The percentage of people choosing solar energy for their homes continues to grow and it appears everyone is reaping the benefits. A recent study from the Berkley Lab Electricity Markets & Policy Group (EMP Group) reports there would be enduring environmental and health benefits from a future U.S. electricity system in which solar plays a major role — 14 percent of demand in 2030, and 27 percent in 2050.

Here are some common reasons more Utah residents are opting for solar.

Save money

Because electricity prices have risen so much in the past seven years, solar has become a less expensive power option in many utility territories, including Utah. There is an upfront price tag associated with solar, but solar financing has diminished that obstacle for most people in the same way low mortgage rates helped many get into homes.

Kelly Curtis, CEO of Solaroo Energy, a local solar contractor, explains, “With Solaroo’s financing, and a decent roof, most people can have solar installed for no money out of pocket, and their payment is about equal to the money they save on their electric bill.

“The difference is that electric prices will go up, your solar payment won’t, and your solar payment you only have for seven to 12 years and then it’s done," Curtis says. "That makes sense to a lot of people. They end up saving tens of thousands over the life of the system.”

There is also an advantage to fixing in your electricity payment so it can’t rise with electric prices. Curtis says, “We had a couple nearing retirement have the foresight to go solar just to avoid having an increasing electric bill when they would be on a fixed income.”

Emergency power

From power outages to earthquakes to zombies, everyone at one time has probably wondered what they would do if the power went out. Historically, solar provided few options for addressing the problem of emergency power. You either had to be off grid or on grid. There was no in between. Now, battery technology has progressed enough to give consumers affordable choices for installing backup batteries.

Entry level batteries can be pretty affordable and also qualify for the ITC federal tax credit of 30 percent, making them even more attractive. Advanced battery storage is more expensive, but can essentially run your entire house indefinitely in case the grid were to go down. Software is also improving, giving more control to manage the energy being produced and consumed to maximize savings from your solar production.

“Batteries are the finishing touch to any solar array, unlocking the production capacity in a variety of scenarios,” Curtis notes, “It’s a great feeling to have, knowing you are completely energy independent.”

Rebates and incentives

Tax rebates and utility incentives also have helped many decide to go solar. The federal tax credit will pay for 30 percent of a qualifying solar system, and the state of Utah will chip in 25 percent, up to $1,600. The State of Utah tax credit was extended in 2018 for a few more years, and the ITC Federal tax credit still will be 30 percent until the end of 2019. For comprehensive information on rebates and incentives, visit Solaroo’s rebate page.

“The current solar tax incentive at the federal level is set to step down from 30 percent to 26 percent at the end of next year, which is helping a lot of customers make their decision. Currently, you can have half, even more than half of your solar system paid for if it’s for your business. If you plan on staying in your house, it almost makes the decision a no-brainer,” Curtis explains.

Warranty

Technology has come a long way in solar. Quality has improved to the point that systems are now warrantied out to 30 years. Panel degradation (how much the production capacity diminishes year to year) keeps improving and now is warrantied to under 0.7 percent year over year by many manufacturers. “Warranties are very generous these days in solar. You just have to make sure the solar manufacturer is large, stable, and able to make good on their warranty years and years from now,” Curtis notes.

The environment

Even though most people jump into solar for the financial benefit, helping the environment is still a good reason to go solar, and many who are conscious of the environment love solar and its benefits. Curtis notes, “Our monitoring software lets you not only monitor your energy production, but it helps calculate the environmental impact of your solar decision, which tries to quantify that feel-good feeling you have when you go solar.”

For more information about this article or solar power, please visit solarooenergy.com.

Related topics