Until we walk into our friendly neighborhood Ikea store and find their rumored solar panels, solar technology for our homes still seems like a distant future for most of us. To indulge yourself in your off-the-grid dreams, or to better educate yourself for the possibility of going solar, check out RoofRay.
RoofRay lets you determine the solar potential of your roof using Google Earth. Find your roof and highlight the surfaces of your roof to determine surface area where solar panels might be placed, facing what direction (South-facing is most efficient) and at what angle, and the site calculates how many watts you could expect to power from your panels.
On top of the wattage, RoofRay tells you how much it would cost to install panels for your roof and how many years it would take to get a return on your investment. It even takes into account government rebates and inflated energy prices in the future.
The site is great fun whether you're serious about investing in the energy or just daydreaming about it.
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I wanted to thank you for this post. I've been actively researching solar for my home, but had not seen this site. My first solar contractor is coming out tomorrow and even with all my research, this makes me feel so much more confident about discussing how solar would work on my actual home. Knowledge is power - especially being a single woman dealing with contractors... Fantastic!! Thank you!!!!!!
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