Residential Solar Installations that are Done Right

At vootu we are residential solar and energy efficiency experts. Let us show you how to make renewable solar energy more effective & affordable by applying smart energy solutions to optimize your home investment.

Vootu Solar panels produce 20% more electricity than standard industry panels

What do residential solar panel systems typically cost?

The answer to this question depends on state and system size. However, there is data that can help you estimate what solar panels cost in 2019 in the U.S. The easiest way to calculate cost of solar electricity across different system providers is in dollars per watt ($/W), which indicates how many dollars solar will cost per watt of available electricity production.

In 2019, homeowners are paying an average of $2.98/W in the U.S. To put that figure in perspective, in 2008 the average cost of solar was just over $8/W. For an average 6kW system, a price of $2.98/W means you’ll pay approximately $17,880 before tax credits and rebates in 2019. There’s nothing average about vootu, that includes our prices. Call to find out how affordable a vootu solar PV system is today.

Will my solar panels be connected to the grid? What is net metering?

The vast majority of home solar systems will be connected to the grid. With grid-connected solar, net-metering serves as an efficient solution to the question “how will I power my solar home at night?” Net metering is a solar incentive where you receive bill credits when your solar system overproduces electricity. During times when your panels aren’t producing enough electricity, you can use those bill credits to cover the cost of your grid electricity use.

If you are off grid, you won’t have access to electricity from your utility. This means that, in order to build a completely off-grid project, you will need extensive energy storage capabilities, an extra-large solar panel system, and provisions for backup power to cover you when your panels don’t get enough sun.

Will my solar panels be connected to The Grid?

Get all the answers about going solar with Solar Done Right video

Vootu specialize in energy efficiency, conservation and affordable solar PV system designs. In order to maximize your investment in a solar PV installation, careful consideration must be given to all factors that affect solar electricity production. Trust vootu to design the most cost-effective solar PV system for your home using the industry best technology, don’t overspend on an inferior solar PV system! Chose vootu and get Solar Done Right and have NO REGRETS.

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Vootu Solar panels produce 20% more electricity than standard industry panels
Home Panel Installations

Take full advantage of the current Govt 30% tax credit for Solar PV systems installed before 2019 ends.

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Vootu Solar panels produce 20% more electricity than standard industry panels
Business Installations

We have been helping businesses reduce energy costs by as much as 30% for over a decade.

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Vootu Solar panels produce 20% more electricity than standard industry panels
1st year Service, Maintenances

Vootu Solar PV system includes the first years maintenance plan to ensure to maximize performance.

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How long does it take to install residential solar panels

How long does a residential solar system take to install?

Once you have met with a vootu Solar consultant and we have completed all necessary site visits and planning, the actual installation of your home solar system will only take a few days of work. The exact time depends on several factors. For example, if you are setting up net metering, that process will tack on additional time until your panels are properly connected to the grid. Overall, while the decision process for solar panels can take some time, the installation timeframe is very quick and simple.

Find out today why vootu provide the best overall value in solar PV systems. For a free consultation call today at 727-242-0008 and find out why vootu is the only company providing solar done right.

What are the tax credits for residential home solar systems? Who qualifies?

There are two simple ways to think about tax credits for solar panels. The major tax credit associated with solar panels for home is the federal investment tax credit (ITC), more commonly known as the solar tax credit. The ITC gives you a tax credit equal to 26 percent of the total cost of your system, as long as you buy the system. Depending on which state you live in, the opportunity for beneficial tax breaks and solar programs could be significant.

tax credits for residential home solar systems

12 Common Solar Questions

Given the rising cost of electricity throughout the country, it’s hard to not at least consider cutting the cord every time a utility bill comes through the mail. But what does it really mean to go "off-grid"? For such a simple concept, the logistics of going off-grid are in fact rather complicated and very costly.

Installing solar panels on your roof doesn’t mean that you’re off the grid. Most solar systems can’t consistently generate enough electricity to be a home’s only power source, which is why the vast majority of solar homeowners maintain a connection with their utility company. When you generate more power than you use, your utility gives you a net metering credit on your electricity bill.

