Before Solar

As you can see from the following chart from my NStar electric bill, my electricity usage in the past year
was about 600 kWh per month except in August when it was about 800 kWh per month:

So let's say my annual usage is about 11 * 600 + 800 = 7,400 kWh per year and my average monthly
usage is 1/12 of that or 616 kWh.
The price I pay the electric company is currently 8.2 cents per kWh in delivery charges plus 14.1 cents
per kWh in generation charges for a total of 22.3 cents per kWh. (This includes an extra 2 cents per kWh
because I selected their "green" option which means they have to buy power from wind farms equal to the
amount I use.)
So my average monthly bill is about 616 kWh * $.223 / kWh = $137. This can be expected to go up over
time as the electric company raises their prices.

The Solar Proposal

SunRun created a proposal for a 5.04kW solar system for me. (Full proposal here.)
They expect this system to produce 6,040 kWh in its first year (which is 82% of my average usage) and
then degrade slowly (half a percent per year) over the years. Because of this degradation, they estimate
the system's output over 18 years will be 17.236 times its first year output (instead of a full 18 times the
first year output if every subsequent year were the same as the first).

The Deal
Instead of buying the panels themselves, I've agreed to buy the power they produce. SunRun will charge
me a rate of 13.6 cents per kWh (compared to the electric company's current rate of 22.3 cents per kWh).
That's almost 40% less than what the electric company charges. And the SunRun price is fixed for the
next 18 years while the electric company's price can be expected to rise.

So when I buy power at 13.6 cents per kWh, instead of getting it for 22.3 cents per kWh from the electric
company, I save 8.7 cents per kWh. For me, in the first year, that's an average monthly savings of 6040 /
12 * $.087 = $43. Over a twelve month period that's an annual savings of $525.
To enter into this agreement, I've paid SunRun $1,000. Because of a promotion they're currently running,
they gave me $137 back which is estimated to be the cost of the first two months of electricity from the
panels. So my total outlay is $1,000 - $137 = $863.
Because I'm saving $43 per month, I earn back my initial $863 in about 20 months. That's my break even
point. But the agreement lasts for a full 18 years and during that whole time my electricity rate will be
13.6 cents per kWh for the solar power. The power I buy from the electric company will cost more and
more over that time. So the savings I get from having solar increases as time goes on because the
electricity it replaces from the electric company gets more expensive.
SunRun is responsible for all installation, maintenance, insurance, etc. of the solar panels during the 18
year period at no cost to me. I pay only for the power the panels generate (and if they generate
significantly less than expected then SunRun has to start refunding some of my money).
At the end of the 18 years, I can either have SunRun remove the panels for free or I can continue buying
the power from the panels (but at a new price per kWh) or I can purchase the panels for $5,000. I'm pretty
sure I'll want to purchase them because $5,000 in 18 years from now is not going to seem like very much
money.
The full contract is here.

Some Towns Require an Engineer

It turns out my town requires and engineer's inspection for any kind of roof work. So I had to hire an
engineer for this purpose and he charged me $800.
Also, he wanted me to strengthen my roof a bit by adding 2x6 braces to the rafters which didn't already
have them. So I hired my excellent carpenter (Craig Ashton Jr. -- highly recommended) for that and he
got the job done for $275 in parts and labor. So now the break even times are as follows:
My actual break even time = $863 (paid to SunRun) + $800 (paid to my engineer) + $275 (paid to my
carpenter) all divided by $43 = 3.75 years.
Your break even time if your town doesn't require an engineer = $863/$43 = a little over a year and a half.
Alteris now has an engineer they use regularly for this type of work and he usually charges $500-$750 per
job so if you need an engineer you'll likely pay a bit less than I did.

Installation
8/3/2009 Installation is underway! You can see photos and a video.

After Solar
My solar system has been up and running for a while now. I never even know it's there. I just get $0 bills
from the electric company in months when I produce more power than I use.