Expert Advice On Improving Your Home
Expert Advice On Improving Your Home
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Written By David Cusick
Last Updated April 2024
Rooftop solar energy is becoming increasingly popular for homeowners in Woodside. A solar panel array can help you add value to your property, provide a dependable source of power, and decrease your carbon footprint. Solar power can cut your energy costs and shrink your carbon footprint. However, it's important to hire a trustworthy solar installer. Luckily, we've reviewed the options and assembled a guide to the best and most reputable solar installation providers in Woodside.
Free quotes
Reliable customer support
Informative resources
Clear pricing policy
Services Offered
Informative resources
Clear pricing policy
Reliable customer support
Services Offered
Free quotes
Clear pricing policy
Informative resources
Reliable customer support
Services Offered
Informative resources
Free quotes
Clear pricing policy
Reliable customer support
Services Offered
Free quotes
Informative resources
Clear pricing policy
Reliable customer support
Services Offered
Reliable customer support
Informative resources
Free quotes
Clear pricing policy
Services Offered
Today's Homeowner looks at dozens of datapoints on solar companies to come up with our data-driven rankings. It's not possible for a company to pay for preferential treatment in our rankings. We look at the following key factors in determining who should top our list:
Installing solar panels can cut your electricity costs and help the environment by reducing your carbon footprint. When evaluating if a solar provider is a good fit for you, consider these key factors.
Verify that your solar installer is properly licensed. This helps ensure that the work is done properly using current best installation practices. In Illinois, the state Commerce Commission licenses distributed generation energy contractors, including solar contractors.
Check review sites like Google Reviews, TrustPilot, and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to see feedback from past customers on local solar companies. Detailed reviews can help you evaluate a company's reliability and customer service. Use caution with companies that have barely any reviews or mostly negative ones.
Get free, detailed quotes from three to five solar companies. A quote should outline all costs and identify the solar parts included. Comparing several quotes can help you find the best value for your budget.
High-quality solar installations should have robust workmanship and performance guarantees. The workmanship guarantee covers any installation issues like poor wiring, cracks in the panels, or poor alignment. The output warranty guarantees an energy generation baseline. Strong guarantees reflect a solar provider's confidence in its installations.
Solar energy can help you lower electricity bills over time. Make sure you consider these aspects when considering the final cost and value of solar panels.
The cost of solar panels varies based on your system's capacity and the solar technology being used. The average solar system in Woodside has a capacity of 6.3 kilowatts. Homeowners in the area can expect to pay around $3,760 per kilowatt; the average Woodside homeowners spends roughly $16,461 on a new solar array after accounting for federal tax breaks. (Some homeowners prefer to lease solar panels to lower their upfront costs.) A personalized quote from a local solar company will account for things like the size, panel type, and capacity of the planned system, and should include fees for permit fees, labor, and preliminary work.
Incentive Type: Property Tax Incentive
Incentive Amount:
Varies
Generally speaking, a solar photovoltaic (PV) system can be used to power any household system or appliance that uses electricity. In the simplest case, you can use a solar water heating system.
With home solar energy, you can save money on your energy bill, lower your property's emissions, and be better prepared if there's an outage to the local grid.
It depends on where you live and the kind of panels you plan to use. Since there's a moderate amount of snowfall in Woodside, your best time to get solar is in the spring and fall.
Generally speaking, your energy bills will decrease significantly after you install solar panels. This is because you're using the energy you generate for free rather than buying it from your power company. In Woodside, the average amount someone can save is $1,050 per year. With net metering programs offered by many utilities, you could ultimately make a profit from your system after the payback period concludes.
Your payback period is the time to earn a net profit from your solar panels. It will vary based on the average sunlight in your area, their rated capacity, and the rate your utility charges per kilowatt of power. Woodside gets quite a bit of sunlight per day, so an average payback period could last up to 15.7 years per 5 kW of capacity.
The specific types of maintenance you need will depend on the type of panels you're using. Regardless of type, you should clean your panels regularly and inspect them for damage. Full-service solar contractors in the Woodside area offer multipoint maintenance plans to help you make the most of your panels and keep them healthy for as long as possible.
Net metering is a power purchasing policy that allows solar energy system owners to be compensated for the amount of energy they put back into the grid. It's available in most states and is a great way to reduce energy costs.
Solar panels can be more efficient than other forms of renewable energy. They have low maintenance costs and today's systems can work in a variety of conditions.
