From Installing Solar Panels to Scaling With Solar Leads
My first job in solar was as an installer straight out of college.
There was something gratifying about getting up on the roof in the early morning and making tangible progress happen. You’d start with a plan, a truck full of parts, and full tool belt. By the day’s end you’d see real progress: mounting rails where before there had been a barren roof, solar panel after solar panel securely fastened to the racking and conduit perfectly bended to take the home runs into the inverter. When the switch flipped and the meter started spinning backwards and I felt a sense of pride — we did that!
Now that I’m focused on unlocking the overwhelming public support for solar (check out this recent public poll from Gallup and SEIA), I don’t get to see the tangible progress on a daily basis.Continue reading
These States Will Lead the Solar Pack this Summer (and Beyond)
At the recent Green Tech Media conference in Phoenix, Arizona the panelists talked not only about how hot the solar market has been, but how and where the hottest aspects of the solar market will continue. Notably, 94% of all solar ever installed in the USA was installed between 2010 and 2014, which goes along with the SEIA report showing how almost 1/3 of all new energy capacity installed in the USA last year was solar PV.
We follow the hot solar markets pretty closely, and wanted to share a few breakdowns on what the hottest markets are.
Green Tech Media Analyst Cory Honeyman showed that 13 states and Washington DC are all at a ‘tipping point’ where direct ownership of residential solar yields a payback of 10 years or less. Here are some observations on the states he outlined: