We have had our solar power going in our home for about a year now and we could not be happier. It has given us a sense of empowerment we were not really expecting. It has also caused us to change our electric consumption habits, because it is become a bit of a game to see if we can live within the electric budget that is set by the system's production.
Sure, we are still on the grid and CAN consume as much electricity as we want. And, at night or during the winter when the panels are covered in deep snow, we need to pull electricity from the grid. But, once the Sun begins hitting the panels again, our goal has been to make up for anything we have taken from the grid by putting at least that much back to the grid. The results have been spectacular. We have not had an electric bill since April, which was for the March period (which included a bit of February). And, if anyone remembers Feb/March 2019, they remember the massive snow we had covering everything, including our panels.
Look at the solar production graph and February for a reminder of how terrible the snow was back then! Anyway, since the the snow came off (in a giant avalanche - which is a topic for another post) we have been producing more electric than we have been using, which is great, because when we got our FREE solar estimate, we were not expecting our system to produce as much electricity as we use. But it is.
The reasons for the difference between the estimate and the real-world experience we are having are simple: First, the estimates All Energy Solar give are very conservative. Our system is producing about 25% more than they said it would, in spite of the unusually snowy/rainy weather we have had in the last year. Second, the solar power has inspired us to find ways of conserving our electric consumption. Collectively, the impact of our decision to go solar has been profound. We have offset nearly 8,800 lbs of CO2 emissions, which is the equivalent of having planted more than 200 trees!
Use this link to get your own FREE solar estimate.
This may seem like a weird question but if the grid were down for an extended period, would there be any way to disconnect and still use your power? Figuring this out is one of the many transition/preparedness items on my very long list :)
This is so amazing to hear! We've been researching solar for a while. What happens if the grid goes down? Do you still get power from the cells?