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The problem is that battery technology has not yet reached the point where it is cost effective for homeowners to collect significant amounts of solar energy, and store it efficiently on the premises.

Therefore, the only cost effective option for homeowners has been to sell surplus solar energy back to the power company, rather than store it at home in batteries.

Unfortunately, the viability of such an arrangement depends on how much the power company will pay homeowners for surplus solar energy, and whether that amount justifies the homeowner’s investment in the solar panels.

Now that the USA has become energy independent and a net energy exporter, the cost of generating energy at the power plant will continue to decrease, and along with it, the amount the power company can credit a homeowner’s account for surplus solar power must also decrease.

We just purchased a system with battery backup. Even today when it was cloudy most of the day I generated enough electricity for the battery to last until about 5:00 tomorrow morning. I only pulled 3 KW from the grid. On a good sunny day, I output about 30 KW to the grid plus use what I need at the house. I also use it to charge the battery on my plug in hybrid auto.

Now if you have to borrow the money it may not be a wise choice for some. But I expect the return at current electric rates will be about 3 to 4 percent which is more than any savings account I know of. So far we are happy with our decision.