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Without subsidies and incentives, such as those in California, PV power costs about twice as much as utility power, says Thomas Leyden, vice president of east coast operations for PowerLight, a PV systems integrator in Berkeley, CA. That difference, however, is shrinking. "PV hardware prices have gone down tenfold in the last 15 years, thanks to new technologies, better manufacturing techniques, and more efficient use of materials," Leyden says. Prices are currently falling by about 5.5 percent yearly, he says, so they should come down another 50 percent in a little more than a decade -- and become fully competitive with utility power.
Maycock is even more optimistic, projecting that the installed price will fall from today's $8 or so per watt to $4 by 2014. That would make solar power "fully economic in the Sunbelt," he notes.
Meanwhile, Guha maintains that PV roofing is already economical at certain times of the day, in places where utilities charge extra for peak daytime usage. There, he says, it can be used to avoid paying those surcharges, a practice called "peak shaving."
Historically, the biggest market for residential PV roofing has been in Japan, which gets about half the sunlight that California does and the average residential user derives only a kilowatt. But government incentives, low mortgage interest rates, and high utility power rates have made residential PV popular there, says Maycock.
Researchers are working on solar cells that use a novel organic dye.
Guest (Marco)
How do you overcome the dramatic loss of power generation capability when the panel is covered with layers of dirt, dust a urban grime? until this problem is solved Solar Power will remain a Sci Fi confidence trick on the poor consumer.
Guest (alfranco)
Test conditions and PV maintenance
My concern is that the NIST test site pictures show the panels variably shaded at the test site and I haven't received a reply from
Brian Dougherty (sent 7/1) questioning the validity of this siting.
As for PV, it's like your windshield it works best if periodically washed and cleaned. No problemo.
Guest (John)
If you look at the diagram on http://www.bfrl.nist.gov/863/pvsolar/NISTs_PV.htm, the large building (the Administration Bldg.) is aligned north-south. It looks like the solar panels should be in the sun most of the time?? However, I wonder if the panels are laying flat (horizontal); most residential roofs are not.
Guest (John)
I would think there is data from current installations in Europe and
Japan?? Also, I understand the top surface may be a fluoropolymer film, maybe that would help to reduce adhesion of city grime? Or perchance create a new industry (chimney sweeps to roofing sweeps)?
Guest (Leon Viveros)
Maybe its a good opportunity for a new kind of job... PV Cleaners...lol
Guest (Mike)
Suppose for a moment that you treat these panels just like a car - say wash them once in a while with soap and water. Then rinse. With newer nano surfaces that repel water they may even be semi-self cleaning. GE has a new plastic that has this capability.
Reply to MARCO - Re: Solar Panel Electricity
I think you're just too lazy to realize that you're saving fuel (fossil) which when burned create CO2 and then ruin the environment by creating the greenhouse effect and thsu global warming - please, Marco, see outside your 4 walls (no pun intended)!
Guest (Em)
cleaning PV's and sloped roofs
As you clea your eves, you can hose your PV's now and then.
As for slope: for best results you want to have the sun light coming perpendicular to your panels. Sloped roofs work better than flat roofs (get more light).
And this changes with latitude.
If builders start including this in their desings, house orientation and roof shapes and slopes will be designe for the local condition to optimally make use of the sun in each particular location.
Guest (Ron)
Open Energy makes solar roofing tiles
One company makes both solar roofing tiles and PV panels. The efficiency is up to 20%. I hope they get included in the testing.
site is www.openenergycorp.com . There is some other interesting things there as well.
Guest (arnold)
do these shingles hold up well in the deep south of the east and coast areas, is humidity an issue?
they do, if i understand you right. as a matter of fact, normally coastlines have more sunhours that on the land, so for solar coast is perfect. it depends a little whether you place the panels very near by the sea or not. very near means a salty film on the panels which should be affoided to my believe.
