These days solar energy is like the best thing since sliced bread. It’s a pathway to a cleaner environment, long term sustainability, and better health outcomes for you and your family.
But do you ACTUALLY understand what solar entails besides the fact that it’s better for the environment? Let’s be real, using solar energy sounds great, but few people genuinely understand how it affects them.
But hey we don’t judge! To clear everything up for you, in this article we will debunk some common myths about solar energy and community solar, giving you a better idea of what “going solar” truly means.
#1 Solar Energy Will Cancel Out My Entire Electric Bill
Not quite.
As a community solar subscriber you automatically receive solar credits for the energy your share of the solar farm produces. These credits reduce your monthly utility bill but they don’t completely eliminate it.
There are exceptions! If your portion of the farm generates more energy than you need during the summer, those leftover credits can be stored and used in the winter. This is especially helpful since winter utility bills tend to be higher, due to heating. For instance, if you have a really high utility bill in December and a lot of leftover credits from July, you could reduce your December bill to $0. But that’s not something you should expect across the board.
Additionally, your panels generate electricity as long as there’s sunlight. So at night you’ll rely on the grid for your electric needs and that’s energy that you still need to pay for.
#2 Solar Energy Powers My House at Night
This is not the case. Everybody still relies on the grid at night.
Solar panels need sunlight to generate electricity. The energy from your community solar project then has to flow into the grid before powering your home.
Currently, with community solar you rely on renewable AND nonrenewable energy. It creates a hybrid approach that’s better for your wallet and the planet than fully relying on nonrenewable energy like coal and fossil fuels.
The only way to avoid the hybrid use of renewable and nonrenewable energy would be to use a battery system to store solar energy for later use. This solution is currently quite expensive and difficult to maintain.
#3 Solar Energy from Community Solar Guarantees Me Savings
In the long term this is true, but a few factors influence HOW MUCH you can save.
For example, during cloudy periods or the darker winter season when it’s less sunny outside, your panels won’t generate as much electricity, thus reducing the number of credits you get during that time.
Other factors include: your energy usage, the size of your share of the solar farm, local utility rates, and how you are billed for community solar.
These factors determine your portion of the farm’s energy production, and under poor conditions your savings could end up being very less or almost nonexistent. So while you will save money with community solar, these savings CAN vary from month to month.
#4 Solar Energy is Completely Free
Given that the sun will continue to exist as long as we do, solar energy is free.
But financially-speaking…not exactly. A financial investment is needed to have access to solar. That’s why it’s important to consider your cost per kWh for your community solar subscription.
Let’s say a community solar subscriber is billed $100 for their subscription in March and they have used 500 kWh that month. Their cost per kWh will be $0.20 (dollar amount billed / kWh used). If the normal electricity rate is $0.30 per kWh that means their community solar subscription saved them $0.10 per kWh OR $50 when you multiply their savings of $0.10 by their monthly usage of 500 kWh.
Cost per kWh takes into account the amount of electricity produced for you by the solar farm and is therefore a better measure of your potential savings with community solar. By evaluating your cost per kWh with community solar and comparing it to the one from your utility company, you will have a better idea of just how much you are saving.
While there are a few things to consider about switching to solar, it is still absolutely worthwhile in the long term. If you would like more information how how to join the right community solar program for you, reach out to us! Our team is more than happy to help.
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Written By Alfreda Adote | Edited By Lauren McGregor