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Published on October 12th, 2007 | by Stephanie Evans


What are the Disadvantages of Solar Power?

the photovoltaic panels.  The location of your home in relation to
energy you use monthly determines the size of the photovoltaic panels.

energy affordable and available to wide range of the public.




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  • Guest

    you dont really list a lot of disadvantages tou just list cost and that is pretty much it and i am sure there are way more disadvantages!

  • Eds: New items added — thanks for the comment.

  • Guest

    The one disadvantage that is not fully understood (and often forgotten), is what will happen when solar panels need to be replaced due to “wearing out”. There is not yet a definitive expectation for the useful lifespan of a solar panel, but when they are no longer able to produce energy, how will we discard them? They are made of some seriously heavy metals, which would be extremely pollutant to landfills, etc. This issue obviously is not as contentious as nuclear power waste, but it should be a consideration when making the decision to begin using solar panels.

  • Guest

    I actually never considered that disadvantage. I suppose people would do with it whatever they do with other things that wear out, like broken TVs and dysfunctional radios. Probably reuse some of the parts and the rest would end up in the dump. That’s something to consider. Perhaps someone will come up with a way to recycle the material.

  • Guest

    I think the advantages certainly outrun the disadvantages and once technology goes even further the disadvantages will be easier to combat

  • Yellowbird

    So does the 30 cents/KWH include installation, financial, what else? How long are you figuring this for? Doesn’t the value of the home go up, usually? Isn’t it pretty much “free” once it’s paid for? What does the $20,000 include (installation, batteries, electrician, maintenance, etc.)? Is the home insurance more or less? Does this harm appliances? Is this for rooftop arrays or ground?

  • Susan Kraemer

    Solar lasts 40 to 50 years, so it is hardly a huge landfill problem. Yes, it loses a little in efficiency – all solar panels lose about 0.05% a year, but that means it is operating at 80% efficiency in 40 years. You won’t be putting it on craigslist in 10 years like the car you paid $20,000 for.

    Jennifer, you are absolutely wrong about the cost being more than grid power. It completely depends on your state, and electricity costs there.

    I think you are calculating this based on your own early adoption of off-grid solar, when costs may have been far higher.

    But I sell solar now, and do these calculations every day, and it is MUCH cheaper than PG&E over the 25 year life of a loan for $20,000. At a mininum, if your electricity costs only $60 you will save $75,000 of those hard to come by old lady dollars.

    If you figure that for that $20,000 you are getting at least 40 years of power, that averages $500 a year. Or $50 a month. $50 a month may be comparable to some states electricity now, but rates in CA where we live for example have historically been going up 6.7% a year, so the savings after about ten years mount up into the $100,000 or more.

    So when you are a little old lady and your neighbor can’t afford the skyhigh electricity costs, she will be coming over to your house to watch tv with you..

  • Sorry woops – because my buddy Jennifer who lives offgrid sent me some stories she wrote here, I assumed this was her story. See now it’s not.

  • One obvious disadvantage of solar power panels is its initial cost is very high, this factor discourage solar electric system to spread widely and rapidly through out the world.

  • this helped me with my debate

  • well many more disadvantages occur when they are trying to come up with an all green theory:

    1. Solar cell/panels etc. can be very expensive

    2. Solar power cannot be created at night

    • solar nightmare

      solar nightmare

      how about disadvantage to your HEALTH

      lung cancer from silicon dust

  • Interesting post, but I think you do PV panels a bit of a disservice by saying they’re pretty much useless in areas with limited amounts of sunlight. While the amount of electricity produced may be less, it can still be worthwhile, especially in areas where utility costs are prohibitively high. As proof of the viability of solar panels even in regions with limited sunlight, the country with the most installed solar energy systems is Germany, hardly a country known for its sunny disposition!

  • Milo

    There is a HUGE flaw with solar power and that is the need for sunlight. If you have ever watched Discovery Channel you will have seen the effect of even a small meteor strike, massive volcano etc. The sun will be blotted out for years and if the fossil fuel infrastructure is gone then so is humanity. We won’t be able to keep warm in a now freezing world and worst yet not able to generate enough power to light fields to grow crops. Mass starvation!! And according to science it’s when, not if.

  • milo is crazy

    milo….one there has not been major eruption in quite some time 2. last major eruption made around global decrease in temp. at 1 degree i think

    3. small meteor strike? improbable at best we have thing named nukes dozens of em if metoer came we just blow it up

    morons these days….

  • jb

    In California, if there is a power outage, the Solar Panels cannot be used to power your home.That, to me is crazy.

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