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Thinking about going solar? Then read this.

Sun power is now a feasible way to power your house, even in the Puget Sound area.

“The panels that are available today are quite a bit more efficient than what were available just a few years ago,” said Kevin Brasler, executive editor at Checkbook.org. “And because of that efficiency, right now really is probably the best time to go solar if you’ve been thinking about doing that.”

Brasler says the typical home system around here is about $18,000. Checkbook’s mystery shoppers found that prices vary greatly from company to company.

Both state and federal tax incentives will help bring down your out-of-pocket expenses. Homeowners can get a one-time federal tax credit of 26% of the system’s cost.

“Most homeowners in the Puget Sound area, if they have an ideally situated roof in terms of a southern exposure, they’ll look to break even in about 15 years,” Brasler told me. “The goal for most homeowners is to put systems on their roofs that will take care of all their electricity costs for the year.”

In other words, you’ll need to buy electricity from the grid at night or any other times your solar cells are not generating power, but because your system should make more electricity than you need during the day – which you can sell to your utility – your net electric bill should be zero.

Keep in mind: This is one project where experience and expertise really count.

“You don’t want your home being a guinea pig for an inexperienced installer,” Brasler cautioned.

Your installer may offer financing to make the job more affordable. While this will let you spread out your payments over 20 years or so, it also drives up the total cost by thousands of dollars because of the high interest rate.