SOLAR EXPRESS hits Chicago

SOLAR EXPRESS Hits Chicago

By Keri Lynch, 47th ward resident writer/blogger

Chicagoans suffered through last winter’s Polar Vortex - and paid high utility bills because of it. But the City of Chicago may have good news for some area residents, with the arrival of a new SOLAR EXPRESS.

In March of 2014, Chicago was named the Earth Hour Capital of the year and Mayor Emanuel announced a new program to accelerate the solar market in the Chicago area using a grant from the Department of Energy.

The city and ComEd were awarded the grant in 2012 to figure out how to increase solar installations by reducing its costs and barriers. A full team assembled, including city, industry, utility, non-profit and institutional stakeholders to figure out how to get solar going in Chicago.

And Solar Chicago was launched!

At a July 16 meeting sponsored by Ald. Pawar’s office, solar company representatives explained the program to Chicago residents and explained how the program works.

The City of Chicago partnered with the World Wildlife Fund and the Environmental Law & Policy Center, to help get the word out to area residents, and several ELPC staff members were at the event at the Sulzer Library, to answer questions and introduce the solar company representatives selected for the program.

First, the goal is to increase the number of homes that install solar panels to help power their homes and reduce energy consumption through normal utility channels. The “how” is by lowering costs - with pooled purchasing power and the added incentives of rebates and tax credits to get things rolling - in the amount of 25% and 30% of purchase price, respectively.

The non-profit groups are helping with education and outreach to get the word out and get people signed up for the program. By working together, the groups can be more effective - and faster - at getting homeowners on board.

The solar team identified 3 main barriers for residential solar installations - and worked to address each one as part of this program:

1) High upfront costs - for customers and installation companies both.

2) Customer confusion - information overload and not sure who to call about it.

3) Process complexity - involving the city, permitting, building and utility companies.

The plan is to gather demand and pass the savings on to customers. The city has basically created a “group purchasing” program and streamlined the process for homeowners and solar installation contractors to break down those barriers, via Solar Chicago.

Solar Chicago is a LIMITED-TIME group procurement program for residential solar installations that is designed to do the following:

1) Help homeowners reduce their long-term utility bills

2) Reduce confusion about solar

3) Pool buying power of groups to decrease and simplify installation costs

4) Provide technical advisors and answer questions

5) Provide a vetted contractor selection

6) Help reduce your carbon footprint and support larger community sustainability goals.

To determine which contractors would be involved in the program, all the key players from nonprofit, government and industry evaluated, ranked and rated solar companies based on experience, warranties, equipment, customer service, expertise, financing and pricing.

The group unanimously selected two companies: Microgrid Solar and Juhl Energy.

Solar Chicago is targeted to Chicago homeowners in Franklin Park, Hanover Park, Oak Park and Wilmette with Extended Regions that include the following counties: DuPage, Will, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Kendall and Grundy.

Kacie Peters of Microgrid and Chuck Von Drehle of Juhl Energy were at the recent meeting to answer questions and help people get started.

But first, the audience heard from ELPC staff members about WHY we should go solar:

• Illinois will retire, or decommission, a number of old power plants in upcoming years, and this will cause utility costs to rise, so adding solar can help protect residents from higher energy bills down the road, and solar is a greener way to create energy as well.

• Chicago area homes DO get enough sun to produce ample energy supplies, so that’s not an issue. In fact, solar panels work better in cold, we were told, due to resistance in the panels. Once the sun hits the panels, it creates DC current, that then is converted to AC so we can use it in our homes.

• The panels no longer require large batteries, as early models did in the 1970’s. When you’re producing power in the home, it goes directly into the home when you’re using it. If you’re not using it, it goes back into the grid AND YOU GET CREDIT FOR WHAT YOU PRODUCED, in a process called Energy Offset.

• If you produce more energy than you need, you can carry it over throughout one year  - and after that year is up, it goes back to zero. That’s the reason the installers evaluate your home and its energy use - and review your utility bills - to make sure you don’t produce way more energy than you can actually use.

What type of roofs work for solar? Almost any kind - flat or sloped; South facing is best; East and West facing losing 15% of the efficiency; not allowed on garages; have to be clear of trees and power and other lines. Installers will carefully check the inside and outside of homes before making a recommendation to a homeowner that includes all of these factors.

Panels should last a long time - and come with a  25-year warranty and should continue to work well after that time (warranty states they will produce at least 75% of energy even after 25 years). Each panel has its own inverter (to change from DC to AC) to avoid the “Christmas light” effect, meaning if one inverter fails, it affects only the one panel and not the whole string of them. There are no moving parts on the panels to worry about - and you can get text messages if there are any problems.

Solar panels can increase the value of homes as well as being more energy efficient. And by law, the state cannot increase your property taxes based on the increased value that is due to the solar panels. The installers also warranty their workmanship.

The two installer companies are working together to follow up on leads promptly and efficiently and homeowners do not need to check prices as they’re offering the same costs and system. And both companies passed high vetting standards from the city to be part of the program, and have been increasing staff to support the program.

There are major incentives to buy into solar now, which include:

* 25% state rebate (lottery system) through the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, or DCEO, which has a budget of $3 million (and all those who applied last year received the full rebates, they noted).

* 30% federal tax credit, which is dollar for dollar, not a tax exemption; it goes through 2016 and can be used over several years.

* Rebates per kiloWatt of $.15 up to $.30/kW, depending on how many people sign up.

How can homeowners (or condo owners) take part?

Go to the website below and register by Sept. 30 to start the process. There is no obligation to purchase whatsoever but they say, interest levels are rising so sign up soon if interested.

Once you’ve signed up, installers will use google maps to take a quick look at the roof of the house as a preliminary assessment before they visit. Then they will schedule a detailed home visit to evaluate and discuss the options. They will ask for copies of your utility bills to figure out how much energy you use and find the right size system for your home. And they will give you a written proposal with costs.

There is a DEADLINE to sign up: Sept. 30 - and it is a hard deadline.

By working together, Juhl and Microgrid aim to efficiently handle increasing numbers of installations through Sept. 30 --- and before the next Chicago winter strikes again.

For more information or to register go to: http://www.mygroupenergy.com/group/solarchicago