I have an A-frame house that seems to be ideally suited for solar (a lot of surface area). I will need new shingles or tin roofing at some point in the not-to-distant future. Will that affect it as well? I am trying to go as green as possible.
First off does one side of your A frame roof face south?
Since that is where the sun is that is where the collectors must face. If this is not the case your not going to want to mount collectors on the roof. You can put them on pedestals, some of these will actually track the sun to increase the amount of power you collect.
If you are going to need to re-roof your home you will want to do it before collectors are put on your roof.
Next you will need a fairly large amount of money. They tell me that it would take about $35,000 to provide most of my electricity using photovoltaic panels (it won't be enough to run my air conditioner though). This makes it a non-starter for me since we spend less than $1200 per year on power.
If you are still in the hunt your best bet is to now go located a local solar installer. These guys will be able to design the system for you and won't make the rookie mistakes a first timer will.
Most people will get the most value for their dollar by sealing up your house for better energy efficiency (a couple of tubes of caulk) instead of purchasing solar cells. Next on most peoples list will be to add a more insulation to their attics.
A good source of information about home solar power is the magazine called Home power. You can find them at www.homepower.com
I hope this helps.
2 responses to How do I go about converting my house to solar power?
First off does one side of your A frame roof face south?
Since that is where the sun is that is where the collectors must face. If this is not the case your not going to want to mount collectors on the roof. You can put them on pedestals, some of these will actually track the sun to increase the amount of power you collect.
If you are going to need to re-roof your home you will want to do it before collectors are put on your roof.
Next you will need a fairly large amount of money. They tell me that it would take about $35,000 to provide most of my electricity using photovoltaic panels (it won't be enough to run my air conditioner though). This makes it a non-starter for me since we spend less than $1200 per year on power.
If you are still in the hunt your best bet is to now go located a local solar installer. These guys will be able to design the system for you and won't make the rookie mistakes a first timer will.
Most people will get the most value for their dollar by sealing up your house for better energy efficiency (a couple of tubes of caulk) instead of purchasing solar cells. Next on most peoples list will be to add a more insulation to their attics.
A good source of information about home solar power is the magazine called Home power. You can find them at www.homepower.com
I hope this helps.
References :
Find your daily utility usage by dividing the kilowatt-hours (kWh) used on an average month’s utility bill by 30. Divide that number by 5 (the average number of peak sun hours in the United States), and multiply that number by 1.43 to account for system losses. This is the size of the solar system, in kilowatts, that you will need. Multiply that number by $9000.00 ($9/watt installed) for a good ballpark idea of the gross installed cost.
Please note, the closer you are to the Equator the higher the average peak sun hours and the further away you are the lower. I live in Minnesota, the average peak sun hours there is 4.5.
Also, this is an estimate.
Find an installer that has references and has been around! They should know if the A-frame will suffice as a platform for solar panels. Trees, houses, mountains or other tall structures near you could lower the average peak sun hours on you roof at certain times of the year, the installer should use a Solar Pathfinder PV Positioner (this is a divice that will determine the shadow cast from trees or structures at any time of the year). The roof is not the only place that a solar panel can be installed, they can be ground mounted or pole mounted as well.
Shop around for panels, inverters, converters, controllers and batteries. Don’t go cheap, buy the best quality that you can afford within your budget.
Read, become as knowledgeable before you buy.
Also, watch your roof loading, if the installer doesn’t know, get a contractor/home inspector to determine if the roof has the ability to mount the panels. Things like wind and snow are important things to consider.
Finally, conservation will lower your usage more than you think, thus, lowering your electrical requirements.
References :
Calculation from Gaiam's Real Goods catalog
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