What Is The Average Electric Bill With Solar Panels?

There are many benefits to solar panels, but one of the most attractive is how they can cut down on your electric bill. Whether you want to save money for yourself or do your part for the environment, solar panels can help you achieve this goal. The cost of your average monthly electricity bills will depend on a few factors. For instance, what is your home’s energy usage? What is your state’s electricity rate from the utility company? When installing solar panels, did you invest in a large enough system to power your entire home, or only part of it? Fear not, all this will be discussed throughout this article to make sure you are getting the most out of your solar installation and will be well on your way to those low electric bills.

The Average Monthly Electric Bill

In the year 2020, the average energy consumption for residents in Florida was 1,142 kilowatt hours used per month. With an electricity rate being around $11.27 per kilowatt hour used, this totaled out to be around $129 in energy costs per month, meaning the annual power bill would be around $1,550 a month. Florida’s numbers tend to be middle of the road. Places such as California or New Hampshire see much higher utility bills, while Colorado and Utah have a much lower average cost in large part due to local electric rates.

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What Are Your Home’s Energy Needs?

Of course, while we can give you the national average electricity use for most homeowners, your needs may be much different. The easiest way to figure out your energy use is by examining your electricity bill and your state’s energy prices. An easy way to determine how much electricity you use, and therefore how much solar power you will need is to consider the appliances you use in your home. It’s not only the size of your home that will ramp up electricity costs. A small apartment with appliances that are constantly running could easily use more electricity than a 2 story home that keeps the lights and appliances off most of the day. Consider everything from your refrigerator to beauty products like curling irons or blow dryers, televisions and video game systems, hot tubs, and of course the air conditioning and lights.

Can A Solar Panel System Power An Entire Home

Once again, to determine how many solar panels you will need to be installed to produce enough renewable energy for your home will depend on your home’s energy consumption. But, to answer the question, yes, solar panel systems can absolutely be designed to power your entire home and it’s appliances. The average residential solar system uses a 6-kilowatt solar system, which is typically anywhere from 15-25 solar panels depending on the type used. Home solar systems have seen a significant advancement in technology which allows for huge solar savings.

How Much Do Solar Panels Cost

One of the first types of solar battery which is also commonly used today is a lead-acid battery. These use an inter-mixture of water and sulfuric acid to help transfer and store energy. These batteries often come with a “float charge” that will ensure the battery stays at full power, but only for a limited time. After this time, lead-acid batteries require maintenance in order to continue producing energy. They are less expensive than lithium-ion, but you do see a drop in quality.

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More Ways Solar is Saving Money

There are times when your solar panels may produce more energy than what your home uses. Not only will this mean that your electricity bill will be $0, but this excess electricity will be automatically sold back to the grid and you will receive a credit! When you have a grid tied system, you can take advantage of net metering credits to give you a negative bill! Solar panels save money in multiple ways, so much so that the typical payback period is only around 7 years. Solar prices are better than ever and with all the current and future incentives, you can kiss the reliance on your utility company good bye!

Solar Annual Billing Cycle

When you get a solar installation for your home or business, you can choose to go with annual billing instead of monthly. This offers the advantage of being able to apply credits from excess power produced to cover any remaining expenses on any monthly bill of your choice. Talk to your local solar company to see if this electric bill format is a possibility for you.

Can Solar Panels Eliminate My Electric Bills?

To cut right to the chase, the answer is yes and no. Solar panels can absolutely produce enough renewable energy so that your electricity usage costs read $0 from month to month. You are only charged on your electricity bill for the power you pulled from the grid, and never the renewable energy that your solar panels produce. As we mentioned, your solar panel system needs to be set up correctly and work sufficiently enough to keep up with your energy consumption. However, keep in mind that your electricity bills will still contain things such as service fees for being tied to the grid and taxes. However, the taxes will be extremely low as they are based off of your electricity usage that you pulled from the grid.

Will I Still Receive an Electric Bill With Solar Panels?

You will still always receive an electric bill in the mail, regardless if there is any cost or not. That is unless you go completely off-grid with your solar power, but keep in mind this will eliminate the capability for net metering credits.

Solar Prices Are Consistent

The cost of electricity from the utility company is constantly on the rise and not reliable. With a solar panel installation, you can always know what to expect for your bills. You will avoid increasing electricity rates and inflation which is a huge incentive and why we find a lot of our customers decide to go solar.

Going Solar is Environmentally Friendly

If lower energy bills, increased property values and solar tax incentives aren’t enough to convince you to make the switch, then the environmental impact should. Every home or business that decides to go solar is making an immediate impact by lowering greenhouse emissions and our reliance on fossil fuels. This has a significant impact on helping to stop the climate crisis. Solar power is a renewable energy source that we get from the sun, and the silicon that solar panels are made out of is abundant on our planet earth.

Go Off Grid With Solar Panels

Becoming completely energy independent from the utility company is a possibility, it just requires a few extra components including a solar battery. Solar batteries work by storing excess energy that your solar panels produce during the day. That energy can then be put to use for later when your panels are not producing energy, such as during night time hours or blackouts. This backup power is crucial for going off grid, because it ensures that you will never be without power.

How To Install Solar Panels

The best way to have solar panels installed is by contacting your local solar company to do the contracting. The installation process is not something you want to leave up to chance, as an improper install can have your solar panels performing sub-optimally. This will lead to not enough energy produced and you will not see the low electricity bills that you desire. Not to mention safety issues for those that are inexperienced with solar technologies or on roofs. At Solar Panels Pensacola, our installations are backed by workmanship warranties. We shop for the best products on the solar market, which is another reason we strongly suggest you leave it up to the professionals. We help you determine how much energy your home consumes each month and make sure the electricity produced by your system matches this.

Make The Change To Solar Energy Systems Today

From lowering your monthly electric bill, to tax credits and environmental benefits, the advantages don’t stop with a solar installation. Give us a call today so we can come out for a free no obligation consultation. We always come out and inspect your home to make sure that we can design the best solar energy system for your home or business. Whether your needs are commercial or residential, we have the skills and experience to help all residents of Pensacola in their journey with going solar. Say goodbye to your costly energy bill and hello to how much money you can save in the world of solar energy!