Elite Energy Specialist

What is the difference between
residential and commercial solar?

A commercial solar project might power a town or a company’s operations. As a result, they vary dramatically in terms of scale and cost. By comparison, residential solar systems tend to hold a consistent size (6kilowatts on average). Thanks to their relatively small scale, rooftop solar panels for home are an attainable energy upgrade that can generate serious electric bill savings for homeowners at any income level. Commercial solar, on the other hand, necessitates a major investment and a collective group of investors.

Will my solar panels be connected
to the grid? What is net metering?

The vast majority of home solar systems will be connected to the grid. With grid-connected solar, net-metering serves as an efficient solution to the question:
“How will I power my solar home at night?”

Net metering is a solar incentive where you receive bill credits when your solar system overproduces electricity. During times when your panels aren’t producing enough electricity, you can use those bill credits to cover the cost of your grid electricity use.
If you are off-grid, you won’t have access to electricity from your utility.

This means that, in order to build a completely off-grid project, you will need extensive energy storage capabilities, an extra-large solar panel system, and provisions for backup power to cover you when your panels don’t get enough sun.

Does solar make sense if I don’t plan
on being in my home for 25 years?

A common concern for homeowners who are considering solar is, “What happens if I move after installing solar panels?” A typical solar panel system lasts for 25 to 30 years.

If you don’t plan on owning their house for that long, you may wonder if solar still makes sense.

The good news is that solar increases the value of your property and can actually expedite the process of selling the property when the time comes.

The housing market is filled with buyers excited by the prospect of acquiring a solar home that comes with the benefit of zero utility bills.

What are the tax credits for
residential home solar systems?
Who qualifies?

There are two simple ways to think about tax credits for solar panels. The major tax credit associated with solar panels for home is the federal investment tax credit (ITC), more commonly known as the solar tax credit.

The ITC gives you a tax credit equal to 26 percent of the total cost of your system, as long as you buy the system. The next option will be state solar tax credits, such as New York state’s tax credit that cuts an additional 25 percent off the price of the residential system. Depending on which state you live in, the opportunity for beneficial tax breaks and solar programs could be significant.

Some states and municipalities also offer other more complex options that will be case-specific – do some research into SRECs and other location-specific solar rebate programs.

What percentage of your home can
you power with solar electricity?

Ideally, the answer to this question would be 100 percent. However, although a solar panel system can theoretically offset all of your energy use, it’s not realistic to expect that level of panel production every day of the week. Leading U.S. solar manufacturer SunPower recommends that homeowners factor in a 25 percent cushion when calculating their target for solar panel offset.

The main reason for this: solar panels cannot operate at maximum efficiency all the time. There will be certain days when grid connection is necessary to fully cover your power usage. However, the beauty of net-metering is that you can benefit from surplus production days and never pay anything to your utility while still relying on the grid for backup storage.

How long does a residential
solar system take to install?

Once you have met with the installers and done all necessary site visits and planning, the actual installation of your home solar system will only take a few days of work.

The exact time depends on a number of factors. For example, if you are setting up net metering, that process will tack on additional time until your panels are properly connected to the grid. Overall, while the decision process for solar panels can take some time, the installation timeframe is very quick and fairly simple.

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