MADISON, Conn. -- If you're concerned about the environment, and about your bills, it may be time to let a little sunshine into your home.

Rodney and Elizabeth Oppel are preparing to switch from electric to solar power.

“I just thought it was a good idea at the time because prices are still going to go up on it,” Rodney said. “Oil is oil.”

Within days of signing up with the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund state rebate program, approved contractors installed a series of lightweight photo-voltaic panels on the roof of their 1,500-square-foot home.

The solar power will provide 70 percent of their electricity needs, they said.

The Haupt family, of Madison, tapped into the power of the sun over the summer. They said their electricity bills are now much lower.

“We averaged something like $150 a month before the solar system was turned on,” Richard Haupt said. “I believe the first bill that came in was around $15.”

Haupt, who also received funds from the rebate program, said he had to pay for less than half the cost of the system.

The system costs $37,000 on average, he said, and the fund and federal tax rebates amounted to $22,371. He said he only had to invest $14,600 in the system.

When asked why he made the switch, Haupt said, “It's the green movement in its entirety, doing something to better the cause and the solar industry, and I think a little affiliation with the Clean Energy act Connecticut was sponsoring and helping fund the effort."

Of course, it helps to have a southern exposure for the cells to capture the sun and a year-round clearance away from shade trees.

For information on these incentives, call 888-232-3477 or click here.