Great Brook Enterprises

All pricing listed here is subject to the results of our friendly personal survey of your site. All solar systems are site specific by nature which can affect the price. These prices are presented only as an example to give you a "ball park" idea of the price range of various size systems and what performance you might expect. (last updated 06/09/05). We have added a suggestion for utilizing recent changes in federal tax law to gain an additional incentive for going solar. See Sales Tax under "Qualifying notes" below.

Solar doesn't cost it pays. However, some systems pay better than others. Generally larger and better optimized systems pay better than smaller systems. The tables below of various example system configurations illustrate this fact. Details of each system vary greatly from site to site and are specific to the needs of the customer, therefore, installed system pricing can vary as much as +/- 15% from tables below. Tables last updated 06/09/05.

In addition we offer added value items that can enhance the long term economics on all our systems:

Attention to details that can extend system life and reduce maintenance.
Service Maintenance contracts are available.
Customer "walk through" orientation and training upon system completion (particularly important for battery based systems).
We have knowledge and experience with 24 year old systems. We know from experience (good and bad) what happens to systems as they age. We make a point of learning from our experience. We have serviced many systems installed by others and apply what we learn to new installations.
We go beyond NYSERDA installation requirements by performance testing each system during the commissioning process. This assures you of a top performing system.
Granted, our installed system prices may be slightly higher than those of some other installers. But everyone knows that cheaper is not always best. Top quality will always be the better long term investment especially with a PV system.
BEWARE the fast talking salesman who might tell all the benefits and ignore any down sides. We strive to fully inform.

Saving Energy since 1978 serving commercial and residential markets across central New York State. Put our experience to work for you today.

Economics

System payback is only one aspect to look at with the economics of a PV system. Certainly you want the system to pay for itself within its expected life. Another way is to see it for what it really is, an investment. The return on your investment is the money you will no longer pay your utility company for "renting" their power. Instead you will "own" your own generation facility. Since PV is an income producing asset it can be useful to compare it to other investments you might make. How much can you earn risk free in other investments? YES a solar investment is more RISK FREE if well installed and maintained than most other investments. Plus, we have added to the tables below the pounds of CO2 you will be keeping out of the atmosphere protecting your children and grandchildren from global warming. The amount is surprisingly high. Most PV customers are concerned about the environment and want a clean way to generate their own power. Our high quality systems offer peace of mind and are more than just a financial investment but an investment in the environment for future generations.

BEWARE: Just because another dealer tells you his system will get you a higher return on your money than ours, doesn't necessarily mean his system is a better investment! It may mean either their system is cheaper and therefore, of lower quality or they neglected to take maintenance and replacement costs into account.

We use a more comprehensive analysis which yields less optimistic but more conservative results. In other words we strive to give you as conservative a picture as we can. As an example, figuring a 30 year life, 2% per year electric rate increases, plus maintenance and replacement costs a typical system might yield about a 2% to 3% per year return on the investment. Ignoring maintenance costs it can be 4%. However, it is realistic to assume there might be maintenance costs even if you do it yourself, your time has value. Another way to look at PV economics is to compare electric rates. The cost of the system in future dollars divided by the kw-hr system production over its life is usually between 6 and 10 cents per kw-hr. Compare this to the 12 to 14 cents you now pay your Utility. This is like buying your next 30 years electricity today to lock in a low rate. Our analysis uses conservative weather data which may indicate a lower performing system than others. We do this to make happy customers when your system performs better than predicted.

If you are more concerned about a more immediate higher return you should consider Solar Hot Water. Solar Hot Water can yield 8% to 15% returns on the investment and needs no incentives! A solar hot water system typically runs $3500 to $5000 installed and provides 50% of annual hot water needs in Central NY. The more hot water you use daily the more worthwhile solar hot water can be for you. If you don't use much hot water then consider PV, because you can't feed excess hot water back into the grid and thus excess energy is wasted.

Example System Pricing Tables (Due to a severe and ongoing shortage of purified silicon and thus, solar panels and price uncertainty we can no longer keep the example pricing up to date.) In order to avoid misunderstandings and confusion we sincerely apologize but we had to remove the example pricing tables. In their place we present an example system representing our most popular system size and an installed system price per PV watt range.