PV solarpanels are good to use anywhere, don't understand me wrong. even in canada or norway. i live in the netherlands where we have very diffuse light now and then, but no problem for solar, using poly-crystalline solar modules. these are perfect for that kind of conditions.
a rule of thumb is; the hotter (not about light) a climate is the better you should use thermal-electro solar power, since PV panels don't like their working surface very (VERY) hot. at the end, its all about efficiency and how much you want to matter with that, because we are talking about percents power more or less... writing this, i think i wouldn't care about it too much. just put the panels there and shout it out! so that others hear it and do the same!
Solar power for our homes sounds great...until you start to add all the other expensive items.
It would be helpful to know the full expense plus all the maintenance needs and failure rates. Also, in the tropics (like Guam), air conditioning is the real energy hog. A solar system for this might be unaffordable for most people. And then there are the typhoons....
Re: Solar - - the bigger picture
concerning solar-energy in the tropics; it is known that photo-voltaic solar panels (PV) are less efficient when the working temperature is high (that is the temp on/in the panel itself). for tropical conditions it is, efficiency-wise, better to invest in thermo-electro solar energy. here the sun heats oil in pipes that runs a generator. the efficency is very high. don't know whether this is technique ready to use on home-roofs, though.
Re: Solar - - the bigger picture
You have mentioned temperature being a factor on the use of solar shingles for electricity. What are the specs? I live in TX and we see 20-40 100 degree F days per year in addition to hail storms usually once per year. I love the idea for weening my corner of the world off petrol, but these questions concern me.
look here! new energy techniques
for anyone interested in new energytech, including foil-solar and stuff, but also many different other projects and ideas, go to; http://peswiki.com/energy/Main_Page
Guest (solar jon)
Sadly, the current administration "studies" new technology like solar panels, while it "funds" old technology like coal and oil.
Solar shingles is an awesome idea, but I'm sure that just like solar panels, they're expensive. I looked at solar panels a while back and they were $1000+ each! Then I finally stumbled upon this site that shows you now only how to build your own solar panels, but wind turbines as well. It cost me just a little over $100 each per solar panel, which is more than twenty times less that some solar panels. For more info visit http://8ac8d615gjld9o63blzc8m0teg.hop.clickbank.net/?tid=EARTH4
Does anyone know whether the clay tile BIPV has been rated for typhoon winds of 170mph or greater?
Kiernan
I think that these new "shingles" would work. Looks are very important to people and that includes their home. Who wants an ugly solar panel on their house. But in order for these to be successful they will have to produce. If they are not producing at a high enough level then no one will buy them. Residential solar panels are becoming very popular. Everyone is looking to save a dollar in this economy.
As one who as of April 2009 has 500 square feet of solar panels producing an average 720 kilowatt-hours of power per month, I produce twice the power predicted for shingles. In 10 years I will likely change out my 25 year panels with an improved panel producing four times the current shingle production. Try that option with shingles. As a technical person, I think panels are not unsightly (the shingles do not match very well either) but display the thoughts of someone willing to invest for both financial benefit and to protect the environment.
Manufacturing in the United States is in trouble. That's bad news not just for the country's economy but for the future of innovation.
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Guest (mike)
Solar Panel Buyers Guide
Great Idea! Maybe this type of Consumers Reporting will boost the use of the newer solar solutions. My main concern - 15 months? These things are supposed to last many years. The testing should also include variables like Cold testing, snow and ice tests, etc.
Reply
Guest (josh wood)
solar panels
how do you know if your in the right location, and which system is the best in oklahoma and whats the prices like
Reply
hiofarwa
4 Comments
Re: solar panels
hi, it doesn't really matter where you are. just direct your PV panel to the south (or somewhere in between SO - SW). that should do the job. when you have a sloping roof on the south it is perfect. a flat roof is good too, then you need a panel-base made of plastic or alluminium frame.
do you live in a very sunny place then choose mono-crystalline solar modules. when you have a lot of diffuse light, then use poly-crystalline solar modules.
Reply