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How do solar panels work? Solar electric panels are made out of photovoltaic (PV) cells. These cells convert light energy from the sun to electricity. An then converts the electricity generated by the panels from direct current (DC) to alternating current (AC), which can be used by the appliances in your home. Solar systems convert light from the sun into electricity that can be used in your home. What is solar water heating? An example of solar thermal panels. The panels use energy from the sun to heat water. Solar water heating systems capture the sun’s energy and use it to heat water or other liquids that transfer the heat to water. Solar thermal systems use a solar collector to transfer heat energy into a water storage tank. This tank is similar to those used by a conventional water heater. Systems generally have a backup heater to ensure that you will always have hot water, even if the sun isn’t shining. The solar co-ops organized with OH SUN are for solar electric (PV) only.Click here to How do solar panels attach to my roof? Panels are attached to your roof using a racking system. There are a number of different racking system options depending on the roof type and roof condition. You can learn more about the different types of racking systems . The best racking system for your home depends on how your roof is structured and what type of roofing materials you have. Your installer will recommend the type of racking system most appropriate for your property. Solar installers put racking system into place. Courtesy: Convert Solar. Will solar work on my roof? There are four factors that determine if solar will thrive on your roof: angle, shading, surface and strength. Angle Ideally, you should have a south-facing roof. South-facing roofs maximize the amount of sunlight your panels collect. The more sunlight they collect, the quicker you can pay off your system with the electricity it generates. If your roof faces due east or west, it is still possible to gosolar, but the panels will produce less energy (about 75% of what a south-facing roof would produce). If you have a flat roof, the panels can be installed to face due south no matter how your roof is oriented. Shading Once you’ve determined that your roof faces the right way, the next step is to ensure that your roof is not shaded. The portions of the roof where solar will be installed should be free of shade for most of the day, as shade can significantly reduce electricity production. Trees, chimneys, and dormers are factors that can cause shading on a roof. If you’re not sure if your roof is shaded, an installer can use a tool called a solar pathfinder to figure out if trees or other objects will cast shade during the day. Surface Solar systems are most efficient when they are installed in a large interrupted space. Things like dormer windows, chimneys, vents, skylights, air conditioning units can be obstacles to installing a system. Strength Finally, if your roof is more than 15years old or you plan on replacing the roof, you may want to consider replacing it when you purchase the system. Most solar vendors recommend using roofing material that will last as long as the system, which is about 30 years. Many prospective solar customers are concerned about the additional weight of solar panels on their roof. Solar panels are not particularly heavy. Their weight is spread out across the entire length of the roof. This dissipates the system’s weight. What if my roof isn't good for solar? Example of a ground-mounted solar system. Courtesy: Altenergy. In some cases, your roof may not be suitable for solar. This could be due to the obstructions on the roof (dormers, lots of peaks, chimneys, etc.), the roof’s integrity, shading, or other factors. If your roof isn’t good for solar you may be able to install a ground-mounted system. You’ll need enough space far away from trees or other objects. Most ground mount systems are made out of a combination of aluminum andstainless steel and are mounted in concrete footings in the ground. What if I can't put solar on my roof and don’t have space for a ground-mounted solar system? Many places, including and (and soon and ) allow what is known as community solar. This allows people unable to put solar on their roof to subscribe to receive energy from a solar installation somewhere else. Once they have done so, the electricity produced by their portion of the solar installation is credited to their monthly electric bill. Unfortunately, Ohio does not yet allow for community solar. Sign up for our to keep up to date on the latest solar policy news in the state. How do batteries work with solar? An example of a battery system used to store solar electricity. Most residential solar electric systems don’t have batteries–yet. Systems without batteries are less expensive. They are also more efficient in converting the sun’s energy to electricity. Battery systems lose a small amount of electricity as the currentmoves through and stored in additional equipment. Batteries probably don’t make economic sense if you have stable utility electric service. They also take up room in your home, can require maintenance, and will likely need to be replaced at least once during the life of your solar system. If you do want to run some or all of your home when the utility electric service is down, you will need to include a battery bank and additional system components to your solar system to keep the batteries charged and ready for use when the power goes out. If you think you might want to get batteries in the future, tell your installer now. Does Ohio get enough sunlight for solar? Absolutely! This is an insolation map that compares the amount of sunshine received by the United States and Germany, respectively. Germany receives significantly less sunlight than the United States, but has .

