What are some problems that people have with solar lighting systems?
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Some areas they just don't have enough sunlight for them to work. This can be because of a lot of cloud cover or the fact they keep getting covered by snow drifts. A big problem in the west is the fact they get scratched from dust storms. It reduces how effective they are and voids the warranties of most solar panels.
The worst problem I have had is from the wind. The panels have such a large area it doesn't take much wind to tare them up.
I think you mean solar power systems?
The big problem is that solar ystems don't generate power at night--and nut much when it's cloudy. They are still cost-effective 9in fact, they can save money overall, if you are willing to invest the money required up front.
That's without an auxilary power storage system (i.e., batteries) to store energy for use at night. Such systems exist--but aren't really cost-effective as yet. Gotta wait a few years on that; in the meantime people jsut stay on the power grid--they just use a whole lot less electricity and thus havefar smaller power bills.
Systems do come with warranties (and hteir are several manufacturers you can find online). Like any other home improvement project, you have to make sure you have a reputable contractor, though. A couplle of other hints: there are tax cridits and other programs you can take advantage of in many areas. Also--in California, you can have the system set up so that any power generated you don't use feeds back into the power grid--and is credited to you, further reducing your power bills. I don't know if any other states are doing this yet. But (as a last point) banks will usually finance this as a home improvement--it does add to the value of your home.
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