what is the average cost, for a single family home, to install solar panels? I live in CA.
I just got a quote for my place. It came out $8/Watt installed. The quote was for 24 - 20W panels. Dividing the total quoted price by the 24 panels comes out to $,750 per panel. This includes the complete system with the converter and cutoff switch to connect it to the grid. This is also a top-of-the-line system. There are cheaper systems with shorter life spans. My quote was for a system with a 30 year life expectancy. There is a Federal tax credit in 2009 of 30% that will bring the system cost down. There are also nice state tax incentives in CA.
Just to be sure - when you say solar panels - are you thinking of hot water or electricity? For electrical power the system must photovoltaic.
Although its costs have been going down a little, solar power is still pretty expensive. To power a home you are looking at at between $8000 to $20,000 dollars (it will eventually pay for itself). There are systems that tie into the existing local power supply so that you have the city's power for back up (note: most power companies will buy electricty from you if you make more than you use). Then, of course, there are stand alone systems that operate without anyother power source (these are best for use in a place where electric lines aren't available or practical).
Depends on the size of your home, how many appliances you want to run at one time, and how much sunlight you get because all of that determines how many panels you need and how many batteries you need to install. I checked into it earlier this year and it was going to take almost 25 years to pay for itself. They aren't cheap.
