The Book!
Design your own system from scratch, using the information on this blog.
It's not that tough! You can even make your own board game.
Solar is not that difficult to understand. The awesome photos in the background were taken by the same installer who wrote all the content. Using the knowledge base from 3 years of field experience, Sunpower Certification, State Certification, and references recommended by NABCEP, this book gives the average homeowner a good sense of whether a photovoltaic system will be enough for your electrical energy needs.
There's a lot of talk about whether it's financially worth it to invest in Solar energy. I don't think there could possibly be a better thing to invest in, this day and age. Even the stock market can't guarantee the returns that a PV system can. It's inevitable that electrical costs are going to rise in the future. There is nothing more comforting than knowing that your price has been locked in the payback of a system that you bought years ago.
PV panels can last up to 50 years, and some are guaranteed to last with lengthy warranties of 25 years provided by some manufacturers (namely, Sunpower). Inverters usually last 10-15 years.
There's never been a better time than now, and the technology is ready for consumption. Many people are led to believe that it's not ready yet, but there are plenty of homeowners with systems that work great, and have their energy prices locked for probably the rest of their lives.
Check out the book and think about investing in your photovoltaic system!