How long will my solar system last? Solar panels generally have a lifespan of 30 years. Solar systems have no moving parts; the silicon cells are encased and protected by tempered glass with a sturdy, non-corroding aluminum frame. The , devices that convert the DC electricity produced by your panels into the AC that is used by your home, have different lifespans depending on the type: Central inverters generally last for 10-15 years and will likely need replacement during your system’s lifespan. Micro-inverters generally last for at least 25 years and usually do not need replacement during your system’s lifespan. Will my system need maintenance? Solar systems have no moving parts, so you don’t need to do much to ensure your system functions properly. You don’t need to clean your panels regularly, since they are “washed” by rain. We don’t recommend that you remove snow from your panels. Your panels will heat up and the snow will slide off after a day or so. Do systems come withwarranties? Installers work on a solar home. There are three kinds of warranties relevant to your solar system: product warranties, production warranties, and installation warranties. Product warranties guarantee the physical integrity of the modules and other system components. For example, if one of your modules has a soldered connection fail, causing it to stop producing energy, it would be replaced under the product warranty. Most solar modules have a 10-year product warranty. Some high-end modules feature product warranties of 25 years or more. Inverters, devices that convert the DC electricity produced by your panels into AC that is used by your home, have product warranties from 10 to 25 years. String inverters may need to be replaced after 10 to 15 years. Some manufacturers offer the option of purchasing extended warranties for your inverters. The energy production warranty generally guarantees that a functioning module will produce at least 80% of its originally rated capacityfor 25 years. While the details vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, this type of warranty provides assurance that your system will continue to produce power over its lifetime. In practice, identifying whether your system is experiencing a drop in performance that violates this warranty is difficult without the troubleshooting help of an installer. Despite that, production warranties are still a proxy for the expected performance degradation for your solar modules over time. Most solar modules have a 25-year energy production warranty. Some high-end modules feature warranties of 30 years. Installation warranties cover the workmanship of the installer and includes such things as the roof penetrations they make to attach your system to the building and the electrical wiring work. The length of installation warranties will vary from installer to installer but generally range from three to 10 years. Some installers will offer warranties as long as 20 years. What happens when it’scloudy? When you install a solar system, you’re still connected to the electric grid. When the sun is shining, your panels generate electricity that is used in your home. At night or when the sun isn’t shining, you get your electricity from the electric grid (just like you do now). The process is seamless and happens automatically. You will always have power to your home. How might storms or snow impact my system? Solar panels functioning in snowy weather. Solar systems are robust and engineered to withstand local storm conditions including hail, snow, and high winds. Installers design systems to withstand these conditions. Check out this of testing solar panels to withstand stress. Snow will block your panels from working, or severely decrease their production. We don’t recommend that you remove snow from your panels. The panels will heat up and melt the snow from your roof quickly. The annual production estimates you were given when you bought your system assume there will be snowyand rainy days. What happens if the electric grid goes down? If the grid goes down and you have a grid-tied system, you will lose power as well. This is a safety precaution for utility workers, since solar can send excess energy out on neighboring wires even if the local distribution system itself is not functioning. Some brands of inverter offer a backup power supply of 1,500 watts during a power failure and when the sun is shining. This would be enough to power small electronic devices or lighting via an electrical outlet connected to the inverter itself. You can also opt to pair your system with battery back up. Should the grid go down, you can power part or all of your home with the energy stored in your battery. Will going solar impact my insurance? A by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory found that most rooftop solar systems should be covered as part of your standard homeowners policy. Contact your insurance company before you install your system to let them know about theaddition to your property. You should be sure to verify that solar system replacement costs in the event of damage don’t exceed your current policy coverage limits. Adding solar should not increase your homeowner’s insurance premiums. If it does, you may want to find an insurer that provides discounts to customers that “go green”. The report does note that ground-based solar systems may not be covered and may require additional insurance. How will solar effect my home value if I want to sell? Chart showing home resale value increase from installing solar. Source: National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The answer depends upon your system’s ownership structure. The appraisal industry is training its workforce to accommodate the growth of solar nationwide. The now offers training for real estate appraisers on how to appropriately assess the value of solar and other energy efficiency measures add to a home. Make sure to request a real estate professional properly trained in evaluating theimpact of solar when the time comes for your home to be appraised. If you own the system, it will convey with the home and can help improve its resale value. A by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that on average, a typically sized residential solar system adds $15,000 to the resale value of a home. The study included an analysis of more than 22,000 home sales across eight states – nearly 4,000 of which contained PV systems. The home sale data used spanned 2002 to 2013. If you lease the system, you may have a few options depending upon your lease agreement. It may be possible to transfer your lease as part of the home sale. Or, you may have to pay off your lease before selling your home. You can then include the cost of this pay off in your home selling price. If you are a licensed real estate appraiser and would like to learn more about including the value of solar in your appraisals to remain at the cutting edge of your field, click .

