Sweet Solar Home

The importance of a clean energy economy was visited time and again in President Obama’s State of the Union address.  With such strong support coming from the White House, we here at SunRun are very excited about what 2010 will bring for solar.  SunRun’s president, Lynn Jurich, spoke to Fox Business on Thursday about the future of the solar energy sector, as well as the hundreds of green jobs the solar industry has been able to create.





Not only has home solar become an affordable option for millions of homeowners, but it has also been able to create clean, permanent jobs.  According to research, for every six homes that goes solar, a green job is created — and that’s not including the other jobs created down the supply line.  And these are jobs created within the nation – here and at present.

Watch the Fox Business clip to hear more about green jobs, federal subsidies, and the future of solar.

SunRun’s newest Colorado customers, Bert and Kendra Prospero, were featured in today’s Denver Post as the first Coloradans to hold a home solar lease.

Interested in installing home solar panels, the Prosperos had been deterred by the high upfront cost.  This all changed when they learned of SunRun’s solar lease program, which has allowed the Prosperos to go solar for $1,000.  With a SunRun solar lease, homeowners can skip the costs, avoid the hassles associated with owning solar panels, and cut right to the chase: saving energy and money.

Check out today’s Denver Post article to learn more about the Prospero’s journey into home solar and affordable home solar leasing programs!

Is your home perfect for solar? Not sure? Take SunRun’s new solar quiz to check if your home has solar potential! Select your roof pitch and level of shade, enter your ZIP code, and find out if your home makes the grade.

Chances are that if you didn’t know your home was ready for solar, your friends and family won’t either — make sure to share the home solar quiz with them by installing the widget on your blog, Facebook page, or website.  Home solar electricity is a great way for you to save money and support clean energy so don’t wait to see if your home’s ready. For a more accurate assessment of your home’s solar potential or to learn more about solar energy across the nation, visit SunRun’s new Solar Calculator and Map.

New Jersey has the second largest number of solar homes in the United States, and there are more than a few New Jersey solar installers to choose from. In fact, if you search ‘New Jersey Solar Installers’ on Google, you’ll find over 12 million results! Finding the best one could take you a lot of time and effort. When SunRun came to New Jersey in January, we chose two of the best installers in the state to partner with so that you wouldn’t have to do the work. We’re proud to introduce our partners, Mercury Solar Systems and Trinity Solar, two of the very best installers in the state.

Mercury Solar Systems, is one of the leading solar integrators on the East Coast with operations in New Jersey, New York (including Long Island), Connecticut and Pennsylvania. The company designs and installs solar electric and solar thermal energy systems for the commercial and residential marketplace and to date has installed over 1,000 solar systems totaling several million watts of energy. Mercury’s dedicated team of engineers, solar installers, electricians, and project managers deliver the highest quality turnkey service to its growing customer base. Mercury Solar Systems is a subsidiary of Mercury Energy (formerly Aquus Energy), a leading provider of solar energy systems throughout the United States, and backed by Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.

Founded in 1994, Trinity Solar has grown to become the largest integrator of solar electric systems on the East Coast. Trinity specializes in servicing residential, commercial, and non-profit clients. Trinity delivers high quality products and operates with a sense of integrity and honesty. System installations are conducted by Trinity’s own fully trained and licensed staff and managed by veteran onsite supervisors. By utilizing internal staff, Trinity is able to closely monitor and control all aspects of system installations. From safety to quality, Trinity provides its clients turnkey, high-quality solar electric systems that perform in the manner they were designed.

New Jersey residents are in the best of hands with SunRun and our partners.

If you’ve got friends or family in New Jersey who have always wanted to get solar, send them to SunRun’s solar calculator to see how much it will cost for them to get solar with SunRun.

Or, check out SunRun’s New Jersey solar page.

If you’re thinking about getting home solar, you’ll most likely get solar panels placed on the roof of your home.  Here’s why.

• Your roof receives the most direct sunlight for the longest period of time than any other part of your property.
• The panels are unobtrusive sitting on your roof.  You won’t be able to see them, and where possible they will be placed on the back slope of your roof.
• They don’t take up any space you want to use for other things.  If you’ve got lots of open property, this may not be an issue for you.

