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"    Flip a switch, and the lights turn on. Plug in a power cord, and electricity flows. Our household power needs are instantly met, and until recently, we&amp;#039;ve given little thought to the costs\u2014both economic and environmental\u2014of having electricity so readily available. But green awareness casts a different light on this everyday convenience. In the United States, electrical power is generated by facilities that rely on (in descending order) coal, natural gas, or nuclear power\u2014all sources that come with serious environmental caveats. As for price, electricity is still relatively affordable although the dollar amount varies by region (ranging from five cents per kilowatt-hour in Wyoming to 16 cents per kilowatt-hour in Connecticut). With the average American household use at 11,000 kilowatt-hours per year, the average residential annual electrical price tag comes in under $1,000\u2014but costs are bound to increase as the environmental toll mounts. One of the greenest things you can do is tap into the power of the sun for some or all of your home&amp;#039;s electrical needs. Do you need to live in sunny California to take advantage of the sun&amp;#039;s energy? Not at all. As long as a portion of your roof gets full sunlight between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. year-round, you&amp;#039;re a candidate for rooftop-mounted solar panels, which have improved vastly in both looks and technology in recent years. Whereas solar panels (in the 1970s and &amp;#039;80s) once were used almost exclusively for heating your home&amp;#039;s water supply, today there are many applications of solar power\u2014from providing your home&amp;#039;s electricity to heating the swimming pool. Best of all, there are state and federal tax incentives and rebates that are making it more affordable for homeowners to follow their green conscience, reimbursing 25% or more of installation costs. Here&amp;#039;s information to help you decide what&amp;#039;s right for you. Power the Whole Home: Photovoltaics Photovoltaic (PV) systems use an array of solar panels or modules to create electricity for a home; the rooftop-mounted panels are connected to an inverter at the house&amp;#039;s electrical panel, and the whole system can be tied into the power grid, meaning a homeowner can end up with a credit from the power company. New technology has resulted in PV cells that are sleek and unobtrusive, ranging from jet black to dark blue. A photovoltaic system can be sized to meet your entire household&amp;#039;s electrical needs or just a portion: a 5-kilowatt system of sleek poly-crystalline PV cell modules, for example, might cover several hundred square feet of roof, at an installed cost (before rebates) of $40,000-$50,000, and generate 5,500 kilowatt-hours per year.  Small Scale Solar Power If the initial cost of a large photovoltaic system is too high, or if the portion of your roof that gets full sun is small, you may consider a smaller photovoltaic system. For example, a 2-kilowatt array of modules could be installed on a garden shed roof, or south-facing porch roof, generating 2,000 kilowatt-hours per year. A typical roof mounted grid-connected photovoltaic system costs between $7-$9 per watt making a 2kW photovoltaic stystem around $18,000 (before rebates). Note: The initial ticket price may be less for a smaller system; however, it costs more per watt than a larger system.  Solar-Powered Water Heater Using the sun&amp;#039;s energy to preheat the water that goes into an existing hot water heater reduces the energy outlay needed before domestic hot water is delivered to the shower, sink or laundry. A typical system might include two 4- by 8-foot flat plate collectors mounted on the roof, and an 80- to 120-gallon storage tank; installed costs run from $10,000 to $15,000 (before rebates). Solar Pool Heating Rooftop-mounted collection equipment allows the sun to heat your pool water, eliminating the need for a conventional pool heater. Rooftop tubes or plates\u2014typically mounted on a poolhouse or outbuilding near the pool\u2014receive water from your tap, the sun heats the water, then the water is sent to the pool itself. The cost runs about $4,500-$6,000 installed (before rebates). Getting Started While all these applications are popular, solar power is so site specific\u2014depending on your roof&amp;#039;s orientation, size, shading, and other factors\u2014that you will want to have a professional assess your home&amp;#039;s potential. Use the &amp;quot;Find a Solar Pro&amp;quot; tool at www.ases.org (the American Solar Energy Society) to get started. It&amp;#039;s also helpful to become familiar with the incentives and rebates available where you live. A good clearinghouse of state-by-state information can be found at www.dsireusa.org, the Database of State Incentives for Renewables &amp;amp;amp; Efficiency. Each state has its own energy office, which can be found in an internet search, and there is good basic information about solar power at the U.S. Department of Energy&amp;#039;s website, www.eere.energy.gov. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.elledecor.com/shopping/home-accessories/a1722/solar-power-101-a-50724/>