Are Solar Panels the Future for Homeowners? 

Humans have been using the sun’s power for heat, light, and energy since the dawn of civilization. The world’s first silicon solar panels were introduced in the 1950s by Bell Labs. This technology was a massive leap in humankind’s ability to harness energy from the sun.

In the seven decades since then, solar panel technology and adoption have only continued to grow. The question is, are solar panels the future for homeowners?

The Growth of the Solar Industry

Thanks to strong federal tax incentives, rapidly declining costs, and increasing demand, the solar market in the United States has grown by leaps and bounds in the past decade.

In 2010, fewer than 5 gigawatts (GW) of solar capacity were installed nationwide. By 2020, the country reached 100 GW of solar capacity, including over 19 GW of privately installed residential solar panels, representing an annual growth rate of 42%.

The industry continued to set records in 2021, with an additional 23.6 GW of solar capacity installed that year, including 4.2 GW of residential solar. As a result, this brings the nationwide total to 121.4 GW of capacity, or enough to power 23.3 million homes.

In 2021, solar accounted for 46% of all new electricity-generating capacity added in the U.S., marking the third consecutive year that solar comprised the largest share of new energy capacity.

Benefits of Solar Panels

The solar industry is undeniably growing, but does it live up to the hype? Consider some of the benefits of going solar:

• Solar energy is clean and renewable.
• Solar panels reduce your electric bill.
• You may qualify for tax rebates, credits, and other incentives to bring down your costs even more.
• Solar installations increase home value, letting you raise your asking price if you move.
• Solar panels are versatile and can be installed in many settings.
• Solar enables energy independence.
• The solar industry creates jobs.

Are Solar Panels the Future?

Despite rising costs associated with unprecedented supply chain challenges in 2020 and 2021, the future of solar looks bright. Projections predict record solar deployment every year until 2024 when the Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC) is currently scheduled to step down fully. Even without tax incentives, the industry should still thrive on price declines and increasing demand.

In all, solar is expected to grow by 348 GW between 2021 and 2030 — more than three times the capacity installed in the previous decade.

In addition to installing more solar panels, the industry is working to further photovoltaic (PV) technology to improve solar-capturing efficiency, solar energy storage, and the aesthetics of solar installations. Corporations and researchers alike continue to make headway in these areas.

Some ideas include:

• Replacing silicon technology with perovskites to improve efficiency.
• Including layers of multi-junction cells in solar panels to exponentially increase the amount of electricity they can generate.
• Optimizing energy storage to bring down the cost of solar battery technology.
• Installing floating solar farms in the ocean to keep the panels cool and avoid taking up valuable land space.
• Implementing “solar roofs” comprised of PV panels that take the place of shingles.

Contact TENCO SOLAR

Solar panels continue to become more ubiquitous than ever. If you want to be part of the solar energy future, contact TENCO SOLAR. We’ll help you harness the sun’s power with cost-effective solar panels installed on your roof or elsewhere on your property.

Contact us at 888-507-6937 today to schedule a consultation with our solar experts in Southern California.