Frequently Asked Questions
A recent utility bill which has the previous 12 months power usage on it is needed. We use that to size up a solar system the homeowner needs. If it is a new home/homeowner we will estimate the usage by the square footage of the house + the appliances used in the space.
Generally you would leave the panels on the home when moving, and have the new homeowner buy or assume the financing for existing panels. Once you move, have new panels installed on the new home.
A) Start off with the purchase price of the solar project.
B) Subtract the tax incentives/credits and rebates.
C) Estimate the new rate of your utility bill and calculate the savings per year.
D) Divide the net solar system cost(the purchase price of panels minus the tax incentives/credits and rebates) by the annual savings on the utility bill.
E) Equals the amount of years it will take to pay off your solar system.
EXAMPLE – NEW YORK
(Estimated purchase price of panels 10kw) $35,000, NYSERDA Rebate ($3,000 estimated), Federal Tax Credit (30% x (35,000-3,000) $9,600 – State tax credit $5000 = $17,400 total out of pocket cost divided by the estimated savings per year on your utility bill ($3,000 estimated) = 5.8 years to pay off your system.
The utility company has an annual payout date for excess energy. However, the energy is rolled over from one month to the next. In the winter months your system will produce less energy because of daylight hours and less exposure to sunlight. In the summer, extra energy will be stored for the winter months.
When estimating the size system for your home, we look at the entire year’s energy use. If your family needs are changing (Additional family member, electric car, etc) we could offer additional panels if your roof has the room.
Toggle ContentYou would need to pay the utility company for the extra energy used, unless you have a credit from previous months. We try to get the homeowner a complete offset so they don’t have to pay for any energy, but sometimes because of extra power usage, not enough sun exposure, or a smaller size roof we may not be able to.
We offer a turnkey system including letting the utility company know you are going solar. We also handle the design, permits, and interconnection.
Generally it takes 6-8 weeks from contract signing to permission to operate aka PTO. It could take as long as 3 months based on the municipality response time to permitting.
Yes, however the systems are costly and won’t give you full backup of all your home’s energy needs during an outage.
$1000. We work with multiple banks that have very competitive interest rates and offer several different payment term options.
When a project is installed properly roof leaks are not a concern. When doing a site survey we determine if your roof is in good condition or needs to be replaced. If the roof needs to be replaced the homeowner can handle that or we can handle it for them. Once the roof is replaced we can go ahead with the solar project.
The Manufacture warranty is 15-25 years based on the panels the homeowner selects. We have an Installer warranty of 25 years. We also offer a Performance Guarantee warranty through a 3rd party which will cover any shortfall less than 95% of what we forecasted.
We are a local (New York and New Jersey) family owned business since 2015. We pride ourselves on customer service and honesty. We make the process simple and work with you every step of the way. We care about what we do, that is why, our best source of new business is from our current customers. You will see why so many families trust us with their solar projects.
Trees can be a concern if they are on the southern side of the house because that is where the most sun exposure is. We could offer a tree removal service in our quote. If trees are not removed we will use roof plains that have the next best solar exposure. If the home has many trees with significant shading and the homeowner is not willing to remove them. It’s not likely to be a worthwhile investment.
The sun will cause the panels to degrade over time (.5% per year). The panels are warrantied and made to last for 25 years, but will continue to produce energy after. After the 25 years it may make sense to replace the old panels with new panels.
General maintenance (Cleaning panels, etc) is always a good thing to do. The homeowner will have an app to monitor the panels to ensure they are producing the ideal output.
