In addition to saving you money, solar or wind energy systems can also ensure that you and your family can still use electricity in the event of a recent grid failure.

Food and natural gas prices have been rising for the past 25 years, while electricity prices have risen sharply.

According to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), electricity prices in the U.S. have risen by 1.8% annually, from the national average of 8.38 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) in 1994 to 13.31 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) in 2021.

In addition to the increase in electricity prices, there have been power outages and power shortages recently. On June 15, 2021, the Texas Electric Reliability Commission (ERCOT), which controls approximately 90% of the state’s electricity, asked residents to save electricity due to the current heat wave. According to KXAN TV station, "...Data from ERCOT shows that during the afternoon peak hours, it is expected that demand may exceed capacity..."

Last week, Puerto Rico suffered a power outage. In February 2021, millions of people in Texas lost power for a week.

The summer of 2021 has become one of the hottest summers on record, which means greater pressure on the national grid. We will tell you how to use solar panels or wind turbines to generate electricity, which will allow you to live completely off the grid or reduce your current electricity bills.

States and municipalities have regulations governing solar panels and wind turbines, so it is best to check with them before you start any project.

Federal residential renewable energy tax credits stipulate that the renewable energy tax credits for fuel cells, small wind turbines, geothermal heat pumps and solar panels are as follows:

The current rules will expire on December 31, 2023, and tax credits can be used to offset any costs incurred when installing a green energy system. Your state or local power company may provide additional tax credits.

The sun shining on the roof is free, you only need to install solar panels to capture it. There are two types of solar power systems: off-grid and grid-connected. Using a connected system, when your home consumes more power than the solar panels can generate, the remaining power will come from the grid.

When your solar panels generate more electricity than you use, you can also sell this electricity back to your power company, which means your solar panels can become a source of income.​​​

You can install individual solar panels on the ground or on the deck, or you can install them on the roof. In either case, choose an area with at least four hours of peak sunshine per day. When the sun is highest in the sky, the sunlight peaks, so around noon. Areas closer to the equator receive more peak sunlight, while areas more northerly or southerly latitude receive less.

In the northern hemisphere, the sun moves from east to west, but always in the southern sky. In the southern hemisphere, the sun is always in the northern sky. Although roofs facing north or south are best, you can also install solar panels on roofs facing east or west, and they will take advantage of sunlight in the morning or afternoon.

Make sure that no trees or other shrubs are casting shadows on the location you choose for the solar panel. In addition to the actual solar panels, you also need an inverter, rack, and solar cell storage unit.

There are three main types of solar panels: single crystal, polycrystalline and thin film. Single crystal panels are the most common, and their efficiency is about 20%, but they are also the most expensive. The cost of polycrystalline panels is lower, but the efficiency is only about 16%, and polycrystalline panels cannot work well in high-temperature areas.

Thin-film panels are flexible and the cheapest option; however, they are only 7% to 13% efficient and take up the most space. Solar panel efficiency is the amount of electricity that solar cells can generate from sunlight.

If you install solar panels on the roof, you need to connect the mounting bracket to the roof truss. The trusses are the wooden beams under the roof shingles that lead to the top of the roof.

You can also install solar panels in a separate garage or shed. The homeowner in the comprehensive video below did just that, using all of his roof space.

Space the mounting seat so that it is aligned with the hole on the side of the solar panel. If you want to install a ground-mounted solar panel system, you need to use cement to sink the pillars that come with the panel into the ground. Some ground-mounted systems include a motor that can rotate the panels so that they follow the sun as it moves through the sky.

After attaching the mounting bracket to the truss, you will fix the solar panels to the mounting bracket, making sure that they are level and firmly tightened. You don't want expensive solar panels to be blown away during the storm.

Solar panels generate direct current or direct current, and the inverter converts this electricity into alternating current or alternating current, so it can be used at home. You must ensure that the inverter obtained matches the output rating of the solar panel. Do not use an inverter with a rating higher than the output of the solar panel, otherwise the efficiency will decrease.

For maximum efficiency, insert the inverter into each solar panel and fix them to the bottom of the panel. A separate inverter ensures that even if some of your panels are in the shade, you can still generate electricity.

Connect the wires of the solar panel to your home and your electrical switch box. You may need to hire an electrician to do this. For connected systems, your power company may need to install a new meter outside your home to calculate the electricity you generate.

The energy produced by solar panels must either be used immediately or stored in batteries.

If the average wind speed in your area is 14 mph (23 km/h) or higher, you can choose wind power. Wind speeds below this value mean that you will not benefit from the full efficiency of the turbine. You can find wind speed information in your area by contacting local weather services, viewing wind speed maps or airport wind speed data.

The airport measures its wind speed about 30 feet (9.1 m) above the ground, which is almost the same height as residential wind turbines, so their information is particularly applicable.

Before installing a wind turbine, you need to research the zoning and any neighborhood association contracts in your area. Contact the building inspector, supervisory committee or planning committee in your area and they will be able to tell you if you need a building permit to install a wind turbine.

Your neighbors may also be affected by the turbine tower blocking their view. They may be concerned about potential noise issues, so you may need to discuss your wind turbine plan with them first. Even under strong wind conditions, modern residential wind turbines produce very little noise, but they are not completely silent.

Some jurisdictions limit the allowable height of structures in residential areas. Most zoning regulations specify a maximum height of 35 feet (11 meters), however, the difference can usually be obtained. Many residential wind systems need to be at least 30 feet (9.1 m) taller than their tallest structure within 500 feet (150 m).

You need to calculate the minimum diameter of the wind turbine blades, and to do this, you need to know the power consumption of your home. Please consult your local power company to find out how many kilowatt hours your home has used in the past year.

Then, use this formula to determine the rotor size: AEO = (0.01328)D2V3 where: AEO = annual energy output in kilowatt hours per year D = rotor diameter in feet V = average annual wind speed in miles/miles Hour. You will need to solve the formula for D.

For example, if your home uses 11,000 kWh of electricity each year, your average annual wind speed is 15 miles per hour (24 km/h): 11000 = (0.01328)D2153 Solving for D, you need a diameter of approximately 10 feet (3.0 rice).

Dip the bottom of the turbine tower into concrete and assemble the rotor. Pass the wires connected to the turbine motor through the tower and into the electrical switch box of your home.

Your power company may also install another power meter to see how much electricity your wind turbine generates. If you produce more than you use, you may be able to sell some back to the utility company.

Never install wind turbines on the roof. In addition to being noisy, turbines also experience turbulence, which reduces their efficiency.

The initial cost of installing a solar power system or wind turbine system is high. To determine whether installing them is right for you, you must consider the "payback period." This is the time you need to repay the solar or wind turbine system by saving electricity bills.

You can determine the payback period by calculating the total cost of installing a solar or wind energy system, then subtracting any solar incentives or rebates and any tax credits, and then subtracting the annual electricity savings.

For example, if you spend US$16,000 on a solar panel system and receive a tax refund of US$4,000, and if your annual electricity savings reach US$1,500, your payback period will be eight years. By 2021, the average solar panel investment payback period for American households is between 9 and 12 years, depending on the state you live in.

States that offer high rebates, such as Hawaii and Massachusetts, have a payback period of as low as 5 years, while in states that do not provide such generous rebates, such as Louisiana and North Dakota, the payback period can be as high as 16 years.

Other factors that affect the payback period include the composition and age of the roof, the quality of solar equipment installed, the electricity bill in the state, and whether cash or loans are paid to finance the green energy system.

Considering the large number of grid failures currently occurring, such as the grid failure currently occurring in Texas, installing solar or wind energy systems may soon become a breeze.

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