Do you want to reduce your carbon footprint and cut your electric bill? If you own your home, going solar is more achievable than it has ever been. Not too long ago, you couldn’t put solar panels on your house without spending $50,000 or more up front. A few years and an increasing investment in solar technology have ushered in vast improvements in efficiency, cost and aesthetics.
Ditching the Misconceptions about Solar
I spent the afternoon with a representative from Solar City, the leading solar panel provider in the U.S., and realized that I had many misconceptions about solar. Here’s what I learned:
- Solar is cheaper than you think (and can save you money from day one). Solar now comes in a dizzying array of options to fit every budget. You can lease or own, and some options (like the Solar City “My Power” arrangement) even allow for a $0 upfront cost so that you are net positive from the outset. You are essentially locking in a lower rate of power for what you have installed, so you are hedging against future energy cost hikes.
- You can only get up to your average usage amount. Solar companies can only install up to 100% of your power usage (which they typically get by averaging your last 12 months worth of usage), regardless of how many panels you can fit on your roof. So if you are planning on making your house more energy efficient (say, by getting better insulation, more efficient appliances or dual-paned windows), getting solar installed before those improvements can save you energy costs in the long run. If you end up using less energy than you produce, you simply accumulate energy credits much like cellphone rollover minutes (and some companies, like Edison, will even cash you out at the end of the year).
- Some solar is better than no solar. Some roofs lend themselves to solar better than others. Factors like direction of your roof, available rebates and equipment needed all influence what kind of solar panels you can have installed. My house only has one part of the roof that can have panels installed, which would not allow us to go 100% solar. But since energy pricing is on a tier system, where you are charged more per kilowatt as you use more electricity, you can keep your bill in the lower-priced tiers even if you can’t offset the costs 100%.
- Moving doesn’t matter. Most of the leasing/financing arrangements are done on a 20- to 30-year basis. If you aren’t sure you are going to live in your house that long, not to worry—solar companies process transfers all the time. If you sell your home, your contract would get transferred to the new owners, giving them the energy benefits that you have enjoyed.
- Your bill may surprise you. Utility companies charge you in different ways. Some bill for your costs evenly throughout the year; others charge you just the taxes or gas usage monthly, then send you a much larger “true-up” bill at the end of the year. Read your contract carefully to see how your policy charges to prevent a large “surprise” bill at the end of the year.
Though solar has come a long way, and despite wide adoption by several major companies and universities (Wal-Mart and Stanford among them), solar energy only accounts for under 1% of U.S. energy usage. As consumers, we have the opportunity to move the needle with our energy production choice.
Even if you rent or have a condo, it may be worth talking to your landlord/owner, as these savings would pass along to them too. The decision to go solar is both an environmental and a financial one—your advisor can work with your solar team to see if the choice makes sense for you.
