More testing labs could speed adoption of solar energy alternatives

Finding a solar-energy system that gets you a tax deduction is about to become easier as the feds begin speeding up how these products are certified. That's good news for solar advocates, since Consumer Reports' latest tests found that most solar water heaters—which can cost up to $8,500 with installation—would have decades-long payback times even with the 30 percent federal tax credit. Compare that with the roughly $2,000 cost and four- to five-year payback time for the hybrid electric heat pump water heaters we tested (see the video at right for more details).

Specifically, the federal government and states of Connecticut and North Carolina are funding more laboratories to help clear a backlog of solar systems that must be tested to qualify for federal and state tax incentives, according to this Associated Press report. Two new labs—one opening at North Carolina State University this summer and another at the University of New Haven in Connecticut in 2012—will join five others across the U.S. that test how the systems' solar collectors produce energy and resist deformation and leakage according to standards developed by the non-profit Solar Ratings and Certification Corporation (SRCC).

But as you might expect, while a lab in Arizona can finish testing a solar collector in a single month, those in cloudier climes will need as much as three months to finish the tests, according to Les Nelson, who served as the SRCC's executive director from 2006 to 2009 and is now chairman of the Solar Energy Industries Association's Solar Thermal Division.

Consumer Reports' year-round test of the solar heaters installed atop our Yonkers, New York, headquarters also show how significantly location affects a solar water heater's energy output. During the summer, the Eagle Sun DX-80-64 model saved 82 percent over the cost of heating water with an electric water heater. But those savings plummeted to just 28 percent in winter, with overall savings of 55 percent. Another model, the SunMaxx3570 ($5,500 to $7,000 installed), saved only 19 percent and posted an eye-popping 33-year payback period (although the manufacturer has since updated the system).

So you'll want to thoroughly examine the SRCC's certifications of any system you're considering as soon as that info becomes available. You'll also need to be sure any system you choose is Energy Star qualified to get most tax credits.

—Reporting by Gian Trotta

In more hot water: Find out more from our tests about how a hybrid electric heat pump or gas-powered tankless water heater could cut your water-heating costs.

—Aaron Bailey