By reviewing the most extensive list you will find on the Net, you will soon see that there are far more advantages of solar energy than disadvantages.
Solar Power Pros (Advantages)
When heating your homes with oil, natural gas, electricity (from power plants running with oil and coal) is a cause of global warming and climate disruption. Solar power, on the contrary, is clean and environmentally friendly.
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- After the initial investment has been recovered, the energy from the sun is practically FREE.
The recovery/ payback period for this investment can be very short depending on how much electricity your household uses.
- Solar systems require little maintenance, and the initial investment can be recovered within a relatively short time, mainly in the case of solar hot-water heaters; solar systems aren't only an environmental option. They are also an economic one: they will pay themselves through savings on electricity or natural gas bills.
- Solar systems can now work in almost any climate, even in very cold and non-sunny ones. You just need to know the best solar systems and collectors (or modules/PV panels), and their suitability to your climate. Systems differ with applications and climate. Solar water heating, for instance, involves different systems: drainback, thermosyphon, batch-ICS, etc.
- Maintenance of solar systems is minimal and cheap, and the warranties are large. See: Costs of solar energy systems and Payback period of solar power systems.
- Financial incentives (USA, Canada, European states…) can reduce the cost of the initial investment and installing of solar systems. The U.S. government, for instance, offers tax credits for solar heating systems certified by by the SRCC (Solar Rating and Certification Corporation), which may mount to 30 percent of the investment (maximum of $2,000).
Solar Power Cons (Disadvantages)
- The initial investment in Solar Water Heaters or in Solar PV Electric Systems is higher than that required by conventional electric and gas heaters systems.
- The payback period of solar PV-electric systems is high, as well as those for solar space heating or solar cooling (only on solar hot water heating the payback period is shorter).
- Solar heating doesn't support a direct link to radiators (including baseboard ones).
- Solar space heating and solar cooling systems are relatively expensive, and rather untested technologies: solar air conditioning isn't, till now, a truly economical option.
- The efficiency of the solar systems depends on the numbers of hours of solar light (not exactly on sunny hours) and consequently on climate zones. The costs of a solar system and the recovering of the initial investment depends a lot on those elements, and it's in colder climates, where heating needs are higher, that the efficiency is smaller.
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