You might be a novice or an experienced solar panel system user and wonder how to interpret your solar electric bills.
Your bill will likely be lower depending on the size of your system. In either case, it’s great that you’re saving money, house, and business. It doesn’t get sent to the grid. Your electric bill won’t reflect that your used electricity isn’t going to the grid.
In short, your only source of solar electricity will be the excess produced by your panels. It simply shows you the excess energy that your panels have.
Your excess solar power is accepted by utility companies to be distributed on the grid. The bill will show the amount received or credited. In return for electricity sent to the grid, utility companies offering net Metering programs offer solar credits.
You can also use backup power solutions like the Tesla Powerwall to store excess energy before it goes to the grid. Your bill will only show solar credits if you have extra solar power.
Once your PV system has been installed, your local utility will place a bidirectional meter at your home. Two readings are recorded and reported to the utility by the bidirectional meter.
- How many kilowatt hours (kWh) are required to get from the grid to your house?
- How many kWh are needed to connect your home to the grid
NET METERING AND SOLAR ELECTRIC BILL
Utility companies that offer solar energy net metering programs subtract energy from what you send — all via the grid.
This subtraction will give you your “net consumption” for the month.
The result will be negative if your solar panel system produces more energy than your home and business use in a given month. In this case, the credit is applied to the next month’s electric bills.
Here’s a sample of a typical bill for solar net metering:
It may calculate the energy value you send to the grid based on the utility. It then subtracts any solar power credits you have accumulated, which you got in return for the energy you sent to your utility, from the point it has sent you (that’s the energy it charges).
It’s important to remember that the energy going from your home to your grid does not necessarily reflect the total amount that your solar system produces.
This area is often frowned upon. Many solar users mistakenly believe their utility only records part of their solar panel system’s output.
Your solar monitoring portal is the best way to determine how much energy your system produces. Freedom Solar customers with SunPower panels often use the mySunPower app for information about their energy usage and generation.
DAILY ENERGY CONSUMED VS. PRODUCED
One solar panel usually produces 2 kWh per day. A few things can affect the amount of energy your system has.
These are the key areas that can affect your output.
- Your panels’ size (for example, commercial meetings are bigger than resident panels).
- The number you have solar panels
- Your panel’s efficiency
Below is a chart that shows how a solar PV system produces energy on a typical day.
CONTACT FREEDOM SOLAR TO REQUEST SUNPOWER SOLAR PANELS
Contact Freedom Solar if you are interested in going Solar. We offer the most efficient and market-leading SunPower panels.
Our goal is to make it easier for people to live more eco-friendly lives. This is done by writing about the benefits of solar, solar savings, and other information. We also make solar affordable through financing options that fit your needs. Our 25-year, full-service warranty plan will ensure that you are in good hands over the long-term.