Solar Energy Benefits For Home Owners

A survey has recently been done into the level of interest and knowledge home owners have regarding renewable energy. It has shown some interesting results, with the vast majority having at least considered it and yet many not understanding what the benefits of renewable energy are for home owners.

Survey results throw up some interesting statistics about renewable energy.

Some Interesting Statistics

Before going into some of the issues thrown up by the survey, here are some of the more interesting statistics:

• Only 5% of those asked said they had no interest in renewable energy,

• 80% said they were definitely in favour of renewable energy,

• Only 15% said that they were considering having a renewable energy system installed,

• 42% of respondents had never heard of the feed-in tariff,

• While 60% felt they needed to know more about renewable energy.

Solar Energy Benefits for Home Owners

The main question that arises from this study is probably why, with so much interest in renewable energy (and most of that in solar energy) so few people are actually considering having renewable energy systems installed. The answer can only be that they are not aware of the benefits. Indeed, with nearly half having not even heard of the feed-in tariff, that is not surprising. There is a concern that installation costs are too high and that returns are too low. However, this is probably mostly the view of people who have not looked into the matter very deeply.

While it is true that installation costs are quite high, there are returns to be made. Solar energy systems begin to start paying for themselves immediately through the decreasing electricity bills and from the payments made from the feed-in tariff.

It is unlikely that anyone who has never heard of the feed-in tariff reads this blog, as it is mentioned very frequently here, but for anyone who is not familiar with it, here is a brief explanation. The feed-in tariff is a system whereby money is paid to you by the government for all the energy which you create with a renewable energy system and you feed back into the national grid. This is all done automatically of course, and is guaranteed for twenty five years, and you will start to see profits from it long before that time is over.

Environmental Benefits vs Financial Benefits

With so many people being interested in solar energy, mostly due to the environmental benefits, it can only be the lack of understanding of the financial benefits which are holding them back. Yes, in the short term it is quite expensive, and perhaps prohibitively so for some people. For those who can afford the initial outlay however, it will make a significant financial return. In the meantime of course, there will also be the benefits to the environment of less pollution being created.

Get Involved

If you are reading this blog then you will be one of the few who actually knows the important points about solar energy, and renewable energy in general. Even if you cannot afford to have solar panels installed yourself, please talk to your friends if they might be able to. As you know, this will not only be good for everyone because of the environmental benefits but will be of long term financial benefit to them as well.