Are solar panels worth the expense?

Before you become a boondocker, electricity is something you seldom think about. Plug in. Power is cheap. Supply is infinite.

But when we become boondockers, that all changes. Now our power supply is limited by the number and state of our batteries. When our batteries become depleted, our electricity supply stops--dead. No water--the pump won't run. No Radio. No TV. The electrical step won't extend. No lights to finish the last chapter of your book.

So power is suddenly worth a lot more. More than just the dollar cost. It is convenience also. But when you try to compare the costs of installing a system of equal power from an alternative source, like solar, you are hit with a sizable up front cost.

Solar panels are expensive. Much harder to install than plugging in a generator. Very little output on cloudy days. Not of very much use in the Pacific Northwest, northern plains states, or New England in the winter. And they just don't work at night. So what's the big deal with solar?

This is why solar is my first choice:

• Once the panels are installed, no more to do, other than hose off debris and dirt occasionally.
• No moving parts to wear out or maintain.
• I prefer to boondock where the sun is shining, so they are always working to supply electricity.
  
• It works even when I ignore it.
  
• No noise--not a sound.
  
• Starts charging at first light, increases charge to maximum mid-day, and charges until the sun sets.--in the summer that is a lot of hours.
  
• Stores its electricity in as many batteries as I want to install (in my case, 4 Trojan 6-volt golf cart batteries).
• I have the option of tilting them more directly toward a winter sun (that sits lower in the sky) to produce optimum power.
• They continue to charge, though at a lower rate, on cloudy days.
  
• No CO2 emissions, no emissions at all.

Factor in the value of convenience, trouble free operation, and zero operational costs--even when you pro-rate the hardware expense over several years--solar wins.

Learn more about boondocking with my new eBook, BOONDOCKING: Finding the Perfect Campsite on America’s Public Lands.