Celebrity Scandals

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In February, Rebel Wilson proposed at Disneyland. She has a long history with the park, but did you know for 30 days, she was banned from entering the Happiest Place on Earth?

Solar Cheat Sheet: Your Guide to Getting Solar Panels

Over the past few years, the stars (particularly the one at the center of our solar system) have aligned to make residential solar panels increasingly appealing for meeting your home's energy needs.

The rising costs of energy across the US, along with falling prices for solar panels aided by federal tax incentives, have simply made the economics of solar power not only attainable but beneficial for homeowners in the long run.

"If you looked at solar just a few years ago, costs have continued to come down since then," said Ben Delman, communications director at Solar United Neighbors. "It depends on your situation, but more and more homeowners and families are deciding that solar makes sense for them as a way to save money by taking control over where their electricity comes from."

Can solar panels save you money?

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Below, we've collected CNET's expert advice to get you through the process of purchasing solar panels.

Solar panels work in many different climates, not just the sunniest.

Buying a solar panel system means buying a lot of equipment the average person doesn't have reason to know about. In the most basic terms, photons from the sun are absorbed by the solar panels and converted into direct current, or DC, electricity. For this energy to be used in American homes, it has to go through an inverter attached to the solar array to become alternating current, or AC, electricity.

Read up on what you'll actually be buying with the stories linked below:

Fortunately for the solar-curious, many options exist for homeowners and even renters to get some or most of their electricity needs met with energy from the sun.

The most common way to go solar for homeowners is the installation of panels on their roofs. These systems can be purchased directly through an installer (or assembled for the DIYers) as a large cash purchase or through relatively affordable financing (such as a 1.99% APR 15-year loan). There are also options for rooftop solar for those who may not have the capital to get a project started. These are solar leases, where a homeowner pays a fixed monthly cost to a company who retains ownership of a solar system; or a power purchase agreement, in which a homeowner pays for the electricity generated by solar panels rather than the system itself.

Finally, both homeowners and renters in many places have access to community solar. This option allows people to opt in to a nearby solar farm to enjoy some energy savings.

Regular cleaning can improve solar panel production, especially in dry, dusty climates.

The costs of solar panels will depend on a few factors, including where you live, how much of your energy needs you want the system to cover, whether you install it yourself and whether you want a battery (which could cost as much as the system itself). The average cost was about $3 per watt in 2022 for an 8 kW system through an installer, according to the consulting firm Wood Mackenzie.

The way you pay for your system is vital. You'll notice the biggest hit to your bank balance by paying for solar outright, while financing will spread the expense out over years but with added interest. A lease or PPA is most friendly to the budget-minded, but you won't enjoy the long-term benefits that come with owning a system outright.

Here's the average total cash price, cost per watt and system size for a solar panel system in your state, according to data from FindEnergy.com. These prices don't factor in tax credits or state incentives. Certain states don't have any FindEnergy solar data and are grayed out on the map.

If you're buying a system outright or financing it, you'll receive a 30% tax credit through the Inflation Reduction Act. 

To get a better idea of when to expect a return on investment, look at how much energy you've consumed in the past year or two and how much it cost you. Then, working with an installer, figure out how much of your energy you'd like to offset with solar and how much the system will cost. Eventually, the savings from not having to buy electricity from your utility will be greater than the cost of the solar system itself.

"In terms of payback, broadly seven to 12 years is a decent average when you see returns from investment in solar after purchasing a system," Delman said. 

Ground-mounted solar panels might be a better option for some homes.

It is possible to install most of a solar panel system yourself -- mounting the panels on your roof and connecting them to each other. But if your home is connected to a grid, you'll need to hire a licensed electrician for the final connection needed to feed electricity to your utility.

"Another thing to keep in mind if you're doing it yourself is whether the warranties for the panels that you purchase require them to be installed by a professional," Delman said. "Often when people do it themselves, they'll hire an electrician to do the finishing work so it can get certified. It's also good if you're not an expert to have somebody with expertise to just go over the wiring and make sure that everything is where it should be."

