Tips for Lower Cost Rooftop Solar Installations
Headline: “Low Cost Rooftop Solar.” What’s not to like? If you’re a homeowner you can save thousands of dollars shopping around for the...
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Oct 12, 20151 min read
Solar Installer Business Code
I typed the words “free solar” into Google and got 747,000,000 hits in half a second. We all know that solar systems are not free. But...
Sep 20, 20152 min read
Can I Get Solar if my Roof is Shaded
Rooftop solar panels only work when they are in direct sunlight. So if you install solar on a partially shaded roof, the output of your...
Mar 9, 20151 min read
What Solar Panels Should I Buy?
Solar panels have been on the market in the U.S. for over 25 years. Without exception, all of the manufacturers of panels on the market...
Apr 21, 20141 min read
Larry Sherwood with Solar ABCs Talks About Safe Solar Equipment
It’s encouraging to see how much safer — and less expensive — solar equipment has become over the past dozen years. These improvements...
Mar 25, 20141 min read
Combining Solar and Storage for Commercial Customers
To many of us old timers, the battery storage industry looks a lot like the solar industry did ten years ago. Energy storage on the grid...
Mar 14, 20141 min read
8 Ways To Make Rooftop Solar Installations Faster, Safer and Cheaper
There’s a right way and a wrong way to install solar panels on rooftops. We did research on 20 rooftop systems averaging 10 years old....
Feb 28, 20141 min read
Protecting Your Right to Go Solar
Your right to go solar and get full credit for the electricity you send back to the grid is threatened. Not just in California and...
Oct 12, 20131 min read
Solar Startups Are Hot Again
Solar start-ups are hot again — especially those that address the “downstream” part of the value chain: installer services, customer...
Jun 5, 20131 min read
Fundamental Utility Business Model Must Change
Great article in Forbes about net metering. I’ve come to the realization that the fundamental utility business model must change —...
May 15, 20132 min read
Rooftop Solar Safety with Fire Captain Matt Paiss
Fires in homes are generally caused by kitchen mishaps, heating system fires or electrical malfunctions. When it comes to fire safety,...
May 9, 20133 min read
Solar Incentives Are Dead, Long Live Solar
The California Solar Initiative (CSI) program, which provides rebates for homes and businesses, is no longer providing rebates for...
Apr 17, 20132 min read
Financing your Rooftop Solar Power System in San Jose - Silicon Valley
Let’s face it, a rooftop solar power system isn’t cheap. But two recent developments have completely changed the economics for buying a...
Mar 31, 20131 min read
Commercial Solar
Commercial Solar A solar power system is one of the best business investments you can make, turning highly variable energy costs into a...
Mar 31, 20132 min read
How Solar Works
Description of a Typical Solar System Solar power systems turn sunlight into electricity. Silicon wafers capture photons from sunlight...
Mar 21, 20131 min read
Residential Solar
Residential Solar When you put your home to work generating solar power, you’ll see immediate savings on your electric bills, and...
May 22, 20122 min read
Yesterday's Solar Eclipse – Tomorrow's Healthy Solar Industry
There was a solar eclipse yesterday. The kind in the sky where the moon partially obscures the sun. Not an eclipse of the Solar Industry....
Oct 21, 20091 min read
Solar Rights Manifesto
Solar Rights Manifesto Although equipment and direct labor costs have declined as solar systems become simpler and safer, the sad truth...
Aug 28, 20094 min read
Quick Trip to Grid Parity with New Solar Distribution Channels
Hmmm. Seems like our solar industry’s crystal ball is a bit blurry these days. Or maybe we don’t like the picture. With prices for panels...
Aug 30, 20061 min read
Silicone Shortage?
From our vantage point there does not seem to be much of a silicone shortage here in California. The cosmetic surgery industry seems to...
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