Sun-generated power is clean — no pollution, noise or fossil fuels. A typical 6 kilowatt system will eliminate 120 tons of carbon dioxide over its 30+ year lifetime.

Akeena Solar is a trusted solar installer, with thousands of satisfied customers. Our mission is to help our customers reduce or eliminate their electric bills with the award-winning Andalay system — the most reliable solar power system on the market today. The Andalay system is sleek and beautiful, with a rock-solid installation that eliminates the design and installation flaws of ordinary solar systems. We are committed to our customers every step of the way, designing custom project specifications, and managing all paperwork for permitting, hookup, rebates, and incentives. Read more.

Akeena’s award-winning Andalay solar power system, the most reliable, best-looking system on the market, eliminates the flaws associated with ordinary solar installations, such as exposed wiring, 5-cent zip ties, disparate parts, and excessive roof penetrations. With 70% less parts than most systems, Andalay offers error-free installation and less risk of failure over a 25-year lifetime. Read more.

Solar power systems turn sunlight into electricity. Silicon wafers capture photons from sunlight, turn them into DC power, which is then transformed into 120 volt AC power and connected to your existing electrical system — as well as the local electrical grid. When the sun shines, you can generate more power than you consume (your meter will literally spin backwards). At night you'll draw on utility company power, essentially using the electrical grid as a giant storage battery. Read more.

You can click here to view a diagram of a typical solar system.

• Solar Cells: “Solar power cells” make up the building blocks of a solar energy system. These solar power (photovoltaic) cells convert light energy into electricity at the atomic level.
• Solar Module: Multiple cells are usually combined into a complete “solar module” that also includes a frame for the system, electrical interconnections and mounting hardware.
• Solar Panel: Multiple modules are assembled into a “solar panel” that is then secured to the roof or other structure.
• Inverter: An “inverter,” usually installed on the outside of your home, takes the DC output from the cells and transforms it into usable AC power.
• Electric Panel: Electricity will be sent from the inverter to your “electric panel” (or “breaker box”). Your meter will spin backward when your solar system produces more electricity than you need and will spin forward at night or on cloudy days.
• Utility Grid: The “utility grid” refers to the electricity going to/from your electric provider. When you go solar, you will send back to the grid the electricity that you produce in excess of your consumption, and use grid electricity at night or on cloudy days.

There are three ways you can size a solar power system for your home or business:

1. Install as many solar energy modules as will fit on your roof:
   • This method of sizing a system will always be economically best for your installer, but may not be best for you since it does not take into account shading or other factors.
   • A careful solar site survey should be done to ensure maximum output.
2. Install enough solar power generating capacity to completely eliminate your electric bill:
   • For business and residential customers on tiered rate plans, as you generate more and more power you will receive proportionally less for this power in lower rate tiers.
   • Under the current Net Metering laws, PG&E must give you credit for any net power that you produce. However, that credit will initially apply to the lowest (cheapest) rate tier.
   • To avoid over-sizing your solar energy (photovoltaic) system, it is necessary to analyze the impact of the energy your solar power system generates on each rate tier on your bill.
3. Determine the exact system size to maximize your payback and Net Present Value:
   • The best way to size a solar energy system is to determine the Net Present Value of each system alternative (including varying numbers of panels, inverters, installation techniques and component manufacturers).
   • This NPV analysis should also take into account your discount rate, the electric cost escalation rate, your tax rate, as well as incentive programs (rebates, tax credits, accelerated depreciation, etc.).

An Akeena design consultant can help you decide what option makes most sense for your home or business. Schedule your free Solar Evaluation to find out more.

You can calculate your monthly electric savings by using our Solar Calculator. For a more precise estimate on your savings and return on investment, please schedule a free Solar Evaluation.

The best way to find out if solar is right for you is to request a free Solar Evaluation, and we will provide you with a proposal that factors in your budget requirements, the property’s sun exposure and orientation, and your last 12 month’s kilowatt hour (kWh) use.

Akeena Solar makes going solar easy. Because each of our customers has unique energy and financing needs, we have partnered with both SunRun and Clean Power Finance to provide you with a variety of financing options. Your Akeena Solar Design Consultant will work with you to find the financing option that best fits your needs.

Federal, state and local limited-time incentives cover up to 50% off of total costs of a solar installation. Since rebates and incentives vary from city to city and can sometimes be confusing to identify and understand, the best way to assess which ones are available to you is to schedule your free Solar Evaluation to find out more.

A properly designed and installed solar system can pay for itself in as little as 5 to 10 years — and even faster if special electric rates apply. Click here to calculate your savings.

No. Your internal home electric system will not be affected by a move to solar, so no need to make any changes. The one difference will see the big reduction in your electricity bills!

