Solar Powered Traffic Signs Saved Lives; Solar Power Panels Help Homeowners Save Energy

Not surprising to anyone, utility rates have been increasingly and steadily climbing over the past several years by an estimated 6 percent per year, with an unprecedented 30 percent jump in the past three years alone.  And due to the skyrocketing cost of home heating fuels, along with higher electricity costs, this rise in high price energy does not look to be slowing down anytime soon. 

Solar panel installation can help heat your home in the winter and cool it in the summer; thereby reducing both gas and electric bills by a substantial amount, even on cloudy days when the sun is not directly shining on the solar panels. 

Installing solar panels on the roofs of homes and office buildings can help decrease growing utility bill in addition to saving money on income tax returns. There are tax incentives by both the state and federal governments for those who install solar panels into their homes. The federal government tax credit for solar panel installation increased dramatically in 2009 from years past. A homeowner could receive a federal tax credit of up to 40 percent of net system cost after state rebates are deducted.  This credit is taken directly off the amount of income tax you owe at the end of the year. 

According to the National Appraisal Institute, a homeowner could increase their home’s value by $20 for every one dollar reduction in annual utility bills. This may not seem like a lot by itself but if you calculated over the course of a year or five years, it adds up to be a quite substantial amount.

Individual homeowners are not the only people who are concerned about the environment and are using solar panel installers to install the large solar panels on their rooftops.  Many city and state government buildings are also receiving grants in order to have these large solar panels installed on the city buildings in order to help save money on the utility bills the city may encounter and taxpayers have to pay.  Additionally, many cities and states use solar powered safety signs to help keep traffic flowing and save lives from accidents because it distracted drivers.  Most of these solar powered traffic signs come equipped with LED flashing lights which are generated by the sun’s solar energy.