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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) (Click on a topic) |
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SunPower Backed by a 25-year warranty, SunPower solar panels promise lasting value and peace of mind. SunPower panels (.pdf) Currently there are 4 layers of incentives for residential systems in Arizona: 1. APS offers a rebate that is paid after the system is installed and commissioned (turned on). Currently this is $3/installed watt. Arizona Solar Power covers the rebate amount upfront, so YOU DON'T HAVE TO PAY THE FULL SYSTEM COST. You are only responsible for paying up to the rebate amount as the utility rebate will be accepted as the final payment when you assign the payment to ASP. 2. Federal Tax Credits Extended through 2016 3. The state tax credit is for $1,000. This can be carried forward for up to 5 years, if your liability is low enough. For example, if you only owe $500 / year, you would owe the state government $0 for the next two years—until you’ve reached a total of $1,000 taken off what you owe in taxes. 4. The state and county sales tax exemption saves over 4% off each system. You will not receive monthly checks from your utility company. You can, however, expect to reduce your bills by a high percentage. Money saved is tax free money earned. As of July 1, 2007, APS offers "net metering" to their residential customers. Since grid-tied solar electric systems don't have any form of storage, if there is any excess power the home is not using (for example, when you're not home during the day), it gets sold back to the utility company at the same rate they charge you. Your meter literally runs backwards, and they simply bill you the net diifference at the end of the month. If your meter reads a net negative for the month (you produced more than you used), APS provides a wattage credit to your account. APS, has "rollover" and you can save up for high summer usage. An example of this follows. Say you produce 1,000 kWh, and use 800 kWh, with APS you wouldn't owe anything for your electrical usage, as they have bought the first 800 kWh at retail prices, and for the last 200 kWh you sold in excess, they will credit your account. Credits accumulate each year, but reset to zero at year end. Residential APS electricity buyback info (.pdf from July, 2007) A grid-tie system generates electricity when the sun is shining and when the utility company is "on-line". If the utility power fails, you have no electricity even though you have solar generated power. This is to prevent safety issues for the utility workers who would not expect power on "dead lines". In most areas this isn't a problem, since the utility service is reliable. You can use small uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) to provide power to critical loads in an outage (recommended for computer equipment or life-support units). Batteries are necessary if you are "off the grid". With no utility, you need to generate power day and night, using batteries to store power for times when no sun is shining. Batteries are expensive, and need to be replaced every 7-10 years, whether you use them or not. Grid-tie systems with battery backup are complicated, expensive systems and are only recommended if frequent power-outages are a problem, and you don't want to use a generator. Battery backup systems (UPS) can be added to regular grid-tie systems at a later date, without affecting the cost significantly. None of our clients been denied solar by a Home Owners' Association or any CC&R regulation. This is because state law protects your rights to implement solar energy on your property. Even though no one can "effectively prohibit" you from utilizing solar energy, it is still desirable to work within the Home Owners' Associations' application process. After you've decided to get a solar electric system, simply supply us with the application and contact person, and we will take care of the rest. Link to state law regarding solar and HOAs Appropriate mounting location: Roof features to take into consideration as potentially shading a solar array include: vents, chimneys, skylights, other roof surfaces, air conditioners, swamp coolers, antennas, satellite dishes, etc. Other things to consider, trees (even trees in your neighbor’s yard), utility poles, mountains, large buildings, etc. There are four main types of mounting: Pitched Roof Mount (more economical) For pitched roofs: For east/west facing roofs, typically we mount half of the panels flush on the east facing pitch, and half on the west for maximum aesthetic appeal. This technique sacrifices production by 20%. We can tilt the panels towards the south to maintain maximum production at the sacrifice of aesthetics. For north facing roofs, we always tilt the panels toward the south as to not sacrifice production of the system. For flat roofs For ground mounts Trackers |
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