During the summer months, when air conditioning costs at their highest, many homeowners look for ways to decrease their energy costs. One amazing way to lower costs and help the environment is to utilizing a resource that is in abundance—the sun.
As homes continue to get “smarter” with the advent of smart technology like thermostats, refrigerators, and TVs, so is the electricity that powers them. Electricity from solar power is a clean, affordable energy source that is cheaper than utility company electricity. The Scott Brothers and Kylie Jenner even have solar! But, despite all of these great advantages, there still remains many misconceptions about solar power and solar systems.
Major Misconceptions about Solar Power
Myth 1: Solar has a high upfront cost.
Reality: There are two options when electing to go solar: purchasing a new system or leasing a system through a solar service provider. With purchasing, upfront costs can be high. Additionally, homeowners are in charge of finding an installer, handling the installation, insuring the system, completing tax rebates/credits paperwork, and maintenance. Owning a system can be a nuisance and main reason many homeowners decide to use a solar lease provider. Sunrun solar leasing allows you to get solar installed for as little as $0 down and begin immediate monthly savings on your electricity costs.
Myth 2: Solar is complex.
Reality: Solar service providers like Sunrun manage the specifics of going solar. Sunrun will design and install a system that works for your home, remotely monitor the system’s production, and maintain the system during the lifetime of the service agreement. You just pay a low, locked-in rate for the electricity your panels produce.
Myth 3: There are no benefits to going solar.
Reality: Homeowners can profit from Federal and State tax incentives for buying solar panels. When you lease solar panels, the solar providers own the solar panels and take advantage of those incentives to decrease the cost of your solar electricity. Sunrun solar service gives you power over your electricity costs and shields you from unpredictable increases in electricity rates without dealing with the extra paperwork.
Myth 4: Solar won’t save me money.
Reality: How much money you save is dependent on your household usage, solar rate and the rate charged by your utility company. If utility rates continue increasing, solar customers can continue to see significant savings on their electricity bills over the lifetime of their system. On average, Sunrun solar service customers save 20% on their electricity costs. *Actual savings vary, see HERE for details.
Myth 5: I will lose money because I don’t use a lot of electricity.
Reality: When you decide to go solar, a net meter is installed with your system that looks similar to your utility meter to calculate how much solar electricity your system produces. If your system produces more electricity than you use, the extra electricity is provided to your utility grid, and your net meter will “spin” in reverse, giving you energy credits. At night, when the solar system is not creating electricity, you can use your energy credits to power your home.
Myth 6: Leasing a solar system is a waste of money.
Reality: Leasing a solar system lets you go solar with little or no upfront cost while still receiving monthly electricity bill savings. Your monthly payment is dependent on factors such as tiered electricity costs in your area, the size of your system, rebates offered, etc. According to Go Solar California, 72% of Californians in 2013 who decided to go solar chose to use a third-party owned or power purchase agreement (PPA) system.
Learn More about the Benefits of Solar Power
Sunrun solar is a win-win; good for your wallet, and good for the planet. So you can spend your savings on a dream vacation, college tuition, or your retirement. Please note that leased solar is not available in every state. Visit Sunrun to learn more about the benefits of solar power and to see if Sunrun solar service is available in your area.
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I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
42 responses to “6 Misconceptions about Solar Power”
I never really knew much about it. I learned a lot from this.
I live in an apartment thus I can not take advantage of solar power–I wish I could-and yes I would probably lease if I owned a home. I live in NY and I don’t think this company is here but there are a lot of solar panels being installed on homes near me!
Our house gets a ton of sun everyday, and we’ve been talking about going solar. Thanks for sharing this info.
I see quite a few sponsored posts for Solar Panels, but what I haven’t found is actual review with someone’s own savings, are you currently using solar panels for your home? I would really love to hear someone’s personal experience with it.
Yes we have solar panels on our home. We actually just bought the home a few months back so I can only attest to the last 6 months. Our monthly electric bill each month since we have owned the home has been $5 or less. Thant’s great savings, especially going into the summer months.
Thanks! That’s EXACTLY what I was wondering! :)
Hi Tracy,
Here’s one blogger’s analysis of his savings: http://blog.louisgray.com/2014/03/goingsolariscooler.html
I live in Arizona and Solar power is huge out here. I am going to get solar when I buy a home.
I know that solar can be so helpful when it comes to saving electricity. It would be nice if we all had solar panels!
A friend of ours installed a solar panel in their home and they said it’s the best investmeent they ever made for their home.
I have been playing with the idea of solar panels for our home. Thanks for clarifying myths for us
Interesting information. I thought that it was a good thing and would eventually pay for itself.
Our system has paid for itself, that is for sure.
I think solar power is an important way to go . It is so important to find ways that we can gain power. I wish i could have them at my home. I live in a condo so we are not allowed.
My husband is really interested in going solar. This is great info and will help us a lot. Thanks!
Not gonna lie, I definitely had some of these misconceptions. Thanks so much for setting the record straight.
We don’t own our home yet so I haven’t really thought about it too much. I have heard there’s many benefits though so it’s definitely something worth checking out!
Very cool about leasing – I didn’t know that – We are in a shady area and our electricity is low – but the storage of the power would make it a great idea – thank you
I have always been interested in going solar but also assumed the cost was out of reach. I think there is alot of misinformation out there for consumers, it’s nice to have it all clarified in one post!
I would love to go solar. I rent right now, so I can’t make modifications, but some day. My mom has a friend in CA who uses mostly solar, with standard electricity as an emergency back up, because the electric costs are so high.
Thanks for all the information about solar power. My friend uses nothing but solar power and I was pretty intrigued by it.
I had no idea there was a leasing option for solar panels! This is amazing I would love to switch my home over to solar power very soon!
The supermarket around our way just installed solar panels. I’m sure it will help them save money now on their utility bills.
I’ve always wondered about Solar power and how it works, thank you for the info!
I think solar power is a great choice. I wish i could have it here at my new house but it is a condo and we are not allowed.
There is some great information in this post, thank you! I’ve been looking for some good facts on solar power!
Wow! I had no idea leasing was an option. We have looked at solar and wind and haven’t had either installed because of costs. A windmill is just over 10k for us with the batteries we would need. I will definitely look into this!
My hubby is all for solar power usage. I guess I’m in the right crowd because I hadn’t heard any of these myths.
I would love to go solar in my house. My husband would love this
I would love to add solar to our house even though it is very energy efficient compared to other homes. I don’t think it’s available in our area yet. The only issue that I would be concerned with is our spring hail storms.
I must confess I have little to no knowledge about solar power but its good to read and learn about common misconceptions
This was a really interesting read! I learned a lot from this post! Thanks!
I think the myth that I’ve heard was solar having a high upfront cost. I really thought it is expensive. Thanks for the info. I would really consider solar power because of its many benefits.
I have always wondered about the specifics and benefits of using solar power. I had no idea there were so many uses and the savings are amazing. I would love to have solar panels on our home.
I am very interested in learning more about solar power and really any way I can help the environment. Thanks for this post!!
This is great info. i really never knew too much about solar power so this was definitely teaching me something new.
I had a college professor afew years back that had a solar power house! I always thought it was the neatest concept!
Thank you so much for clearing up some of these misconceptions! I didn’t know you could rent a solar system from a company!
I was one of the people who just couldn’t understand the hype. All I saw was the cost of installation and maintenance versus a decrease in bills. Thank you for sharing your story in the comments section. :)
There are so many misconceptions about the solar power but this post should help with them for sure. Solar panels are amazing for the environment and so much cheaper in the end. The sun is a resource we tend not to use as much as we should. Love this giveaway and will be checking it out for sure. Thanks for sharing.
This was really great information. I have been guilty of believing many of these myths and really appreciate the information you provided. I will have to look into solar energy as we are trying to cut costs at home and this seems like a great option.
Excellent and helpful post. Solar Panelss are growing in popularity and it doesn’t look like a trend that will be going away anytime soon.Adding solar panel to your home can make your home more green and it can also significantly reduce your utility bills, And you are also greatly helping our environment by producing clean energy from a renewable source.