Table for Grid Tied (battery-less) Systems (note, roof mount is sometimes slightly less $ than pole mount due to excavation, concrete and steel costs):

as of 2/23/06 Grid tie Solar PV System approximate pricing (before any State incentives or Tax Credits):

Systems lately have been installing for between $8.50 and $9.50 per watt of installed DC PV array capacity. A 2 KW size may be up to $10.50 per watt. An 8 to 10 kw size may be closer to $8.20 per watt. Pricing depends on site characteristics, mounting method and specific arrangement between panels and inverter(s) and brand of solar panel. NYSERDA incentive is a $4.00 per watt direct discount off the price for systems over 5kw $3 per watt on the additional wattage up to 10 kw).

Batteries for power during outages adds to the cost.

Call for off grid stand alone system pricing (NYSERDA incentives do not apply to off grid systems).

Example 4.5 kw roof mounted system:

$38,000 before NYSERDA incentive. NYSERDA incentive = $18,000. You pay us $20,000. State and Federal tax credits: $7,000 (for systems going into operation between 9/1/06 and 12/31/08). After tax credits system cost: $13,000. Pole or ground mounting adds $4,000 to $5,000.

In addition the Energy Smart Loan Fund with its 4% reduced rate may help you with a loan.

Prices subject to results of our site survey and subject to change without notice.

To determine the best buy:

Divide the price you pay by the solar array wattage to arrive at dollars per watt installed. The lowest dollar per watt installed is often the best investment. System quality is a very important factor. Higher quality systems last longer and will also make a better investment. Do not use this formula to compare between installers. Quality of installation is critical to the longevity of the system performance. It may be necessary to pay more for high quality work from long experienced installers. Ask for references and follow them up.

See below to see if you qualify for tax credit
Qualifying Notes:

Prices reflect a recent price increase in PV Panels due to a world wide solar panel shortage and perhaps the falling value of the dollar. Prices are subject to change without notice. Prices are specific to your site.
NY State solar income tax credit is not refundable. You must pay NY income tax for it to be of any use. The credit can be carried over several years giving you the opportunity to recoup it if you don't owe enough tax in one year. The system must be installed at your primary residence. Credit is 25% of discounted system price. The maximum credit is $3,750 for systems going into operation before 9/1/06 and $5,000 after 9/1/06. www.tax.state.ny.us/pdf/2005/inc/it255_2005.pdf to download the form. The tax credit assumes the system qualifies for net metering. GBE are not tax experts. Please check with your tax advisor.
Sales and Use Tax. Solar energy equipment is now exempt from the NY State 4% sales and use tax. In addition a few Counties have also exempted solar energy equipment from their portion of the sales and use tax.
The $4.00 per watt incentive Different incentive levels may apply in different situations, such as for Building Integrated PV, not for profit organizations or Energy Star Labeled newly constructed homes. Incentives do not apply to systems connected to Electric Cooperatives, local Municipal Utilities or to off grid and/or stand alone systems (not grid tied). The incentives are subject to change without notice. Other incentives may apply. If you are on Long Island LIPA has a different incentive program (please consult LIPA for the latest details). For more info on New York State financial incentives consult www.powernaturally.org
System kw-hr savings are dependant on your geographic location, local weather conditions and site specific shading, ground reflectance and other issues many of which are beyond our control. The calculations are based on computer simulations and the associated margin of error. Therefore, Kw-hr savings performance is only listed here as a guide and should not be considered precise predictors of performance.
Batteries are not always necessary in Grid tied systems. They add 5% to 30% to the cost of a system depending on your power needs and system design. Batteries are like babies. They can die from neglect. Battery based systems generally cease to function if the batteries fail. Therefore, you need to assess how much you really need them. If you have long and/ or frequent power outages in combination with things that must stay powered (essential loads) then batteries are a good idea for you. If your power outages are rare and you prepare in other ways so short power outages are survivable then batteries might be more a liability than a help. Batteries make perfect sense in the following situations: 1)Your site is far from a city where utility power is less reliable. 2)You have essential loads such as computers that could loose data while a backup generator starts up. Battery based PV systems have almost instant transfer time unlike a generator. This offers truly uninterruptible power that can last for several hours or even days (with a larger battery and by following an energy management plan) not just minutes. 3) If your site is far from existing utility lines batteries are required.
Performance: This table was generated for Binghamton, NY. At your location the same system may perform better by as much as 10% as Binghamton is particularly cloudy. Details of each system vary greatly from site to site and are specific to the needs of the customer, therefore, installed system pricing can vary as much as +/- 15% from above table. So a site survey is required to determine the specific system and price that is right for you. Shading: The effects of shading can very much affect the annual output of the system. After our site survey we do a complete economic analysis specific to your site. This table assumes clear mid day sun and typical eastern and western shading.

