BUTLER TWP — Not many people in Western Pennsylvania use solar power compared to neighboring states.

But some residents hope that more people will see the benefits of harnessing the power of the sun.

Marcellus Outreach Butler on Saturday hosted an educational program focused on solar energy at Vagabonds Hall.

Greg Winks, a consultant with Clean Energy Resources, and Eric Casteel, of solar panel vendor SolarCast, covered the basics of how solar power works, what the systems costs and what the future of the industry holds.

Marcellus Outreach board member Reed Joyce said the group wants to focus some efforts on educating the public about renewable energy.

“This is shifting gears and looking at the future. We have to move away from fossil fuels and toward renewable energy,” he said.

Pennsylvania ranks 20th in the country in solar energy jobs and 15th in installed solar panels, both of which lag behind neighboring states Ohio, New York and West Virginia.

There are only about 550 solar installations in Western Pennsylvania, while the state has a total of 8,000. One reason for such a low number is that this area has relatively low electricity costs compared to the eastern part of the state, Casteel said.

But that doesn’t mean solar wouldn’t be advantageous for people here. After an array is paid off, it essentially generates free electricity for the homeowner and any environmental impact of manufacturing the panels is typically negated within two years of use, he said.

Winks said that solar energy is one of the fastest growing industries in the country. In 2015, 25 million solar panels were installed in the United States and the industry has 209,000 jobs, which is more than double what it had five years ago.

One common misconception is that Western Pennsylvania is not sunny enough for solar energy to be viable, the speakers said.

But Winks noted that Germany leads the world in solar implementation and that country receives less solar radiation each year than Pennsylvania, Winks said.

“In the climate where we sit right here — yes, solar does work,” he said.

As technology has improved, the cost of installation of photovoltaic panels has gone down significantly.

Purchase and installation of a typical array for a house costs about $22,000, but after federal tax credits the cost is about $15,000.

In Pennsylvania homeowners can generate more electricity than they need and sell the balance to the power company.

“In June, July, August, my meter is spinning backward during the day,” Casteel said.

Through a system called net metering, they can receive a check from the utility company at the end of the year for up to 100 percent of their annual usage.

Through energy savings and net metering, an average home solar array in Pennsylvania pays for itself in 12 years, but typically lasts 30 to 40 years.

In other states with more advantageous rebate programs and funding for renewable energy credits, the pay-off time is five to eight years, which creates more incentive for people to invest, Winks said.

Most houses with solar panels are still connected to the power grid because the panels do not generate any power during the night. However, there seem to be advances in battery storage capabilities on the horizon.

Tesla has announced plans to sell a wall-mounted lithium ion battery that will allow homeowners to have power all-day, year-round without being connected to the power grid.

There are still questions about the cost of that system, how long it will last and the environmental impact, Winks said.

“I think we are right on the cusp of seeing viability,” he said about the more advanced home-battery systems.

To encourage more people to take advantage of the opportunity to get solar power, an outreach campaign called Solarize Butler County is being launched this year, Winks said.

“We have a lot of education and a lot of push on public policy we want to see happen,” he said.

Those interested in volunteering can send an e-mail to greg@clean-energy-resources.com.