Here are some things to consider when evaluating your roof for solar:

Age of your roof

Examine your roof to check for weather damage or wear and tear. If it’s been more than 20 years since your roof has been tended to, a specialist should look at your roof. Since solar panels have long lifespans, the wise decision would be to do any roof updates that will need to be done before the installation. That way, once your solar system is up and running on top of your home you won’t have to think about anything and just let your system create your family’s electricity.

Available space

Solar panels take about one square foot of space for every 10 watts the system will produce. Therefore, if  you want 3000 watts produced on your home, you will need about 300 square feet of open space on your roof for panels. This means planning your system’s design around any fireplace chimneys that would block the panels. However, even if you install a smaller system that doesn’t cover all of your energy needs, the solar system will still offset some of your utility charges…allowing you to make the most of a small roof space and still creating some renewable energy.

Direction of your Roof

The most effective solar panels are on roofs that face south in the Northern Hemisphere, that way the solar panels get maximum exposure to sunlight. Houses that face east or west can still generate solar power and an installer will alert you if your house fits in this category.

Type of Roof

Installers have been doing solar for many years and are well educated in the different types of roof that are supportive of solar. The easiest type of roof for installers to work on are composite shingle roofs and the most difficult ones are wood-shake roofs. Massachusetts’ popular roofing option of slate roofs are not compatible with solar installations.  In general, most roofs can hold solar panels but there may be added fees for more equipment and steep angled roofs.

Angle of Roof

The angle of your roof can make a difference in your solar system’s price. For example, the steeper your roof is the harder it is for installers to navigate and install the panels. Installers may add on extra charges if your roof is incredibly steep and hard to work on, but you will still get solar panels. Flat roofs require more equipment because of the reverse tilt that goes on under the brackets to tilt the panels to make sure as much sun hits them as possible.

Shading

Making sure there are no objects blocking the sun from hitting the solar panels is very important. If surrounding trees are proving to create shade, you do have some options.

As the foundation of solar panels, investigating and investing in your roof beforehand is always a good idea. Once you do so the next step is taking the plunge into solar panels and reducing your dependency on dirty forms of energy!

Technological terms, by nature, can be a mouthful.  But their acronyms can be just as esoteric.  PBI, kWh, SREC?  Enough is enough.  Today we’re going to unpack these solar abbreviations and show home solar for what it really is: simple and relevant.

Let’s start with the basics:

• PV (photovoltaic): is a cell that converts solar radiation into direct current (DC) electricity.
• Si (silicon): a semiconducting material found in most solar cells.  It absorbs photons in sunlight and creates energy.
• kWh (kilowatt hour): a unit commonly used to measure energy delivered to customers by electric utilities.  It can be understood as the amount of energy consumed by a 1000-Watt appliance running for 1 hour.  For example, the average American household uses 920 KWh/month.  This is equivalent to running your microwave for 920 hours in a single month.
• MWh (Megawatt-hour): 1 MWh is 1000 kWh.  This unit is often used to measure larger amounts of electrical energy in power generation and that consumed by industrial customers.
• DG (distributed generation): also known as on-site generation, DG is when electricity is generated close to where it is used, such as your roof.  Generally, DG reduces the amount of energy lost, size and number of power lines and power plants necessary to transmit energy from generating stations.
• NEG & NEM (net energy generation & net energy metering): with home solar, you can end up generating more or less electricity than you use.  NEG is the total electricity your panels produce minus the electricity you use from the grid.  NEM means that the electricity you do generate will feed into the grid and earn you credits against the electricity you do pull from the grid.  Your utility bill will then reflect only the net energy you’ve pulled from the utility.

The next step is paying for solar.  Following is a list of abbreviations that address solar financing and government incentives.

