We surveyed the solar project scene lately, phoned half-a-dozen recent installations at homes where the homeowner shelled out from 30 to 60 grand.

Everyone was happy to see their meter running backwards and was pleased with the service and installation (which is about as complex as screwing some teatrays to a board and running some cable).

But none of them were getting the power they had been told they would get. So all their payback projections were going to take longer, although they would still get paid back in savings.

It's still a good idea to do it--it adds value and saleability to the home and the rebates from State and Federal are looking very attractive--but you need to do the math carefully, counting the actual watts ratings of the panels, converting into KWhours/month, comparing to you r actual usage, and adding in a fudge factor for random dings in the claimed efficiency.

A