If you want to buy panels directly, most hardware stores and larger retailers have them available. If you'd like to get them through a professional, a good place to start, according to Delman, is the website of your local solar industry association (for example, the New York Solar Energy Industries Association). These organizations should have a list of its members, which will often include installers and suppliers. Typically, installers work with one or two solar panel brands.

"Look for an installer who's experienced, particularly with the kind of situation you have at your home," Delman said. "Have they worked with the same roofing materials? Do you want a ground mount system installed? Check reviews on Yelp, Angie's List, Google and others, and get references too." (Solar United Neighbors also offers resources for going solar, free of charge.)

The best way to make sure you're getting the best deal on your solar panels is to get multiple quotes and ask as many questions of your potential installers as you need. CNET has reviewed many of the national solar companies, but it's a good idea to check into local installers, too, who sometimes can offer lower prices.

Solar panel maintenance is generally minimal and fairly easy. Even so, we've got the info you need to keep your panels in the best possible shape.

Solar panels, in general, will work in a variety of climates, even those with frigid winters. The more important questions to ask are: Does my roof get adequate sunlight? Are any trees shading my roof? And most importantly, does my utility offer net metering?

Net metering is perhaps the most important aspect of going solar, in that it stipulates that your energy utility will pay you for the energy created by your solar panels that you don't consume. Net metering ensures that the return on investment in going solar is financially sound.

For most homeowners, buying a backup battery is an expensive proposition, costing almost as much as a solar system itself. Solar batteries can cost anywhere from $12,000 to $22,000, according to the US Department of Energy. If your home is connected to the grid, the high price of batteries puts it squarely in the non-necessity column.

That being said, there are instances where a battery may be worth the expense. If your area is prone to frequent blackouts and/or you have medical needs that, for example, require cold insulin or medical equipment, a battery is a good investment. Batteries will also be a necessity if you live off the grid.

You'll need a battery to go off the grid with solar panels. A bigger one than these.

Going solar has another benefit for homeowners: it can boost the price of their properties if and when they decide to sell. According to studies by the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and Zillow, homes with solar panels often sell for about $10,000 more compared to those that don't.

No. Solar panels are a proven technology that can help you shift some of your energy use to cheaper, greener electricity. But that doesn't mean that scammy companies (while apparently rare) don't exist. The company discussed in the story linked below recently went out of business, but a bit of caution is a good thing.

Net metering -- the process by which you're paid for electricity generated by your solar panels but sent back to the grid -- is a critical factor in whether homeowners should go solar.

"Let's say during a beautiful sunny day, you're at work, the lights, TV and dishwasher are off, so you're probably generating more electricity from your system than you're consuming," Delman said. "When that happens, that electricity goes to the electric grid through your electric meter to be used by your neighbors. Net metering is what ensures you receive credit for that electricity so that your investment is still being paid back even if you're not using the electricity yourself."

You can see what your state's policy toward net metering is here.

Solar won't be an option for everyone. If your home does not receive adequate sunlight due to shading on your roof, you live in a state without net metering or there's no community solar, going solar may not be viable for you.

But with rising energy costs and the falling price of solar panels, for many people there's never been a better time to go solar. There's options to go solar that should fit most people's needs, whether that's through financing, a solar lease, PPA or community solar, that will allow them to start seeing savings on their energy bills almost immediately. By most estimates, a solar system starts paying for itself after between seven and 12 years.

Powering your home with solar not only allows you to get your electricity from a clean source, but provides an unmatched return on investment that will save you money on your energy bills and boost the value of your home.

Your Cheat Sheet For Using A.I. In Strategic Planning

Imagine your strategic plan receiving feedback from insightful stakeholders in less than a minute.

You know the annual drill: you and your teams gather data, identify trends, set goals and develop action plans. Your reward for producing a strategic plan? A stress-anxiety-exhaustion hangover and the assurance that your plan will be outdated or irrelevant by end of year.

