in 2007, the solar energy system cost this man living in Marlow £13,000. Without knowing exactly how many, and what type of solar panels that he got it is not possible to say whether or not it would be more or less today. It’s likely that it would be a bit less, despite the effects of inflation, because of the advancements in production techniques.

In this time he has generated 10,000 kWh of electricity, and this has made him £1,000. Now, it is clear to see why it is that not many people were getting solar panels 4 years ago, because you were getting a very small return on your investment. Only making £1,000 after 4 years, having spent £13,000, is not good. These days, with the feed in tariff, with a system costing that much you should be making over £1,000 every year.

Indeed, if you had solar panels installed at the highest rate you can get the feed in tariff for now, which is 43.3p, then by the time you had generated 10,000 kWh of solar electricity, you would have made £4,330. That is why you no longer have to be “green” to make use of solar energy.

“Green” Foot-Soldier

For the man from Marlow though, it was never about the money. He likens it to a decision between getting a sports car or a boat, or having solar panels installed. That was the big problem back then, that is exactly the sort of decision that had to be made. That is, the solar panels had to be treated as a consumer item, something that you enjoyed using, rather than as an investment that was going to save and make money for you.

Of course the big problem with that paradigm is not so much that the people who have the money to buy a boat are usually going to prefer to do that rather than have solar panels installed (although that certainly is an issue). The big problem, of course, is that most people cannot afford to get a sports car or a boat anyay!

Investment in Solar Energy

That is still something of a problem, not everyone can afford a solar installation even now. However it is not as bad as it was because now it can be treated as an investment, and one that you’re pretty much certain to make your money back on. This should not be taken as financial advice of course, but when you are only relying on the sun coming up each morning for the investment to be a sound one, it’s difficult to go wrong. Crucially this means that people are not really losing any money, or they shouldn’t be, in the long term. Actually in the long term they should be making money, so it’s not like buying a boat or car anymore, you don’t have to be “green,” you can just be looking for a good investment opportunity.

Solar Energy UK

If you would like to find out more about getting solar panels for your home, and to get a free quote on a solar installation, get in touch with Solar Energy UK now.