Akeena Solar, in partnership with Fat Spaniel Technologies, has developed a real-time, Web-based solar energy monitoring system that allows customers to see the performance of their system from any Web browser. The system also provides fault notification and tracks net building energy usage. To see an example of Web Monitoring, click here.

If you produce more electricity than you use from your solar system, the extra electricity your system produces will go back to the electric grid, basically running your meter backwards, saving you more since your electric utility provider will credit you for the electricity you provided back to it.

Solar systems only produce electricity with direct sunlight. At night, or on a cloudy day, you will use electricity from your electric provider. On sunny days, you will not only use electricity directly from your solar system, but will also provide electricity back to your provider, building credits that will offset your nighttime/cloudy day electric use.

There are 3 types of backups you can use on cloudy days and at night, when your solar system does not produce enough electricity for your needs:

• Battery storage, where your battery provides you with the supplemental electricity.
• Generator backup, where you get your extra electricity from a generator.
• A grid-tied power system, where you get the added electricity from your utility provider.

Please read on for more information on each type of backup.

Solar energy systems with battery storage are being used by businesses and residences all over the world to power a wide range of building equipment, lighting, appliances, computers, or communications equipment. In general, these systems are best for situations where backup power must be instantly available without interruption (for example, to power computers). They are also good for remote applications in which utility power is not available and a generator is not desirable.

Batteries are an additional expense however, require maintenance, only last 5-10 years, decrease system efficiency, and result in a more complicated system. If you have access to grid power, you can take advantage of Net Metering to simply sell your excess power back to the utility during the day and draw utility power at night — at 100% efficiency. Many of our customers opt for a grid-tied system and purchase a standby generator with a properly installed manual transfer switch, avoiding the additional expenses related to batteries, and having backup power available for as long as they have fuel.

For a given level of power output, generators are usually the least expensive option for backup power production. In the vast majority of residences we evaluate, generators provide the most reliable and cost-effective source of extended backup power. The simplest solution is to install a relatively inexpensive generator in conjunction with a manual transfer switch. The transfer switch directs the source of power for critical loads from the utility (which is presumably down) to the generator — without back-feeding the electric grid. During a power outage, the transfer switch is operated and the generator is started, thereby providing power to the critical loads in the house.

Where utility power is available, a grid-tied solar power system can supply some of the energy needed, using the power from the utility in place of batteries. Because these grid-connected systems are much less expensive to purchase and operate than battery backup systems — and because the owners can effectively sell power back to the utilities — these systems are becoming very popular. Please note that inverters used with grid-connected solar electric systems do not have battery backup capability, and this backup capability cannot be added at a later date unless the inverter is changed.

The owner of a grid-connected solar energy system can both buy and sell electricity each month. This is because electricity generated by the solar energy system can be used on-site, or fed through a meter into the utility grid. California's net metering law provides that all utilities must allow customers with solar electric systems rated up to 1.5 MW to interconnect with the local utility grid and receiving retail value for the electricity produced. The utility serves as a backup to the solar power system similar to the way in which batteries do in stand-alone (off-grid) systems. The other benefit of a grid-tied power system is the Time of Use (see below).

Most utilities sell electricity at different rate tiers. For example, PGE’s tiers range from $0.11 for baseline electricity consumption, all the way up to $0.35 for top tier consumption (not including various adjustment and discount factors). Not surprisingly, owners of even small and medium-size houses find themselves in rate tiers in which they pay in excess of $0.20 per kWh.

These rate structures make solar power grid-connected systems even more economical. For example, PG&E’s Time Of Use rate allows you to run your electric meter backwards at up to $0.44 per kWh during summer weekday afternoons (when your solar energy system generates its maximum amount of power), and purchase electricity at all other times at $0.12 per kWh! This Time Of Use billing method effectively improves the economics of your solar power electric system by 15 – 40%.

Every month you will receive a statement showing how much electricity you have "sold" back to the utility (by running the meter backwards), or how much net electricity you have consumed; you will also get billed a nominal (about $5) standby charge. Then, once a year on the anniversary of your system's interconnection, the utility will send a reconciliation statement to you and bill you for the net power you have used during the year, essentially annual billing.

Solar power panels installed by Akeena are guaranteed for up to 25 years.

Akeena Solar recommends that clients conduct roof repairs before the solar panels are installed. Although you do not need a brand new roof to go solar, if you were planning on replacing your roof, we also recommend you go ahead before we install your panels. Should you need to repair your roof after the panels are installed, they can easily be removed and re-installed.

No. Although going solar will immediately increase the value of your home, you will not experience a property tax increase in the State of California — one of the great benefits of going solar!

Installing your solar system can take anywhere from 1 to 3 days, depending on its size. Your project manager will keep you informed every step of the way to ensure minimum disruption to your family or business.