Are Old Solar Panels Worth Anything

As solar panels age they become less efficient in a process known as degradation.

Are old solar panels worth anything. If you have enough to make a purchase in cash you ll save more than with any other option but even with a 0 down solar loan your savings could still be in the tens of thousands. But it s not a straight calculation. Obviously that s not that much but over several years it adds up. This is an important one.

Nrel has found that solar companies are charging around 2 60 per watt to install rooftop solar systems and between 63 and 91 cents of that goes to making and delivering the panels. Panels that are owned add some value to the resale. Whether you re a business that installed solar panels to lower your energy costs a company that manufactures solar panels or even a homeowner that jumped on the solar bandwagon early if you re replacing your old solar system with a new one don t toss your old panels away or worse let your installer take your old panels away. If a homeowner paid 18 000 for solar those panels don t necessarily add 18 000 to the resale.

Ironically the investment opportunity wasn t in investing in the manufacturers of solar panels. Solar panels are highly technical products with electrical wiring glass and a variety of metals. Overseas manufacturers such as china were dumping massive amounts of solar pv onto the market. Whether you choose to buy or lease your solar panels will have a major impact on your system s long term value.

In the past the investment required for solar panels was too high for many to afford even though the panels would pay for themselves over time. You can take panels that have been out in the sun for 20 or 30 years and a lot of the older ones still work the second service recyclepv offers is repurposing and reusing solar panels. This caused panel prices to plummet comparatively so while solar panels were worth it for the consumer the manufacturers struggled to make a profit. Since their introduction the price of solar panels has dropped at a steady rate.

While solar leases and power purchase. The federally funded national renewable energy lab found that solar panel efficiency decreases an average of 0 8 annually p. Today they are far more affordable. How are you financing your solar panel system.

So you are. So your biggest obstacle to recycling your old solar panels is finding a place that will take them.