From design to financing to final installation, Solaris navigates the complexities of going solar for its growing base of happy customers.
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About a year after Johanna Gutlerner had solar panels installed on her home, she got a notification from the installer. One of the panels in her system was malfunctioning, they said, and a technician would be out the next day to repair it.
“I didn’t even know there was a problem,” she says. “They caught it and fixed it without me having to be involved at all.”
This dedication to making it easy to navigate the sometimes complicated prospect of going solar is at the heart of what Danvers-based Solaris Renewables, formerly known as RevoluSun, does.
“We’re experts in what we do,” says Solaris vice president Brian Sadler. “We want to make this easy and turnkey.”
Why go solar?
With soaring electricity prices and the dangers of climate change making headlines daily, it isn’t surprising that many homeowners are taking advantage of solar. Rooftop solar panels can sharply reduce energy bills, increase a home’s value, and make a home more resilient during power outages when paired with home battery storage.
The environment benefits as well: The more solar energy that comes online, the less polluting fossil fuel-burning power plants need to operate.
“Solar is clearly a win for homeowners financially and more of us view it as the right thing to do,” Sadler says.
Federal and state policies are also lining up to make solar an even better investment. Homeowners who install solar are eligible for a 30% federal tax credit. So if you spend $30,000 on a solar system, you can get $9,000 back when filing your taxes. Massachusetts homeowners can receive an additional 15% credit on their state taxes, to a maximum of $1,000. And, due to Massachusetts nation-leading solar policies, homeowners could also receive credits for power sent back into the grid on their utility bill, as well as cash payments for selling certificates that represent the environmental benefits of clean energy.
“More and more residents are going solar because the support from the state is so strong. Our region has been a leader, nationally, for over a decade,” Sadler says.
Taken together, all these incentives and policies mean that an investment in solar can pay off more quickly than one might think. When Solaris customers finance their installation, they can start saving money from month one, as their monthly cost of solar is less than their current electric bill. If a homeowner purchases a system outright, they can expect the investment to pay for itself in an average of six to seven years.
Making solar simple
Despite all the good news about solar, moving ahead with installing a system can still seem daunting. Towns and cities may have different bylaws or permitting requirements. Each utility also has their own regulations. Navigating financing options and understanding the range of incentives and how to claim them are complicated tasks.
That’s where Solaris comes in.
The company’s goal is to make the process smooth and worry-free from the very beginning. The first step is a site evaluation with advanced technology to prepare for a meeting in which a Solaris expert will assess your home’s solar potential, provide the education on the programs available, show product samples, and share information about financing options that are the best fit for the homeowner. Once a decision is made to move forward, Solaris takes it from there, tailoring a system to the goals and needs of the individual client, filing the utility applications, pulling all necessary local permits, and handling the needed paperwork for incentives.
“Once we met with Solaris and learned how easy the process would be and how much positive impact we could make on our clean energy use, it was a no-brainer,” Gutlerner says. “I met with Brian and was left feeling so confident in their workmanship, professionalism, responsiveness, warranties, and I felt like they were being totally honest with me.”
Solaris also pays careful attention to the aesthetics of each system for a sleek, minimalist look that blends with the home. All-black panels and mounting equipment are standard, wires are meticulously tucked out of view, and, when possible, inverters are located within the basement or garage. Solaris mounting techniques penetrate the roof less often than other installers and the company offers a No Leak guarantee. They also provide a 25-year production guarantee & compensate the customer if their system were to not produce as designed.
“We do the consulting, design, engineering, installation, and service,” Sadler says. “The customer doesn’t need to worry about utility rules, town codes, state or federal regulations – we manage all of that.”
When a system is up and running, Solaris backs it up with an industry-leading warranty of up to 40-years. A monitoring app lets system owners track how much solar energy they are generating and how much power their home is consuming, and gives the user control over the system.
Solaris backs up its promises with its unique combination of deep experience in the industry – the company has been doing solar installations for more than a decade – and the personal touch of a local business. The company’s 50 employees all live locally and feel strongly that bolstering sustainable energy is an investment in the future of our communities.
“Being a local company is near and dear to our hearts,” Sadler says.
For more information or to request an evaluation, visit solarisrenewables.com.