Is It Time For A Home Solar Power System? #RaleighSolar
It’s Snowmageddon time in Raleigh. You know, that time of year when we might, and “might” being the key word here, get some snow, ice, sleet or some combo thereof. I love this time of year for the simple reason that it makes our local news station weather people so happy! This is their Superbowl and they are going for it. Starting coverage at 4am, providing storm coverage throughout the night. I salute you WRAL, thanks for all the content!
It also has me thinking about the power supply and protecting my home. We are pretty fortunate as we live very near Rex Hospital and in a neighborhood with underground utilities. We rarely if ever lose power and on the occasions where we have, the power outage has only been for a limited period of time. But, I do think about what would happen in a severe power disruption situation, and how we might manage that. Our sailboat had an onboard Generac generator, so a home generator might be the solution, especially one that is connected to our gas supply, but what if we lost gas for some reason? Again, not a likely scenario, but the disruptions in the supply chain for just about everything have at least made me consider the options. Plus, for not much more than the cost of installing a generator, I could have a completely sustainable home power generation system.
What about Solar?
It is interesting how quickly you move from EV anxiety to riding around on a ¼ charge like you do with a tank of gasoline.
Our family bought our first Electric Vehicle (EV) this year, and as we were having our home remodeled at the same time, we added a 220 charger in our garage. Easy Peasy. I’ve noticed a behavior pattern that we don’t even plug the car in unless it has 75 mi or so remaining in the charge. It is interesting how quickly you move from EV anxiety to riding around on a ¼ charge like you do with tank of gasoline. This quick change in behavior has started me thinking about other technology changes I’ve considered. Solar is something that we’ve thought about for years but never acted upon. I know there are many incentives ranging from Federal to State and Local tax advantages, in addition to incentives from our home energy supplier, Duke Power. I have just never followed up.
The idea of generating our own power, which could be stored and used to power our car, is appealing to me. I have watched the developments in home power storage solutions from Tesla and Generac among others, but it suddenly seems that, like Electric Vehicles, Solar + Storage (Power Walls) have burst on the scene with a myriad of options… all at rapidly falling prices. In fact, coupled with incentives, many systems are being offered for no out-of-pocket cost, and even throwing off small cash-back options. Considering our power bill can come close to covering a financing option, this seems like a decent investment.
The whole solar thing has suddenly come to life for me after meeting Julian Hall, The founder of Raleigh-based Covenant Solar and Roofing. Julian began his career as a roofing salesperson and has become a multi-state roofing and solar provider. Julian quickly realized that many firms that were providing solar did not have roofing experience, and that many roofing companies did not have solar experience. Like any intuitive entrepreneur, he saw an opportunity in the marketplace. When he explained it to me, I had an “aha” moment. We had our roof replaced a couple of years ago due to some storm damage, and why I didn’t add solar “while they were up there”, I’m not sure. Adding the incentives would have made the entire replacement much more efficient from an investment standpoint.
I do believe at this point, Solar Power Systems are an investment. One which lowers long-term costs, provides protection, and would add an attractive feature to our home that will attract future buyers. Coupled with an EV power stanchion, this would be a turnkey solution to several value-enhancing home upgrades. I’m looking forward to learning more about just how capital efficient this process can be.
Our family is converted on EVs… Solar Power Systems are likely next.
