Solar Power

Archive for May, 2009

I live in the California, bay area, near San Francisco (more specifically Palo Alto). Which contractor is the most trustworthy / or most experienced in the Bay Area?

We have an Eichler flat roof and we have decided we want to get foam instead of tar and gravel, bur, or rolled roofing because we want to conserve energy (and save money on our electrical bills). We read a lot of articles on Eichler network, and they have some preferred sponsors. However, we were hoping to get an answer from someone in the community who was happy with their contractor.

We are also considering our options with solar power for homes, but we don't know much about this yet, or even what it would cost. If there's a local contractor that can do both foam and solar it may be better for us if we decide to get solar power in the future.

So.. in summary: which Foam Contractor would you recommend, and are there any that can also do solar power roof installations?

If you are looking for a highly recommended Foam Roofing contractor, you are on the right track. First, you want a foam roofing contractor who has been consistently recommended highly by both old and new customers. If they promise a 10 year warranty, make sure they have been in business for at least 20 years! Finally, verify that they are in good standing with the Contractors State License Board. Type in the company's license number at http://www.cslb.ca.gov/ and see how long they have been in business and if their worker's compensation insurance is in good standing. Other organizations, such as Diamond Certified, go even further to interview prior customers of companies they sponsor to verify high customer satisfaction ratings. As you mentioned, the Eichler Network is another organization that actively seeks and sponsors reputable contractors. The best Foam Roofing contractors receive a lot of word-of-mouth referrals from neighbors that were happy with the work.

Only one foam roofing contractor in the Bay Area also offers Solar Power installations. Take a look at http://www.dura-foam.com/. Dura-Foam Solar Center is not only a SunPower Dealer for the world's highest efficiency solar electric panels, but also highly recommended by the Diamond Certified Organization, Angies List, Eichler Network, Better Business Bureau, and ValueStar. Dura-Foam Solar Center takes responsibility for the whole project by guaranteeing both the roof and the solar installation. You can check the maps on their website to see that they have done thousands of jobs in the Bay Area over the last 29 years. Their vast network of satisfied customers since 1981 is delighted to share the Dura-Foam Solar Center Experience.

I just saw in the news that the gov is giving out incentive to people that goes "green" in their home. My question is whats the incentive and how much does installing/ buying Solar Power in my house cost? (average cost for 2 story residential)

I live in CA and have a solar system. The state incentives are given through your utility. My utility has a cap of $10K, but I was told we had a higher rate per kwh. The next town over has PG&E and can get a more of a rebate if they got a larger system. Usage and percent of offset will determine how large of a system you will want to get. I have a 2 story 2000sf home, I had a 3.74 kwh dc system. It's total cost was $26K, I got a $10K rebate and a $2K fed. tax credit (the fed. tax credit has increased to 30% of the total installed cost, so I would have received a $7800 tax credit if I waited till this year). I expect to break even in my 6th year. There are a number of factors that can affect the break even time, rates, usage net metering policies etc. This system produces close to 75% of my usage. My bills in the summer were under $25, my highest bill was $35 in Jan and last month it was $6.11. Part of my savings is energy efficiency and reduced waste.

My best advice is have a licensed contractor come to your home and give you a real quote. You can usually get your usage history from your utility so the contractor can give you advice on what size system would suit your needs.

I put a link to the CA solar initiative website. It is complicated but they have a chart that will tell you what the rates are. I think it would be easier to call your utility, I think they all have a designated solar person.

We are thinking about getting that done, and I've read there is a government grant of $1000 available for anyone planning to undertake this.

But what is the entire job going to cost me, does anyone know?

It would be for a three-bedroom house, single storey, on a hill.

$1000 + 385 (tank & thermostat) + 1900 for panels + 95 an hour to hook up. Plan to set aside 200 per year to adjust the thermostat and solar transformer.