Quote:
Originally Posted by asphaltgambler
I think they are ugly as sin - seems to be a lot of takers in my area in crowded neighborhoods. Also I don't see how the 'math' ever works out - ROI.
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It's so dependent on the installation. Our house is end of a cul-de-sac and the back of the house is on a steep down hill facing west-south-west. All our panels are on the back of the house and almost impossible to see from the ground.
Even when neighbors mount them on a visible roof I don't think they look bad. It's not as if roofs are that attractive anyway.
As for ROI, that all depends on where you live - What the electricity rates are, where you can mount the panels, how much sun you get, etc. From our perspective the payback is surprisingly short. In a 25 to 30 year lifespan the panels should pay for themselves four times over. Seriously, since we've had the panels we haven't paid for electricity except the minimum monthly service charge which is around $11. The payback doesn't even account for the fact that the panels add to the property value by about the same as they cost. I will acknowledge we're in an ideal location for solar though.