i need this for my semi truck
No, seriously, I’m looking for a concise line of what qualifies for this. There’s so many options and grey area that the last guys just all swept under the carpet, and reposted back the same legalese as in my original question. Not very helpful. So, I figured I just asked the wrong question.
"provide electricity for the residence"
The above quote is from the IRS requirement for solar panels.
What are the requirements to be considered ‘providing electricity for the residence’. It certainly doesn’t mean 100% power for the residence, as partial systems make up the majority of installations. It apparently doesn’t mean any electricity for home, else piddly crap like a solar powered battery charger would count, even though it is electricity for use in the residence.
Some situations to consider:
1) you rewire your entire house to 12V DC, and all interior lights and switches are run from solar. All your electricity for residence lighting comes from solar, but it’s not attached the grid, and its not 120V AC
2) you have a set of solar panels on the roof, a battery bank, and a large power inverter, running power to various outlets in your house. It is providing 120v AC power to your residence, but it is not attached to the grid. Every single outlet in your house could be wired from this AC. That portion just isn’t attached to the power grid
3) If a requirement is that it be attached to the grid, what happens if you go gridless? 100% self sufficiency. large battery bay, large panels, large inverter, 100% of house power comes from solar, no utility company involved. Let’s go back to #1, and say that you decide to go 12V DC, for power efficiency, for many items..
So, maybe the line is clear to you what ‘providing electricity’ means… but it’s not clear to me at all. So could someone kindly clarify in concise, legal terms what the heck this means?
Saying silly things like "The rinky-dink photo cells on accent lights merely recharge internal batteries on the light unit itself. They do not provide electrical power to the residence" don’t exactly clear things up. So, you’re saying that even if your entire house was run from a battery bay, from a set of photo cells on your roof, that merely recharge the batteries say in your garage, and run to ‘rinky dink’ CFLs throughout your house, is exactly the same situation? And if these situations are different, is it just a matter of scale? Then where’s the line?
What are requirements to be considered ‘providing electricity’? connection to a power grid? 120V AC? having the panels separate from the application? being able to use the electricity indoors? There has to be some precise requirement, some question you can ask, "does it have X feature?", because terms like ‘provide electricity for the residence’ are really inprecise.
Bruce
I’ve read the IRS instructions for document 5695
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f5695.pdf
(2009 version is still in draft and has no instructions, 2008 still had the credit, and has instructions)
I’ve also looked through the energystar.gov requirements page
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=tax_credits.tx_index#s4
The full legalese is IRS code 25C and 25D. If there’s a more verbose definition section around, well, then I am missing something.
from IRS section 25D
" (2) QUALIFIED SOLAR ELECTRIC PROPERTY EXPENDITURE – The term `qualified solar electric property expenditure’ means an expenditure for property which uses solar energy to generate electricity for use in a dwelling unit located in the United States and used as a residence by the taxpayer."
I’m still confused. official tax code says ‘generate electricity for use in a dwelling’, which to mean includes everything from a solar flashlight, to a full house solar system.
Bostonian
"the maximum credit available is a pittance when compared to the cost."
There is no maximum for solar for 09, 30% is 30%. not trivial.
Just saying the words ‘theres nothing unclear about it’ doesn’t make it true. I’m already very well aware that there are homes with full solar, the cost, AND typical installations. It doesn’t answer the question.
You are just telling me examples of what qualifies, not what the definition is. I’m not trying to be rude, or an ass, it’s a seriously honest question.
In my original question, I had asked about a variety of things, including accent lighting, shed lighting, and small grade solar cells with inverter. This is a new question, not about accents.
I’m wondering where the line is. if its just that its ‘inside the home’, then an accent light taken apart, tiny solar panel run up to my roof, professionally wired through my house, and light wired up to a light switch, would, by your examples, would meet all the requirements.
I want to build a house and put solar panels on my roof. What angle do I need to build my roof at so I can just place solar panels flat on my roof? Which direction does the solar panels need to be facing?
I am going to be shooting this event in the desert for 3 days so I wont be able to charge my camera. My camera doesn’t have an external battery pack so I cant bring extra batteries. Right now I’m talking to this guy on eBay about buying a portable solar panel off of him. The solar panel comes with many charging connectors but there are only 3 that fit the port on my camera and there voltage output is 5.5V / 8.4V / 12V. My camera requires a 9.6V. . .
So my question is wether or not it is ok to charge a device with a different voltage output? Will it work, is it safe, which one should I use out of the three provided?
Thanks!
I just connected my 15 Watt 12V solar panel directly to my 300 Watt 12 inverter. It worked for about 2 minutes then it popped (sparks, smoke etc)! What the hell did I do wrong? I thought the solar panel was 12 volts? Can someone with experience with these things help me out?
i have a small solar panel about 15×25 cm that has a built in aa battery charger and a lead with a range of power sockets for charging various objects and it has;
3v 200ma,
6v 100ma,
9v 50ma and a
12v 50ma output…..
1. i cannot get this to run a small 3v brushed motor but i cant imagine why this would be (i have tested the output on my tongue and it is very powerful…asin alot more than a standard 9v battery) possible wrong wattage or ampage?
2. i am trying to get it to charge my laptop… which has a 12v adapter, i understand this is probbably not powerful enough to charge the batteries constantly but was wondering if i could somehow amplify the power with a transformer and store it to charge it like for 5 seconds every 10? trickle charger?? does anyone have any ideas? does anyone know how it all works
thanks!
ye i know im in the process of buying one now… thanks for the help
I want to know how I can determine my area’s (Rochester NY) yearly solar energy output to see if it would make economic sense to install solar panels. Any websites or resources where I can look?
I have four large sealed led solar batteries I use for lighting. I have a backup charger to keep them filled, but one night I left it on all night and forgot and the next morning they were warm not hot and bubbling. The reading said 15v so did I damage them or will they be ok? they still read 12v at this time.