• PPA (power purchase agreement): a financing option for residential solar in which a solar company owns (and installs, monitors, maintains) your solar panels; you pay for electricity.  With PPAs, you avoid the high upfront costs of installing solar and pay a monthly rate that depends on how much energy your panels produce.
• UFI (up-front incentive): a payment or rebate up front for installing solar panels.
• PBI (performance based incentive): a payment or rebate paid based on actual energy production, compared to a UFI, on a $/kWh basis.  A PBI benefits those with larger solar power systems.
• ITC (investment tax credit): the federal ITC is a 30% tax credit for installing a solar system in your home.  You can apply this credit to your tax bill in the following spring.
• PTC (production tax credit): the federal PTC is a per-kilowatt-hour tax credit for generating electricity, for a certain period of the solar system’s operation.  Those who are less interested in PTCs can apply for an ITC, and vice versa.
• EPBB (expected performance-based buy-down): an EPBB is a type of up-front incentive based on an estimate of your solar system’s expected performance.  The performance estimate is based on system size, geographic location, orientation at time of application.  The EPBB incentive is offered only to systems smaller than 30 kW AC in California, under the California Solar Initiative.
• PACE (property assessed clean energy): cities are beginning to offer PACE programs which provides a loan for your solar panels.  The program pays for the panels and you pay for the solar system on your property tax bill, over approximately 20 years, with interest.  PACE provides loans for the cost of the panels, before the federal ITC is rewarded – this means that you will need to make payments on a larger, pre-ITC loan.
• SBC (societal benefits charge): funding for programs that provide benefits to society, such as low-income, energy efficiency, and renewable energy programs

Some states not only offer financial incentives but also encourage solar energy production through other means.

• RPS (renewable portfolio standard): an RPS provides states with a way to increase the generation of renewable energy using a market-based approach.  It requires utilities and energy providers to supply a certain percentage of their electricity from renewable sources.  Right now, states with RPS requirements require between 4 and 30 percent of electricity to be generated by a specified date.
• SREC (solar renewable energy certificate): an SREC is the property right to the environmental benefits associated with generating solar electricity.  Homeowners who generate solar electricity are credited with 1 SREC for every MWh of electricity they produce.  Utilities that have to fulfill an RPS requirement can purchase these SRECs on the open market.
• ACP (alternative compliance payment): Utilities that have to comply with RPS requirements but find SRECs to be scarce or unavailable can provide an alternative payment (i.e. $300/MWh)

Whether you want to learn more about solar or help bring solar to your state, you’re not alone!

• ASES (american solar energy society): the nation’s leading non-profit association of solar professionals and advocates.  ASES publishes a solar magazine, organizes conferences, and has over 13,000 national members.
• SEIA (solar energy industry association): the national trade association of the solar industry.  SEIA works to make solar mainstream by advocating for federal policy that removes barriers and improves market conditions for the U.S. solar market.
• CSI (california solar initiative): the second largest solar initiative in the world, after Germany, and the largest program of its kind in the United States.  The CSI is part of the Go Solar California campaign and aims to ensure that California generates solar and reward systems that provide maximum solar generation.  This initiative builds on years of state rebates and offers incentives based on performance factors, in order to lower the cost of solar systems for consumers and build a self-sustaining solar market.

We hope that this helps make residential solar easier to understand.  Though it can seem complicated — especially if you’re dealing with installation and financing on your own — home solar is one of the simplest ways you can save energy, cut costs, and help the environment.

SunRun’s first home solar system was installed this week by REC Solar in Boulder, Colorado.    Homeowners Humberto and Kendra took advantage of SunRun’s Colorado offer:  $0 to upgrade their home to solar.   They’ll start saving immediately with clean solar energy.

As a reminder, SunRun partners with REC Solar, Namaste Solar and Real Goods Solar in Colorado.  All three companies are experienced installers and provide the highest quality solar installations.

Interested in learning more about SunRun in Colorado?  Contact us today.

Check out NBC’s KUSA Denver coverage here:

Starting today, SunRun affordable home solar financing is available in New Jersey.  Residents can convert their homes to solar for as little as $500, and pay for the clean solar electricity on a monthly basis.  Monthly payments for a 3 to 4 bedroom home will start at $50. Homeowners will lock in a low, long-term rate for their electricity, avoiding utility rate increases.

SunRun will partner with two of New Jersey’s leading solar installers, Mercury Solar Systems, and Trinity Solar.   Together, these installers have completed thousands of high quality residential solar installations in the state.

Earlier this week, New Jersey adopted an Energy Master Plan, which aims to generate 30% of the state’s electricity from renewable sources, such as solar, by 2010.  New Jersey is second to California in the total number of residential solar installations, and we are excited to bring affordable solar to thousands more customers in New Jersey.

