Latest articles by The Solar Nerd

Most people know that if you want to cook some, say, chicken wings, it’s a lot cheaper to go to a big-box store and buy a 50 lb frozen box of wings than a small pack from your grocery store. And yet, many people will choose to pay a higher per-wing price and go with the smaller package, because often that’s what makes the most sense. In this one respect, solar panels are a little like chicken wings.

Whether you’re a camper, boater, someone who wants backup power for occasional blackouts or an uninterruptible power supply for important equipment such as a home server or computer, a solar generator can be a great option that also happens to be more environmentally friendly. A solar generator isn’t a generator in the same way that a traditional gasoline generator is. There’s no engine inside: instead, a solar generator consists of a large lithium-ion battery and one or more solar panels to recharge it.

One of the reasons that many homeowners add solar panels to their roof is to help contribute to a better environment. When it comes to climate change, solar panels absolutely are net positive. In 3 or 4 years they “pay back” the energy that was used to manufacture them, after which they generate clean electricity for another couple decades. Coal and gas-fired power plants, in contrast, are never clean sources of energy.

In case it isn’t obvious, this website is a big proponent of solar energy, and home solar panels in particular. In spite of that, there are pros and cons of solar that you should know about before spending several thousand dollars to hire a solar company to crawl around on your roof. For most homeowners, there are two big reasons why they go solar: to save money and help the environment.

Among the premium solar panel manufacturers that are popular in the US, California-based SunPower stands out. Their solar panels are at the top end of efficiency, but they also have an extensive dealer network to support a 25 year product warranty. The strong warranty and installer certification program are some of the reasons why The Solar Nerd network includes several SunPower dealers. While this might make it seem like we’re biased toward SunPower, there are other excellent brands worthy of consideration, such as LG and Solaria.

You’ve got homeowner’s insurance, right? If you have a mortgage, you almost certainly do, because lenders require it. If you’re thinking of adding solar panels to your home or already have solar, it’s definitely a good idea to pull out your policy documents and get familiar with what is and isn’t covered. Insurance plans are personalized, so the coverage in your neighbor’s plan might not be the same as yours, even if you use the same company.

There are a LOT of solar panel manufacturers out there, and knowing which one is the best for your project can be a little daunting. This is especially true if you’re doing a DIY project. If you’re a homeowner who is getting multiple quotes for a solar installation, you’ll be faced with a few choices, but those will usually be limited in scope. Your installer might be a certified installer for one of the premium brands such as SunPower, LG, or Panasonic, in which case that brand will usually be their first proposal to you.

Solar homeowners always want to see their solar panels generating as much electricity as possible. But even if you live in one of the sunniest cities in the country, there will always be cloudy days. Or maybe you live in a place where the weather is more temperate, and you experience a mix of sun and cloud. If you want to go solar, you might wonder if certain solar panels perform better than others in cloudy conditions.

The Inland Empire is a part of Southern California that lies east of Los Angeles. With lots of sun and an arid climate, the Inland Empire is one of the best regions in the country for solar. For example, the city of San Bernardino averages around 16 inches of rain and 280 sunny days a year. In comparision, the US average is 38 inches of rain and 205 sunny days.

Residential solar has taken off like crazy in the United States in the past decade. About 162,000 people in the US work in jobs directly related to solar installation, while solar in general employs a quarter of a million people. That’s a lot! It’s a huge new sector of the economy. But like any other business sector, there are excellent companies, and some not-so-excellent ones too. With thousands of solar installers around the country, it’s inevitable that some operations will be poorly run, fall behind their competition, or generally face challenges that cause them to close up shop.