Solar panel installations are booming across America! In the not so distant past, this technology was seen as too difficult and expensive for everyday people, the technology was prohibitive as far as limitations to its practical application. Now, solar panels are cheap, efficient, and accessible in comparison to traditional forms of generating energy or heating. The advantages are clear and current trends in solar are pointing in one direction: More solar, at lower prices, especially here in Arizona!
Not surprisingly, of course, Arizonans are buying a lot of solar panels. We’re the third-fastest solar energy adopting state in the nation, behind only Texas and California. Those beautiful clear and sunny desert skies are perfect for generating solar power and now is the time to take advantage of a solar installation and choose an installer.
The up-front costs of a solar power system used to be a substantial roadblock to going solar, but now the momentum is swinging in the direction of solar being among the cheapest options for energy. Among other ways to reduce the cost of a solar panel installation, solar leasing allows consumers to add panels to their home for no money down, making it available for almost every Arizona family home. The energy purchased through your solar lease is less expensive than the energy from the Utility. Your utility is at a disadvantage in how its energy is produced, using systems that are complicated and expensive to operate fueled by materials that are only increasing in cost. This is what allows you to produce more cheaply than your traditional power source.
Even better, when you lease, the leasing company takes responsibility for maintenance and oversight as well, bringing even more value to the equation! This also reduces a big portion of the risk of installation that existed in the past.
Solar cells today are far more robust and resilient than most technology. Depending on how your solar panels are installed, most have no moving parts and are built using weather-resistant metal and glass which can hold up against all but the worst forms of weather. With today’s monitoring systems, it is also easy to identify problems before they develop, if they ever do at all. You will be able to rely on your system to keep the lights and air conditioning on, which is a must on a sweltering 110-degree day in one of our summers.
Solar is becoming increasingly attractive thanks to this, keeping the total cost of ownership extremely low, and the ROI extremely high.
Arizona’s net metering policies are another reason why solar is so attractive in our state. The system of net metering with local utilities is one of the biggest contributors to the surge of solar installations in recent years, overcoming a lot of the challenges that existed in the previous decades. How net metering works is simple: If you produce more solar power during the day than you use, the excess energy goes on-to the power grid, and you get credit for it. On a rare cloudy day here in the southwest United States, the energy that you produced with your panels that went onto the grid will come back to you. This means you are for the most part or entirely energy-autonomous and won’t be consuming energy produced at a much higher cost by your utility. Worth noting is the added benefit of contributing less to your overall carbon footprint.
So, after a highly productive day, you could drawback that excess generated power at night, without paying for it. This is just one of the many ways you can save money with solar.
If you’re ready for solar panel installation, Harmon can help. Give us a call today at (800) 281-3189 for a free solar consultation!