Renewable energy is a great way to lower your energy bill, power your home or business and help the environment.
Choosing the right one for you can be tricky. You’ll want to think about what your goals are and how much space you have.
Choosing solar vs geothermal energy comes down to a few different decisions that you’ll need to make in order to figure out which is best.
Weather Matters
The first big thing to think about when choosing geothermal energy vs solar is what kind of weather you have. Both types are naturally occurring green energy sources, but solar energy requires the sun in order to make power. If you live a place with not a lot of sunlight, it may limit how much energy you can generate with a solar energy system. However, with newer technology, solar is a good fit even in cloudier climates.
Geothermal energy is also available in these cases and may be another good choice if you’re looking to be greener and save money on your energy bills.
Start Up Cost
The next big thing to think about when choosing one energy over the other is the cost to setup.
Setting up a geothermal system is incredibly costly. It requires digging in the ground, sometimes a lot of digging and installing all the equipment needed to get running is expensive and time consuming.
Solar energy is much cheaper and easier to install. If the up-front cost of your energy solution is important, solar is the better option in this case.
How Much Room do You Have?
The space it takes for either of these energy sources is pretty large. You need room on your roof or the ground to install solar panels. If your house is small you might not have much roof space for solar panels so the benefit might not be that substantial. You can gain small benefits with a few solar panels here or there but if you’re looking for a big improvement, you’d need to fit your entire roof or a portion of your land with solar panels to get big results.
However, geothermal power requires digging into the ground, sometimes several feet and using loops of pipes to generate the energy. The more energy you want to generate the more pipes and digging you’d need to do. This means a lot of work and a lot of land used up to set up a sustainable energy source.
Long Term Benefits
Once you know how much each solution costs and how much space you need, the last thing to consider is what the benefits would be over a long period of time.
Geothermal energy is a great option for places with bad weather or limited above ground space, but the benefit of geothermal is different than solar. With geothermal, the energy you generate will not replace the electricity you use, but it can lower your heating and cooling bills over the long term.
Solar energy on the other hand can add to or even eliminate your electricity usage and save you tons on your power bill.
It’s also important to note that geothermal only applies to your heating and cooling system, whereas solar generates electricity to power your whole home, farm, or business.
Geothermal is a green heating and cooling system, while solar is a green lifestyle!
Solar Sam: Here to Help with All Your Solar Needs
Choosing the right setup for your needs can be a great benefit to you and to the planet. Green energy is a great way to power your home or business and save the planet in the process.
If solar energy sounds like the right choice for you, let Solar Sam help you get started with solar panels and all the products you’ll need to go green today.