Should I repair or replace my roof before going solar? A solar system should last roughly 30 years. It’s important the roof underneath be in good shape. If your roof is more than 10 years old, we recommend having it evaluated to determine its remaining lifespan. You may want to consider repairs or replacement prior to installing solar. If you need work done to your roof after you install solar, you can pay a qualified installer to remove the system before the roof work and re-install it afterward. Costs for this vary, but typically range between $1,000 and $2,500. Will I have enough roof space to power my entire home? Most people don’t have enough space on their roof to offset 100% of their electricity needs. You can still offset a portion of your electricity bill with solar. A solar system on a typical house will produce about 30-60% of your electric needs (assuming an average consumption of 850kwh/month). But that percentage depends on how much electricity you use. Your installerwill estimate how much solar will fit on your roof. They will also estimate the amount of electricity your system will produce each year. These projections are very accurate, based on several decades of testing by the U.S. Department of Energy. You can use the website, , to estimate how much solar you could put on your roof. Then, you can compare the system’s estimated annual electricity production to the amount of electricity you used last year. This will tell you what percentage of your electric bill you could offset with solar. What happens if my roof leaks? Leaks caused by your solar system should be covered under your installer’s labor warranty. Give your installer a call and they’ll come out and fix it right away. What is the process to get my system permitted? This will vary based upon where you live. Most localities require some a permit to install and/or turn on your system. This is in place to ensure that your system is installed safely. You should work with your installer toensure that your system is being installed up to local code.

How long does it take to install a system? It typically takes 1-2 months for your installer to design your solar system and then secure initial permits and interconnection agreements. Once they have secured the proper permits, installers usually only need a day or two on-site to put up your system. They will then need to get final approval from the local government permitting office and secure final interconnection approval from the utility. This can take an additional 1-3 months depending on the jurisdiction. What should I look for in an installer? When choosing an installer, you should consider their level of experience, competence, and the products they use. You will also want to weigh their ability to provide you the best service and support before, during and after your solar installation. All installation crews should have at least one, if not all, of their installation staff be or certified. This includes their electricians. You should ask the installer how much experience theyhave with installing systems that are similar to yours. You will also want to ask your installer what components they offer and typically install. This is helpful if there is a specific type of component package or offering (e.g., American-made, high-efficiency, ground mount) you value. You should also research prospective installers by asking for references and looking at review sites such as . What can I do if my homeowners association says it won't allow solar? If you are encountering resistance from your HOA, and let us know. We can help you navigate the process. Often, if you get a number of residents from the same HOA together to go solar, you can overcome restrictive HOA rules. What if I live in an historic district? Solar installations in historic districts typically must go through an additional step in the permitting process to ensure the location and method of installation comply with local historic requirements. In some jurisdictions, this review is done within the standardpermit review process. In others, it is handled by a separate historic review board. Your installer will be familiar with the requirements in your area. You should expect your installer to work with the relevant review body to secure the necessary permits. The cost for doing so should be included in the cost of going solar.