Since solar panels depend on the sun they won’t be much good at night and will produce less energy depending on the season. Luckily, there two paths to overcome this obstacle:

Net metering: A law known as net metering requiring utilities to compensate those who export excess solar power to the grid. In most cases you will be credited at the same rate you purchase power at on a cents per kilowatt-hour basis.

Batteries: Your solar panels will charge your batteries throughout the day and at night the batteries will power your home.

In most cases homeowners elect not to install batteries with their solar system. This is because net metering allows you to harness the economic value of your solar energy without the large financial investment in batteries.

It’s hard to overstate just what an amazing incentive net metering is. It gives you the benefit of 24/7 grid connectivity while allowing you to sell surplus solar production during the day, cancelling most or even all of your power bill.

Solar panels can still can produce 10–25% of their typical output on a cloudy day. Obviously, this amount is much less than during periods of direct sunlight, but it is not nothing.

The assumption that solar panels thrive in hot, sunny weather, but too much heat can actually reduce solar panel output 10–25%. So, very hot weather isn’t the best condition for them. Most solar panels’ power outputs start to degrade if the temperature of the panel goes over about 25°C. This is why, if you look at the specification label on a solar panel, most manufacturers quote the solar power output at a panel temperature of "25degC."

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Net metering allows you to put the electricity produced by your solar panels back onto the electric grid when you aren’t using it, and to then pull from the grid when your solar panels aren’t producing, at night or when the weather is less than ideal. At the end of the month or year, you’re billed by your electric utility on the net of production from your solar panels and the electricity you used from the grid, hence the term net-metering.

Your solar panels will start generating usable energy for your property the day they’re installed. Depending on when you receive your electric bill, you could start noticing lower bills the very first month.

If you haven’t gone solar, it’s likely you’ve never enjoyed receiving a negative electric bill. However, if and when you do decide to go solar, a negative electric bill can become a monthly reality.

When VootuSolar designs solar systems, we look at your average monthly electric bill and show you what your solar offset will be once the panels are installed. Our goal is to cover 100% of your electricity costs, but of course, there are factors to going solar that may prevent this (ie. roof orientation, how many panels will fit on your roof, etc.).

When you install a solar system, 30% of your total project costs (including equipment, permitting and installation) can be claimed as a credit on your federal tax return. If you spend $10,000 on your system, you owe $3,000 less in taxes the following year. The solar tax credit expires in 2022.

2019 is the last year of the 30% tax credit. The credit falls to 26% in 2020 and only 22% in 2021 before expiring the following year.

Purchasing your own solar system costs more up front but pays bigger dividends; leasing lets you access cheaper electricity with little or no money down, but the benefits are more limited. If you lease, the company you contract with owns the system, and you pay them a certain rate for the electricity; when the lease is up, they might take the system away. When you own the system, it can keep working for you long after it pays off the cost of the purchase. Make sure you compare the total lifecycle cost of the lease and weigh the savings against the benefits you would get from ownership.

In your financial analysis, keep in mind that the panels can function for decades, Wilhelm says, but other electronic equipment in the system, like the power inverter, has a shorter lifespan. Don’t forget to factor in replacements for those other system components when budgeting the cost of the project.

Your solar system will still work when it’s cloudy outside because ambient light and UV light still make it through to your solar panels to generate electricity. Your solar array may not be as effective during an overcast day as it is during a bright day without clouds, but it will still provide power to your home or business.

Case in point... Germany, which boasts about as many sunny days as Alaska, generates 85% of their energy from renewables including solar power.

The two dominant solar technologies to pick from are photovoltaic, which uses arrays of cells to turn sunlight into electricity, and thermal, which uses sunlight to heat water or air for use inside. If your home uses a lot of energy for heating, or you live somewhere where heating fuel is expensive relative to electricity, a solar thermal investment could break even sooner.