If you’ve got friends or family in New Jersey who have always wanted to get solar, send them to SunRun’s solar calculator to see how much it will cost for them to get solar with SunRun.

Or, check out SunRun’s New Jersey solar page. 

Have you been thinking of going solar? Well, one important thing to look into is if the trees around your house shade your roof. Even if your roof is shaded partially, this can be a solar deal breaker.

Shade and solar are directly linked. How so? The amount of shade that hits a roof correlates to the productivity of a roof’s solar panels. If even only part of your roof is covered in shade, it will still dramatically reduce the system’s charging power. If one quarter of a roof is covered, the shade will reduce the output of your system by 50% and sometimes unravel the entire system.

Why does this happen? Each panel is composed of many different cells that are all connected and rely on each other to perform for overall production. The panels are equipped with sensors that reroute the electrical currents maneuvering around the cells that are not performing. In an effort to correct the production output, this rerouting serves to lose the potential energy created and lowers the voltage in the string of cells (Shade Happens). As a result, the shade that feels so nice in the summer months actually hinders your home’s solar potential.

That being said, before committing to solar, check that your house has a roof plane that does not face north with unobstructed sunlight.   See if any nearby trees block direct sunlight from hitting your roof at various time of day.

If you are interested in going solar but you have a lot of trees or your neighbor’s trees cast a shadow on your home, you have several options.

1. If you are willing to part with some trees on your property, trim them back or cut them down. Be certain to check watershed and other environmental factors if your are engaging in a significant tree-removal project.  In exchange, plant other greenery such as hedges or gardens on your property and power your house via solar energy so you can get the best of both worlds.
2. Negotiate with your neighbors explaining your interest in going solar and how their trees would prevent a solar system from working. Offer to help pay for the removal of trees and the replanting of other bushes or smaller trees that won’t shade your roof and prevent your solar system from running properly.

If solar is something you are very invested in, make sure that there are no barriers that would prevent your system from running effectively! Remember, there are ways to go green and still maintain the greenery in your yard.

Remember the game of “Telephone”?  The first person comes up with a phrase and whispers it to the next person.  The phrase moves down the line until it reaches the last person, who repeats what he’s heard for all to hear.  More often than not, the phrase is rendered almost completely unrecognizable, altered with each transference.  Much is lost in translation.

This is more or less the same with energy transmission.  The way our current grid system works in the United States is that electrical energy is generated in bulk from plants located miles away from cities and population centers.  The energy is transferred via power lines to substations, which are closer to home.  The substations then transmit the electricity to the customers.  What we mean by “the grid” is a series of high voltage transmission networks, with interconnected transmission lines.

There are currently three major networks in the U.S.: Western Interconnect, Eastern Interconnect, and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas.  These transmission lines can span a great distance and some of the electricity generated is lost through transmission.

A percentage of the electricity generated is lost because energy is necessary to move the electricity from the production site to your home. Additional energy is also lost as the voltage level changes from high to low as it moves from the power plants to your home.  Electricity is transmitted through power lines at very high voltage levels over long-distances, but is lowered to a safer and more manageable level for your home.

As you can see, long-distance transmission gets messy.  On average, 7-8% of the total energy generated is lost during this entire process.

On the other end of the power transmission spectrum is distributed generation.  Also known as on-site generation, this is when electricity is generated close to where it is used, i.e. rooftop solar.  Unlike transmission via grid networks, distributed generation reduces the amount of energy lost, the size and number of power lines and associated corridors that need to be constructed, and the number of new power plants that need to be built.  With rooftop solar, your energy goes straight from your roof to your home (or back to the grid if you generate more than you use).  Home generated power can also help the grid system as a whole by lowering demand during peak times and minimizing congestion, reducing the risk of blackouts and brownouts.  For more on the benefits, see the Department of Energy’s 2007 report on the potential benefits of distributed generation.

The nation’s current energy transmission system needs much improvement, and while a new smart grid would indeed help, this is easier said than done.  Rerouting entire transmission lines can get complicated.  According to the Western Resource Advocates, the “smartest powerline is the one that is never built.”  Distributed generation is efficient, safe, and direct.  From the sun to your roof, powering your home is simple again.