How much will my system cost? This answer will vary depending upon the size and type of system you purchase. A typical medium-sized system costs roughly $11,000. Please note, this figure does not include the . What type of pay back time can I expect? Payback time depends upon several factors: size of system purchased, average energy usage, the price of electricity, and value of . We advise solar customers to estimate a 9-12 year payback time. Questions to ask about loan products What is the term of the loan? What is the interest rate, and is it fixed for the entire term of the loan? Are there penalties for pre-payment? (If pre-payments are allowed you can use the additional savings from your energy costs, your federal tax credit and your SREC payments to pay down the loan more quickly.) Is the loan secured against my property or unsecured? Will the combination of my loan payments and my remaining utility bill be higher, the same or lower than what I pay right now for electricity beforesolar? For a detailed guide to solar financing check out this from the Clean Energy States Alliance. What are the financial benefits of going solar? Net metering. Net metering allows you to offset your energy consumption with your energy production. When your solar panel is producing electricity your electric meter runs backwards. When you’re more power than your system generates, your electric meter runs forward. At the end of the month, your final electric bill is your total usage minus the electricity that your solar panels produced. Federal Tax Credit. This tax credit provides you 30% off the total cost of the system. This is calculated before other incentives. You still have to pay up front for the system, but when you file your taxes you will receive a 30% credit (not a deduction) from the federal government. Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs). When you generate solar electricity from your system you also generate an associated “green value” for your electricity. This isknown as an SREC. Every time your system produces 1,000 kWh of electricity, you get one SREC. These SRECs have a variable monetary value, like a company’s stock or commodity product. What does price per watt mean? “Price per watt” is how installers price solar systems. As the name implies, this is the price you will pay for each watt of electricity your system is rated to produce. Each solar panel comes with a wattage rating. This rating is the amount of DC (direct current) power the panel produces under test conditions. So, a panel rated at 300 watts produces that much power output. A solar system made up of ten 300 watt panels would produce 3,000 watts*. Let’s assume that system costs $10,000. Doing the math, the cost per watt of the system is $3.33. $10,000/3,000 watts=$3.33/watt When comparing different installers’ proposals, it is important to make sure you are making an apples to apples comparison. The price per watt should include the gross cost of the system. This includes allsystem components such as racking, inverters, etc. It should also include the installation and permitting costs as well. The gross cost does not include the . *Note: Systems are more commonly measured in kilowatts. One kilowatt equals 1,000 watts, so the above example refers to a 3 kilowatt system. I live in a rural area, how do I qualify for REAP? The REAP (Rural Energy for America Program) offers grants and loans to agricultural producers and small businesses in rural areas to install renewable energy systems. It also provides funding for energy efficiency improvements. . Ground-mounted solar system aside a farmstead.

What if there are problems with my system? Example of a chart showing solar system energy production. If you find there are issues with your system you should contact your installer and work with them to get the issue resolved. You should have an online monitoring portal available to you. This will show you the amount of energy you generate. You can use this information to verify if your system is still producing energy in the quantity it did before. Keep in mind that energy production fluctuates from day to day, month to month, and year to year based on weather conditions and other factors. Despite those fluctuations, you should see a consistent curve of energy production over time. What happens if I produce more energy than I use? It is common for systems to produce more than a home uses during the day when you are not home, using electricity. is a billing system that ensures you receive fair compensation for the electricity your system generates. It allows residential solar energygenerators to offset energy consumption with energy production. When your solar panels are producing more electricity than you’re using on site, your electric meter runs backwards. When you’re using more electricity than you system is generating, your electric meter runs forward. At the end of the month, your final electric utility bill is your total usage minus the electricity that your solar panels produced. For more information, I love solar! Does anyone else? Yes! You’re not alone. In addition to providing troubleshooting, the is full of solar enthusiasts, people who have gone solar, and folks that want to make more solar happen in their communities. and connect with other solar lovers! How can I get more involved in solar in Ohio? There are a number of ways to stay involved with solar in Ohio. You can help other communities go solar by helping to start other co-ops, get involved in policy advocacy, or even offer your expertise to your friends and neighbors interested in goingsolar. The first step is to become active is to join the conversation. You may also want to participate in the OH SUN advisory board to offer you input and voice in the direction in the issues and direction that OH SUN takes. to learn more.

What is a solar co-op? A solar co-op is a group of homeowners in a defined geographic area who use their combined bulk buying power to save on the total cost of going solar. Solar installers face significant costs finding solar customers. By forming a group of interested buyers, co-op members can receive a significant discount because the group has done some of the work for the installer. Co-op members also have the benefit of working with a group and with OH SUN to help educate and guide them through the installation process. How does the co-op purchase work?  OH SUN helps groups of neighbors form co-ops to get discounts on members’ individual purchase of solar systems for their homes. Once the group reaches a critical mass of members (roughly 30 good roofs), it puts out a request for proposals from area installers. Each bid contains a set price per the amount of solar the installer would install on co-op member homes. This allows installers to make individualized proposals to eachco-op member. The co-op reviews all bids with the technical support of OH SUN. It then selects an installer to install systems on co-op member homes. Each participant owns or leases their own system and has their own contract with the installer. What is the benefit of participating in a co-op to go solar? Solar is a smart investment that lowers your energy bills and increases the value of your home. Going solar with a co-op will help you save money (typically up to 20%) on the initial investment. Most importantly, you will have the support of the co-op and OH SUN throughout the entire process. Who is OH SUN? OH SUN expands access to solar by educating Ohioans about the benefits of distributed solar energy, helping them organize group solar installations, and strengthening Ohio’s solar policies and its community of solar supporters. OH SUN is a project of the , a national network of grassroots local, state, and national organizations working to build, and promote locally based renewableenergy projects and policies. The organization manages similar programs in ., , , and .