Solar with 0 down

[Alex]

Is it too good to be true?:
http://sanjosegreenhome.com/2010/01/27/s...s-rip-off/

[robguz]

Interesting post and I wouldn't doubt that if you have the money and nothing ever needs to be repaired or replaced, then over the agreement period (20 years in Hawaii) you will save money just buying your own system. However for myself, I don't have the money, not even a couple thousand to put down on a loan, don't want to take out a loan, and I had a sub-700 credit score. Some things that struck me as ridiculous about the article. The guy is a real estate agent and is complaining about these solar companies being backed by Wall St. Now I hate the big banks as much as anyone, but who do they think funds any new company, a bunch of benevolent genies who make $ appear out of thin air? Of course these businesses are in it to make a profit. And if getting off of dirty energy makes $ for companies and drives further adoption of it then that is great I think.

We went with SunRun, one of the companies they mentioned but not in detail. The specifics in the article do not apply to Hawaii. Here it is a 20 year agreement and our rate increases are capped at 2.9% per year. 680 is the minimum credit score, not 700. The article points out that when you sell your home you may run into problems because the buyers have to have excellent credit. I'm sorry but who do they think all these buyers are out there with sub 680 credit scores who are qualifying for new mortgages? For our system, after 20 years we own the system and can buy it out for a price any year, as low as $15,000 in the 3rd year. I can't see doing that because then we have to maintain the system and it is likely the inverter will have to be replaced in those 20 years. The tax credits on getting a system yourself are great, but don't you have to wait for your taxes to be filed in the following year? I certainly did when I fronted over $5000 for solar hot water which ultimately cost me a few thousand (since I had no income in Hawaii that year and didn't get the full tax rebate--also a problem with solar tax credits). Hawaii is horribly slow at getting your tax return to you, as in 3 months after you file instead of 2 weeks like the Feds.

Also, the SunRun deal is not a lease, it is a power purchase agreement. We agree to buy all the power our system generates and we pay SunRun. It's designed to supply 95% of our electricity so we don't generate a lot more and pay them for energy we won't use. The rates for us are 27.5 cent/kwh which is a lot less than HELCO already. In the first couple years we probably won't save much, but should save a lot over 20 years. Even if we saved $0, If I am going to be making a payment around $100 a month for the next 20 years for electricity, I would rather be paying for solar!

What a ridiculous, clearly biased article. The Revolusun rep I have been working with has told me that even with customers who have the cash, most of them still go with SunRun because it does end up being cheaper for them in the long run, they can invest that same money in something else, they don't have another loan on their credit rating, and they don't have to worry about any maintenance for 20 years. So yes, for us it was indeed a no brainer.

[Kelena]

Thanks for another point of view on this Rob, and for sharing your experience and for inviting others to explore this and to see your beautiful, solar-powered home. I can't tell you how much I admire your determination in creating a home that is as self-sustaining as possible.

Hawaii is a special case: lots of solar energy and very high electric rates despite the fact that few have heating or cooling systems. These rates will only get higher. This seems to me to be an instance where private enterprise is addressing a need that government has not. Most of us cannot afford the upfront costs of a solar panel system and there is bound to be more maintenance on such a system than there would be, say, in Southern California.

It may not work for everyone but you have performed a community service by sharing detailed information about how this works for you and by allowing others to take a closer look at it. Not everyone would be willing to do that. My regards to you and your partner.

[laniA]

Looks like a good deal to me.And I heard they pay big bucks for referral.My cousin heard it's like $ 500.I think it's BS though.
Rob ,do they really pay that much?Hey,I am in!

[robguz]

Revolusun does claim to do that much (which I'll believe if anyone refers signs up, which could also take many months), but I don't know about Sunetric, which is the other company you may get if you contact SunRun. Apparently there is another new company which does a similar thing and was in the Star Advertiser today. I say the more the merrier and hopefully it will make solar even cheaper and more widely adopted here. SunRun itself only gives you a month of free electric for referrals, which the new customer also gets. In doing the open house we learned it isn't always $0 up front for everyone, and depends on your system and how much it will generate. In sunnier areas like Seaview they can do the free up front deal because it takes them less equipment to provide an adequate system. So far we have found that even on days with no sun we've generated over half of what we're supposed to be producing overall, and on full sun days about 25-30% more than our expected output.

[Alex]

I think the article is about DIY rather than getting into 20 years commitment.I am looking into building it myself,one step at a time .

[rprr]

Alex --
Are you planning a grid-tie system or an off-grid system? If you are planning to make DIY panels, it may be a problem if you want to get Helco approval to grid tie.

[Dan De Soto]

Hey Rob, I just signed up with Sunrun too but went with a January install date for 5% discount. Is your system already installed? Did it live up to the promises made during the sales presentation; specifically the reduction of your HELCO bill to minimum maintenance charge?

Thanks,

Dan

[Dave Smith]

Rob, you mention that the system is designed to provide 95 percent of your demand. How does that work at night, or in late afternoon when the sun is too low to supply much power?

[Kapohocat]

Okay so I called Revolusun - hey cheaper electric isnt a bad idea!

Call gets cut off after taking a bunch of info from me. Call back and they transfer me to a Oahu rep after I said "the house is on the Big Island". Call back a 3rd time, and got the East Big Island rep on the line. By this time, I am not my cheerful little self, and switched to my "Catherine" voice.

I asked him to give me an approximate idea of what this would cost me.

He couldnt give me an idea of a ballpark price to install the 20 yr leased equipment pricing. I have to meet with him to get anything approximate to see if I even am interested in this. I told him my bill runs about $250/mo - approximately what would that equate to - I told him I could give him the average KWH's used each month, and he knew the Kapoho area so he knew we received more sun than other parts of the East side. I was disappointed that I have to meet with him so he can collect the info I already have to give me a ball park pricing - roof pitch (3/12), style of roof (gable), direction faced, SF of roof, etc - all points I could have given him over the phone. Even the sunrun person could see the house on bing and gave me the direction faced.

They really did not want to estimate a cost even though I was happy to not hold him to it. He also told me it would not be inconvenient for him to come on Tuesday to which I sort of laughed and he didnt get the slightly lopsided laugh at the "not inconvenient" for him.

So we'll see how this plays out on Tuesday. But at this moment, I am not incredibly impressed with their customer service, and as my SO says, if you cant get it out of them at the beginning - it isnt gonna get better, and he reminds me of our DirecTV escapades.