Battery Backup system Pricing: Generally the price of a Grid tied PV system with battery backup for power outages is part way between that of a strictly grid tie and that of an off grid stand alone system. This is because an off grid system requires a bigger battery bank to carry loads through long sunless periods in order to minimize use of the backup generator.

Off Grid Stand Alone Systems example prices:

PV Array size watts	Mounting system	# of inverters	Inverter Size watts	Daily Kw-Hr Power budget	Battery Bank Amp Hours nominal	# batteries/ voltage ea	Installed System Price
500	roof	1	2000	1.5	700	8/ 6v	$9,900 to 13k
1000	roof	1	2000	3	1200	12/ 6v	14,500 to 19k
2000	2 pole	1	3500	7	2000	12/ 2v	28,450 to 36k
2400	2 pole	1	4000	10	2000	12/ 2v	32,500 to 39k

Qualifying notes:

Details of each system vary greatly from site to site and are specific to the needs of the customer, therefore, installed system pricing can vary as much as +/- 15% from above table.

Stand alone systems require batteries for both short term and long term energy storage and as a power regulation device absorbing the natural fluctuations in solar production at any given moment. A small percentage of the energy collected from the sun goes into driving the charging process of the batteries and never reaches your loads. Therefore, if you have Utility power readily available careful consideration should be made to eliminating batteries and using the Utility grid as your storage media (grid tie) instead in order to maximize system efficiency and long term energy savings.

Batteries will require the most maintenance of any part of your stand alone system. By nature batteries have a much shorter life span than the rest of the system. The performance of your entire system are dependant on the condition of the batteries. Therefore, it is critical that you pay attention to the batteries and their needs. We do NOT recommend the use of maintenance free sealed batteries in off grid stand alone systems. They generally do not cycle well under typical residential usage conditions. As a result they offer a far more limited life than a high quality long warranted regular maintenance deep cycle lead acid battery. The major maintenance item for batteries is as simple as adding distilled water monthly or when they get low. We offer maintenance contracts if you are not comfortable with battery maintenance.

Roof mount sidewall

SOLAR SPACE HEATING PRICES:

Are extremely site specific and require a detailed analysis of your home to determine the price. However, you can expect a solar space heating system to range between $10,000 and $30,000. Homes in excess of 3,000 square feet or poorly insulated may cost more.

Disclaimer:

All information on this web site is true to the best of our knowledge and has been provided in good faith to help the reader. It is the reader's responsibility to verify the accuracy of the information from other sources before using it. Great Brook Enterprises shall not be held responsible for any consequences from the use of this information.


	Coming soon to this page: Pricing for example wind systems and hydro power systems . Also the cost of Solar Hot Water.

Note: It is necessary to schedule a site survey before ordering a system due to the many choices available. 607-847-6366, REQUEST info ,or Request a Site Survey so we can give you local installation assistance as we are in New York State to serve your renewable energy needs. Examine the Financial Incentives that are available.

We are installing contractors of renewable energy systems. We install in Upstate New York, the Adirondacks and north eastern Pa. However, if you are outside our territory we can help you by designing a system, talk you through an installation and/or help you get materials. There will be a charge for our services.

For more information contact us

We will get back to you as soon as we can. Or give us a call us at 607-847-6366.

Great Brook Enterprises

Prices for Solar Energy Photovoltaic (PV) Installed Systems

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