Where traditional strategic planning has become overly complex and time-consuming, AI-powered knowledge services like ChatGPT, Bard and ChatSonic are transforming our ability to imagine business scenarios and complete our strategic plans in less time with fewer resources. From simplifying complex tasks and speeding up processes to providing insightful data analysis that deepens our decision-making, below are five ways generative AI is reshaping strategic planning.

1. Power of the prompt. The right prompts enable your teams to uncover novel market insights and generate innovative marketing and implementation strategies. This prompt-command approach can simplify strategic planning by generating specific, actionable insights that directly address your company's goals and challenges, reducing time and effort spent on data analysis and idea-generation.

To this end, you could ask AI to provide a list of five new marketing strategies that would be effective in reaching your target audience. The AI would then analyze your data and identify trends that could be used to create successful marketing campaigns.

Sample prompt: “Write a paragraph in the tone and style of our Director of Sales [insert Full Name Here] that introduces our new value proposition to our legacy customers.”

2. Scenarios on-demand. Generative AI can calculate hundreds of potential scenarios or strategic-planning elements with a single prompt. Scenario examples could range from a “stricter government regulation of your best-selling product” or “a natural disaster in China disrupts your supply chain” to “breakthroughs in AI lead to innovations that render your service irrelevant.”

Upon reviewing these, teams can generate further scenarios that combine multiple events or outcomes. AI’s capacity for creativity, innovation and future-proofing could reduce the fatigue of strategic-planning sessions — and boost productivity in everyday brainstorms.

Sample prompt: “Generate 10 scenarios that could negatively impact our ability to accomplish the goals in this strategic plan.” Follow-up prompt: "If both Scenario A and Scenario F occur in the next 12 months, what are five possible solutions we should be prepared to implement?"

3. Use as a virtual focus group. Imagine your strategic plan receiving feedback from insightful stakeholders in less than a minute. By directing the AI to assume the role of a customer, competitor or even a regulator, your teams can gain valuable viewpoints that could be overlooked otherwise.

For example, AI can generate insights from your target demographic’s perspective about product usability, pain points, preferences and potential improvements. This shortcut can significantly improve your company’s product development, marketing strategies or better anticipate regulatory requirements. (But remember to avoid sharing sensitive and proprietary info on any AI platform.)

Sample prompt: “Create a table that shows first impressions of our strategic plan from the perspectives of a Senior Sales Leader, Product Manager, Legacy Customer, New Customer and Yoda from Star Wars.”

4. Summarize in seconds. A time-saving solution provided by AI-based services includes digesting and summarizing large volumes of text, video or other data to drive your strategic planning process. During the info-gathering or research phase, teams can feed a document or link with thousands of words — word limits vary by platform — and instruct it to identify the key points in paragraph form or even organize it into outline form.

In later phases of the planning process, AI can also serve as an editor, providing an objective opinion on how the strategic plan will likely be interpreted by various stakeholders.

Sample prompt: “Read this document and provide five actionable steps that a CTO in the cryptocurrency industry might take in response.”

5. Optimized content creation. In addition to generating text, AI can also be used to create visual content for your strategic plan. This includes reports, presentations, and charts or graphs that visually enhance your plan and enable you to communicate it more effectively.

To illustrate, you could ask AI to create a report that summarizes the key findings of your strategic plan. The report could include charts and graphs that illustrate the data, making it easier for stakeholders to understand the findings. You could also ask AI to create a presentation that outlines your strategic plan and include visuals that highlight the key points of your plan.

Sample prompt: “In five pages or fewer, create a report for our executive team that uses visuals like charts and graphs to illustrate the key findings and data of our strategic planning in the following document…”

AI can give your teams the necessary insights and tools to anticipate challenges and opportunities in 2024 and beyond. From delivering industry-specific insights and scenario-planning to data analysis and charts that bring your data to life, it has the potential to revolutionize strategy sessions forever. My prediction is that AI will eventually reshape the strategic planning process into a more efficient, effective — and potentially fun experience.