FAQ
Have Questions?
Here's answers to our most popular questions
Don’t see your questions?
Contact us today – (508) 570-5889
Top Questions
Solar panels do not produce electricity at night so electricity used during the night is from extra power produced during the daytime that is stored in solar banks or customers use net metering.
The Solar Investment Tax Credit known as ITC, is 30 percent for both residential and commercial properties.
Savings are far less for leasing than purchasing solar systems whether it be buying them outright or with a loan. In addition, leasing excludes federal tax benefits and any local incentives.
Consideration of whether or not to install solar panels is on a case by case decision, aesthetics being one of those. An individual’s return on the investment is another.
The average lifespan of a solar panel is about 25-30 years but can last as long as 50 years without needing a replacement in some cases.
When installed properly, solar panels will not result in damage to your roof if your roof is in good condition. Be certain to choose a reputable, licensed professional installer.
In a solar lease agreement scenario, ownership is retained by the solar company. You pay for the electricity it produces. The company that you lease from is selling the electricity.
Residential Solar Solutions
Because each solar panel system is custom designed for your home, there is no “one-size-fits-all” for solar panels.
The installation begins with a customized quote based on several items, including how much your utility bill is, how large your roof is, and where the sun is. For residential installations, Beacon Solar gives customers the choice between various Tier-1 solar panels.
Depending on monthly energy usage and property conditions, a full and complete cost reduction of your utility bill, excluding the utility’s standard charges, is possible. Property conditions include roof size, direction, pitch, etc.
Beacon Solar works with lenders to find you the best financing to fund your solar installation.
On average the on-site installation is a one to two day process. From start to finish it can take an average of 60 days with planning, install, and getting the system online.
Our solar systems are warrantied to last 25 years and with SolarInsure it extends to 30 years. Solar systems are virtually maintenance free.
When you have a solar system installed, the electric company installs a meter that can “tick backwards” allowing you to “store” the excess energy you produce for use during non-sunlight hours. This is called NET METERING. Many solar panel system owners are at work during the day when a solar system typically produces the most energy. While you may not be using that energy, your utility lets you use it at a later time when you’re not producing. If you produce more energy than you use in a month, you’ll see that your total usage is negative. Utilities determine this by taking the current reading and subtracting the previous reading for a total usage calculation. If you have a negative balance, this balance can be used to pay the customer charge billed by all utilities.
Beacon Solar designs all solar systems to offset as much of your electric bill as possible. However, this depends on factors we take into consideration such as roof size, direction, pitch, shading, etc
Beacon Solar offers extensive 10-year workmanship and 25 year equipment warranty, extending to 30 years through SolarInsure.
Solar panels are custom to your home and take in account several things including size of roof and utility bills and are not a one size fits all.
Generally, the solar industry thinks that solar panels will last for 25 years. This does not mean they stop working at this point, rather, their production of electricity drops off as compared to normal production.
While solar has a higher cash investment up front, in the long run (i.e. over 25 years), solar will cost less than half of what you would pay a utility for electricity.
The process of installing average size solar panels should only take one day and possibly up to two days for installation of slightly larger solar panels.
Yes. However, one of the things you’ll want to consider is if your yard or available area is big enough to allow for the number of panels you will need to cover your energy needs.
For the vast majority of homeowners, solar panel installation will not damage your roof when it is done by professional, qualified installers. This is a question you should ask when interviewing for installers.
Properly installed roof solar systems will not void your roof’s warranty. Actually, because the panels shield parts of you roof after installation, those parts will be shielded from the sun and will last even longer.
Metal, asphalt shingles, stone coated steel, rubber slate, clay and concrete are all roofing materials that you can install solar panels on. Actually, metal roofs work really well with solar panels.
Yes, but that demands that you have a way to store all that power when the sun is not out. This situation has improved with the new Powerwall and Powerpack rechargeable lithium-ion battery availability.
