Financial benefit of solar panels

[Thunder]

I was talking to my sister, about how very few tall buildings in NYC have solar panels on them. NYC gets a good deal of sun in the summer and spring. So why dont we have solar panels everywhere?

What is the cost of an average solar panel, and how much electricity can it generate in a typical Northeastern year?

I have a feeling many folks have looked at the cost-benefit analysis of solar panels, and found that the financial benefit simply does not outweigh the cost, or simply doesn't make enough of a dent in their energy costs.

Or, is it something else going on? Laziness? Lack of concern and initiative?

[rjh01]

I know they are very expensive way to generate electricity. Only done when cost is not important (calculators or in remote places) or for political reasons.

[Modified]

I was talking to my sister, about how very few tall buildings in NYC have solar panels on them. NYC gets a good deal of sun in the summer and spring. So why dont we have solar panels everywhere?

What is the cost of an average solar panel, and how much electricity can it generate in a typical Northeastern year?

I have a feeling many folks have looked at the cost-benefit analysis of solar panels, and found that the financial benefit simply does not outweigh the cost, or simply doesn't make enough of a dent in their energy costs.

Or, is it something else going on? Laziness? Lack of concern and initiative?

Benefit does not outweigh the cost, I would say.

Solar pool heating using roof panels is very common here in SW Florida. A Google maps view of my neighborhood shows that about 1/3 of the houses with pools have solar heating. Most of the others are probably inhabited by people who don't care about having a warm pool year-round.

[jmercer]

About 2 1/2 years ago, I looked into solar panels for my home. (I live in NY). IRRC, I had a proposal for a 7 kw system that would have had an effective yield of 3.8 kw. (Angle of roof and orientation of the house affects effective yield.) At the time, NY State had an aggressive program to assist people looking at alternative power; the State would pick up 50% of the cost, as long as your yield met a certain minimum. Mine did meet that critera (barely!)

Cost? 60k. My cost? Out of pocket, 30k... simply not worth the financial investment. (And the State program has declined in terms of what percentage of cost they'll cover since I got that estimate - which, by the way, cost me $150 to get!) Solar panels need to come down dramatically in cost before the finances make sense - as they stand today, they're strictly for those who can afford them and wish to be "greener". And about 75% of the cost were the panels, themselves.

Solar panels in NYC would make sense if the windows could be used; however, I think a better opportunity would be wind turbines on all the roofs, and river turbines (already being piloted in one of the rivers.) For homeowners... I think fuel cell technology holds the best promise for the future. I'd love to be in a position of generating my own heat and electric from a fuel cell. No more power outages due to storms? Count me in. :)

[steve s]

I was talking to my sister, about how very few tall buildings in NYC have solar panels on them. NYC gets a good deal of sun in the summer and spring. So why dont we have solar panels everywhere?


One of the problems of putting panels on the roof of a high-rise is that the building has a fairly small footprint (geographically) but has a very large volume due to its height (and hence large energy demands.) So the small footprint limits you to a fairly small array of panels which will probably only power a floor or two. But what about the other 40 or 50 floors. You're barely making a dent in the power needs of the building.

As jmercer pointed out, what's need is thin-film solar sheets that can cover all the window area but still let in some light. Then the entire side of the building can generate power.

Steve S.