How to Size Your Solar System
Do you own a home and want to start producing renewable energy and save money every month on your electricity bill?
Let me explain exactly how we size a solar system, why we need the homes consumption data for the most accurate outcome, and why purchasing solar is less expensive than your current electricity bill.
Gathering Consumption Data
The first step to sizing your solar system is gathering the consumption data. We can do this in 1 of 2 ways. We can request the last 12 months’ usage from the utility company. Or we can do a load calculation on the current appliances in the home and evaluate future energy needs to estimate the home’s consumption data. We require this for new homeowners that want to install solar before living in the house for a full 12 months.
System Design
Once we have proper annual usage, we will design a solar system to produce 100-120% of the home’s consumption, depending on the homeowner’s future energy goals. Now all of the home’s power comes from solar, a renewable energy source.
To accurately design a rooftop solar system, we must calculate the roof sun hours and shade reports. We do this by using a software called Aurora.
Aurora: Solar Software
Aurora solar software uses decades of weather data to calculate how many sun hours the roof gets year-round. It also uses satellite technology and Lidar to determine the exact shape of each obstruction around the house to produce highly accurate shade reports for the roof.
We input the electrical specs of the solar panel and calculate precisely how much power each panel will produce over the next 365 days. Then, we customize the layout to match the roof pitch and azimuth while avoiding any roof vents or other obstructions.
Our most recent client was paying an average of $260 per month to the PG&E for retail energy rates. So we installed a system to cover 100% of their energy needs for $95 per month on a 20-year purchase financing term. We do this all the time for our clients.
If you own your home in California, pay more than $75 per month, and are curious if solar is a good fit, contact us to get you a FREE custom solar design.