Yes, you can, but you could only power your house when the sun is out. In order to power your home when the sun was not out you would need a battery storage system.
Although unnecessary, solar panels can be covered when not in use and is a personal preference of the home owner to leave covered or uncovered when not in use.
Air conditioners are a high energy demand item in the home. For instance, an air conditioner that uses 2.5kw, the minimum power to power the air conditioner would need to be 3kw.
Panels operate ideally in full sunlight. When raining or cloudy they are not quite as efficient, but panels will still work because we know that light still gets through clouds and rain.
Solar systems come with a battery that allows you to store excess electricity generated from your panels that your home doesn’t need yet. This excess energy goes to your battery as stored electricity.
A typical house installation would have about 16 panels. If the panels were just to heat water for a family of four (average family) this would take two solar panels.
Yes, a house can be powered using only solar generated electricity. If someone wants to get completely off the grid that would depend upon the house and the equipment you are willing to run.
Commercial Solar Solutions
Each system is custom designed for the property, so there is no “one size fits all” for solar panel systems. The installation begins with a customized quote based on several items, including how much your utility bill is, how large your roof is, and where the sun is. For commercial installations, Beacon Solar gives customers the choice between various Tier-1 solar panels.
Solar Energy and Energy Storage reduces operating costs related to electricity usage, including electrical consumption over time (kWh), on demand (kW), and transmission costs. Producing electricity on site enables businesses to reinvest those savings and become more competitive.
Beacon Solar works with lenders to find you the best financing to fund your solar installation.
In late 2017, the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (MA DOER) developed Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target (SMART) to double its solar capacity to over three gigawatts (GW). SMART has replaced the previous solar incentive program in Massachusetts, Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs). SMART provides a monthly payment to property owners for the energy produced. You also qualify for a 30% federal tax credit and will receive up to $1,000 state tax credit. Commercial customers are also able to claim MACRS depreciation on the system. If a customer chooses a solar lease or Power Purchase Agreement (commercial customers only) instead of purchasing or financing, they are not eligible for any federal or Massachusetts solar incentives.
For commercial customers, this depends on a number of factors including system size and electric utility requirements. Timelines can vary significantly. Please contact us to discuss your specific situation with a Solar Consultant
Our solar systems are warrantied to last 25 years and are virtually maintenance free, with the exception of the inverters, which typically last 12-15 years.
When you have a solar system installed, the electric company installs a meter that can “tick backwards” allowing you to “store” the excess energy you produce for use during non-sunlight hours. This is called NET METERING. Many solar panel system owners are at work during the day when a solar system typically produces the most energy. While you may not be using that energy, your utility lets you use it at a later time when you’re not producing. If you produce more energy than you use in a month, you’ll see that your total usage is negative. Utilities determine this by taking the current reading and subtracting the previous reading for a total usage calculation. If you have a negative balance, this balance can be used to pay the customer charge billed by all utilities.
Beacon Solar designs all solar systems to offset your electric bill as much as possible. You can offset up to 100% of your bill. However, this depends on factors we take into consideration such as roof direction, pitch, shading, etc.
Beacon offers extensive 10-year workmanship and 25-year panel warranty at no additional cost.
Solar Maintenance
Exposure to sunlight produces power. Unless your environment produces high amounts of smog, dirt or sand and smog, solar panel cleaning is generally not required.
The manufacturing process does produce greenhouse gas emissions and does require manufacturers to handle toxic chemicals, but solar panels are not emitting toxins into the atmosphere as they’re generating electricity.
Bypass Diodes are wired in parallel with individual solar cells or panels and provide a current path around them in the event that a cell or panel becomes faulty or open-circuited.
Energy Storage
Tesla Powerwall is able to sustain a home’s solar system ability to run during a power outage. When an over abundancy of solar is produced that can be stored, Powerwall is able to turn off.
Purchasing the Powerwall storage system is worth it if you put a massive premium on the value of having backup power when the electric grid is down.