Five Things To Do Before You Get Solar

 (1) Reduce your energy consumption –whether it is turning off power strips at night, setting back the water heater temperature or closing the blinds during the summertime, small changes in your habits can make a big difference.

 (2) Make your house more energy efficient – you can make your home more efficient, comfortable and healthy without having to change your lifestyle through efficiency steps.  Have a certified energy auditor perform an energy audit to be sure.

 (3) Read your electric bill–no, no, seriously READ IT – APS, SRP or TEP all have self-tests you can take to check that you are on the correct rate structure depending on your lifestyle.  This is especially important in the summer time when on-peak hours are more than triple the rates of winter rates.

 (4) Assess your site and roof – this is a service all solar companies should perform before you talk about having it installed on your home.

(5) Assess your finances – if you decide to finance your PV system and have bad credit, it may be better to look at having an energy audit done and performing efficiency upgrades first, which cost less and have quicker payback times than solar.

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