I am contemplating putting in solar panels but am surprised at the initial cost. Does anyone have any experiences they can share with regard to cost, suppliers, effectiveness, subsidies etc?
hi, there are several routes you can go with this.
if cheapest price is what you want, then is the option of trying to make your own panels.
that would involve some careful soldering and having the right supplies to properly seal the cells from any form of moisture ingress, regular silicon will not prevent all humidity from getting in, and it must remain clear and not haze.
you would want to have a curing table that vibrates for the panels to remove air bubbles during the curing process.
plus weather proof framing to mount the panels to the house. you would not want to use wood for the framing, unless you have no trouble repainting them because of weathering.
the cheapest way to seal the cells might be to use a proper type of clear UV proof heatsink material that most commercial panel makers use.
there are other sealants instead of using the heatsink material, though they are more expensive.
cells can be bought in stacks off places like ebay, and even cheaper if they are not perfect cells, such as the 85% grade chipped cells.
they still work, though it will not look so storebought with final results.
it is possible to get 5kw of cells for 1k of dollars.
the rest of the cost is framing and sealants, wiring and diodes to prevent the batteries from trying to 'charge' the panel, that would be bad.
(youtube)
most people would rather skip that approach, and just buy properly made panels.
one option is to buy used panels, though that could mean they have already seen much use, sometimes none at all.
25year average rating for the sealants and the cells about.
you would want multicrystaline cells, they can use the sunlight at greater angles away from sunlight than the other types.
and they also can work under a certain ammount of snow coverage, or low lighting conditions.
theres the grid tie inverter cost. and those might need to be professionally installed.
if off the grid, then its batteries.
reconditioning electric forklift batteries is maybe the cheapest for that.
there are new batteries that are being developed that will make solar a much more practical idea that it is already, you might already be aware of that.
there are companies that will install a large sun tracking solar setup in your yard, and they say it will make you 10k dollars or more per year, if you first invest somewhere around 80k upfront.
one could replicate one of those for much less cost.
be aware of any regulations in your area even just for what they allow before diving into the project.
there is fine print in those that could catch you off guard should you have purchased any of the supplies not from your area,
that could affect an installation being approved or not, or being able to qualify for any rebate.
they put too much fine print on these advertised programs.
passive solar is also something to consider.
for rather cheap project costs, the energy savings can be great.
passive solar its nearly limited to heating water or the house when there is useful sun.
there are commercial passive solar products that are not too expensive, if you prefer best results.
passive solar is not that difficult to make DIY. (youtube)
one idea could be just painting one side of some vertical or horizontal blinds black, manually adjusted according to the sun.
that adjustment could be automated with a little more effort.
to qualify for any local subsidies, DIY will have to be avoided, also to not void insurance.