Solar pros and cons discussed at Rotary

Jun. 16—Solar power works in relation to home and business energy need, United Cooperative Solutions Energy Solutions Manager Seth Rosser said, but the decision on whether to go solar calls for careful consideration.

Rosser and United Coop Energy Solutions Coordinator Ryan Pruitt discussed those considerations during Thurday's meeting of the Cleburne Rotary Club.

Although stationed in Cleburne both are working out of the coop's Joshua office for now.

Workers recently demolished Cleburne's office with a new building to be built soon.

"We have nine offices including our Cleburne office, which is being rebuilt," Rosser said. "Johnson County is growing and we simply outgrew that building. So we completely demolished the old office building to build a new one to take care of our members in this area.

"If you look at Cleburne, Godley, Mansfield, Burleson, all those areas are exploding so we needed a larger office to serve our members."

United, Rosser explained, is a not-for-profit coop member owned. A larger coop, the entity serves roughly 80,000 members throughout Mansfield, Cleburne, Joshua, Burleson, Grandview, Stephenville, Rio Vista, Clifton and other areas.

Rosser said his department is unique.

"[The coop] delivers power to the meter," Rosser said. "My department actually goes in behind the meter to develop solutions for members to use less of the product that we're delivering."

Such cost saving measures for members include free energy audits.

"We go out to member homes and businesses providing free energy audits where we will help our members save energy, save money," Rosser said. "We provide them with every type of recommendation we can think of to help them save."

Rebates play into such cost savings as well.

"Rebates we offer for residential and commercial," Rosser said. "For example, one of our most used residential rebates is for HVAC tune ups. If a member gets their air conditioning and heating tuned up, we will pay up to $100 for that. All they have to do is provide an invoice and a rebate form."

For most of Thursday's meeting, however, Rosser and Pruitt focused on the coop's new Solar Solution Program, which rolled out in January. Coop members designed the program in part to address confusion and untrue and/or unrealistic promises on the part of solar made by other installers and companies.

"Over the years we've seen members get taken advantage of [by other companies]," Rosser said. "Members that have been over-promised and under-delivered. We've seen members install solar expecting one thing and then, once they get their bill, it's not doing what they were told."

Ongoing maintenance from other installers can be an issue, Rosser said.

"One of our members recently paid an installer $30,000 to $40,000 up front, which is normal if you pay 50% up front," Rosser said. "That company filed bankruptcy so now that customer is out that money.

"We've also seen members who have installed solar but now they need maintenance and the company that installed is no longer there."

United officials hope to address those and other issues through the coop's Solar Solution Program.

"We've already been educating our members for a long time on how solar works," Rosser said. "Solar is a good product. But you have to know the ins and outs of it before you sign that contract."

Solar systems have been installed at United's locations, Rosser said, adding that the coop is now set up to install systems for members as well.

"We're not a sales company or trying to sell solar," Rosser said. "We just want to educate our members, want them to know what's going on before they sign those contracts."

Pruitt previously worked in the solar industry before joining United and so brings a wealth of experience of the good and bad of the industry, Rosser said.

United's solar disclosure form details important considerations to take into account when considering solar, Pruitt said.

Taking advantage of United's free energy audit program, for example.

"Oftentimes solar is used as a band aid when there are still underlying issues in the home or business, whether that's a leaking water heater, a stuck heating element on an HVAC system causing higher than normal usage," Pruitt said. "We want to come through and identify those underlying issues and bring them to the member's attention. Because, if they tackle those energy efficiency issues, they tend to have a shorter return on investment than just adding solar to your home."

Pruitt spoke of false advertising and mailer claims from other businesses claiming that solar system purchasers will never have to pay another energy bill and will retain power even if the energy grid goes down.

"Those claims are simply not true across any utility company because you're going to have a minimum bill," Pruitt said. "Our minimum bill is $25 but we still have members call in to say we sent them an invoice and made a mistake because they have solar. No, you still have a minimum bill because we are still actively serving you as a member."

No loss of power should the grid go down claims are true only if the residence or business has battery storage or generators, Pruitt added.

The 30% tax credit for solar installation also requires careful consideration, Pruitt said.

"Yes, there is 30% out there, but do you qualify for it?" Pruitt said. "Do you make enough taxable income to retain that? We encourage our members to go talk to a tax professional or CPA to attain that information."

Insurance is another factor few take into account when considering solar, Pruitt said.

"There's not a manufacturer or workmanship warranty that covers acts of God when tornadoes, hail or whatever come through and destroys a solar system," Pruitt said. "That's an insurance claim. So we encourage our members to talk to their insurance agent to see what their policy adjustment is going to be if they get solar. How much extra are they going to pay a month for that? Because that ultimately is going to affect the length of their return on investment."

Other considerations include back-end support, lifespan of the panels and system and the amount of energy a member uses in determining whether solar is worth the investment or not, Pruitt said.