If you’re shopping for a solar energy system, one of your first questions is probably, “how much will it cost?” Prices depend on the size of your system, the type of equipment you choose, and the state that you live in, but reviewing prices for a 25 kilowatt (kW) system is a great place to start for many smaller homes. Learn more about how much a 25 kW solar system costs, how much electricity a 25 kW system will produce, and the smartest way to shop for solar.
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Introducing Wallbox: the European-based smart EV charger company
In 2019, the Solar Energy Industries Association declared the 2020s would be the ‘Solar+ Decade”. So far, their designation has come true, and then some: 2020 was the best year ever for energy storage deployment in the US, including at the residential level. But it’s not just energy storage that is being paired with solar; according to our recently released Installer Survey, in 2020, 1 in 12 solar installations also included an electric vehicle (EV) charger, while nearly as many people purchased an EV as purchased a solar panel system nationwide.
But EVs are good for more than just transportation – they are powered by high-capacity batteries, which theoretically could be leveraged to play a similar role as a standard solar-battery, just with more storage capacity. One company that is pioneering this technology–typically called vehicle-to-grid or vehicle-to-home–is Wallbox, a 6-year-old, internationally located smart EV charging company. We had a chance to chat with Wallbox to learn about their products, the promise of vehicle-to-grid technology, and when you can expect to install that in your home. Here’s what we learned:
Continue readingIs residential electricity price going up or down?
If you’re considering whether going solar is a worthwhile financial move for your home, there are essentially two factors that you should look at: 1) the costs associated with solar power, and 2) the rates you pay for electricity from your utility. Going solar makes economic sense when solar electricity costs less than grid electricity.
Continue readingArcadia Power community solar program review
Community solar provides access to solar for residential electric customers who otherwise would not be able to install solar panels on their property. To date, though, community solar has not seen the same levels of adoption as residential rooftop solar. We conducted a Q&A with Arcadia Power to learn more about how their new community solar offering helps lower barriers to participation.
Continue readingWhy is my gas bill so high?
When winter kicks in, it’s time to once again start heating homes throughout the country. For many homeowners, this means increasing gas consumption and the highest gas bills of the year. If you’re looking for ways to save on your gas bill, a great option is to electrify your home heating systems. Pairing electric heating systems with a solar photovoltaic (PV) system will help to insulate yourself from rising future costs of both gas and electricity.
Continue readingWhat is critical peak pricing?
As we continue to move towards a more modern grid–and a more educated electricity user!–utilities across the country are beginning to introduce electricity rates that better align the price we pay for electricity with the cost of producing it by varying the price of electricity based on the time it’s consumed. Critical peak pricing (CPP) is one such time varying rate plan that charges more for electricity during certain periods of peak demand, but also allows you to lower electricity spending–and even receive bill credits–by reducing usage during these times.
Continue readingWhat is peak demand and how can you reduce it?
The electricity grid is designed to provide reliable electricity service to all homes and businesses at all times of year. To ensure that whenever you flip a switch in your home that the electricity turns on, the grid has to both produce enough electrons to match the electricity that everyone is using throughout the course of the year as well as enough to power everything that’s turned on at the same time. That second ability–making sure there’s enough power to go around at the times when it’s most needed–is peak demand.
Continue readingAutoGrid’s Flex Saver program
Installing solar-plus-storage is a great way to save money. We all use electricity, and the electricity produced by solar panels is less expensive than what you would otherwise purchase from the grid, meaning solar can help you save significantly over decades while your panels are producing electricity. But solar and storage do more than just help you save on your own electricity bills: combined, they can help reduce the overall cost of electricity to the grid as a whole (see our recent guest post from Synapse Energy Economics).
Continue readingBlue Planet Energy’s hybrid PPA: what you need to know
One of the largest barriers to more solar development at the commercial level–from dentist offices to large manufacturing facilities–is a lack of accessible financing options. This is particularly true for projects that include batteries, and even more so the case for the budding world of microgrid projects.
Continue readingWhat’s on your business’s electricity bill?
Electric utility costs can represent a significant portion of annual operational expenditures for businesses. While there are many ways to reduce how much your company spends on electricity (like solar!), the first step to reducing your electricity bills is to understand what’s on them: what are the components of your electricity bill, how do they impact the price you pay for electricity, and what can you do to reduce those costs?
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