Join the U.S. community solar cult 

According to Forbes Magazine, there are about 320 GW of untapped solar potential in the United States alone! Sounds exciting, but there’s a catch; solar installers must think outside of the traditional solar box. One model is cultivating awareness throughout the United States. It’s called community solar, which shares the perks of solar energy with locals beyond the traditional solar rooftop model of selling solar electricity. We'll examine what community solar is, why it's rapidly growing, community solar locations, and why solar installers should consider supplementing it to their installation repertoires.

Community solar is a group of local solar facilities shared by various community subscribers who receive credit on their electricity bills for their share of the power produced. It holds a similar concept to one big shared electric generator in the middle of town. When electricity is needed, you go to the generator and take the amount of electricity you need. This offsets the amount of money paid to the electric utility monthly. This practice is an ideal solution for people who rent, homeowners that don't disqualify from individual solar arrays, and lastly, communities that have spacious property that can't be used for other purposes. 

The community solar trend has soared overtime. It allows solar installers to expand their pool of prospects. Traditionally, you can sell solar one rooftop at a time, but eventually the installer will saturate usable rooftops to sell. The traditional method has limited reach. With this method, installers sell to a community since many people don't want solar on their roofs for aesthetic reasons, financial reasons or concerns about voiding roof warranties. Once the community solar garden is installed, all the participants save money while reaping the benefits from creating their electricity from clean energy.  

Joining your community solar power program

Community solar is a perfect answer to highly urbanized areas where land is at a premium, but dense buildings plant the best staging ground for utility-scale arrays. This community garden also works wonders in rural spacious land where stringing utility wires can be expensive. Farming communities is a prime example of this. Interestingly enough, community solar farms are sprouting in unassuming locations. The most robust community solar power program is in Minnesota which is  one of the coldest and snowiest states in the country. Who would’ve thought? Community solar permits utilities opportunity to provide residential customers savings on their electricity bills by offsetting their use with energy developed by their portion of the community solar project. With virtual net metering and other billing options, people’s electric bill decreases while utility revenues continue consistently. Community solar proves that solar power and utility profits are not mutually exclusive. 

The solar energy domino effect 

Solar installers embrace community solar for several reasons. Selling 320 GW of solar roof by roof could take over one hundred years. Using the  community solar to reach an untapped market while receiving revenues is very attractive. In addition, it’s much easier to sell solar to a group than to individuals. Findings show that once one community member purchases a subscription to a community solar, others follow, thus the sales come much more quickly. Lastly, community solar is supported by utilities in order to keep clients while pleasing their desires to get their kilowatt-hours from solar energy.

All highly benefit from the community solar revolution. Welcome to the new way of the future. If you want to move into the future and join the solar revolution, or if you want to find out what solar panels are right for you, go to HahaSmart.com and try our price checker tool. You can see how much a system will cost, and how much you can save over the next 20 years. For more information relating to going solar, don't forget to visit our solar blog section for more handy guides and articles.