Energy Costs and Sustainability

If you’ve decided to invest in a solar energy system for your home to take advantage of federal tax credits, selecting a company can be a daunting task.

In a relatively young industry, there are an increasing number of companies producing solar panels and providing installation services. In a new study, ConsumerAffairs has researched 24 companies and selected six as the best.

Those six companies are:

SunPower

Blue Raven Solar

Freedom Sun Power

Sunlux

Sunrun

Shop Solar

What sets these companies apart? Shop Solar has one of the highest ratings for customer service. Sunrun earned points for its leasing program. Sunlux has several manufacturing partners. Freedom Solar Power offers a variety of options, including battery storage and ground-mounted systems. 

Blue Raven Solar got praise from customers for its installation process. SunPower has one of the highest satisfaction rates for both customer service and installation. 

Federal tax credit

The U.S. government allows a hefty tax credit for consumers who install solar energy systems at their homes.  In August 2022, Congress passed an extension of the credit, raising it to 30% of costs for the installation of systems purchased and installed between 2022-2032.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, you might be eligible for this tax credit if you meet the following criteria:

• Your solar PV system was installed between January 1, 2017, and December 31, 2034.

• The solar PV system is located at a residence of yours in the United States.

• You own the solar PV system (i.e., you purchased it with cash or through financing but you are neither leasing the system nor nor paying a solar company to purchase the electricity generated by the system).

• Or, you purchased an interest in an off-site community solar project, if the electricity generated is credited against, and does not exceed, your home’s electricity consumption. Notes: the IRS issued a statement (see link above) allowing a particular taxpayer to claim a tax credit for purchasing an interest in an off-site community solar project. However, this document, known as a private letter ruling or PLR, may not be relied on as precedent by other taxpayers. Also, you would not qualify if you only purchase the electricity from a community solar project.

• The solar PV system is new or being used for the first time. The credit can only be claimed on the “original installation” of the solar equipment.

The next time your utility bill comes in the mail, don’t lose your wheels. According to the latest data available from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the average residential U.S. electricity price increased by 7.8% compared with 202 – or about 16.14 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh).

As a result of record-breaking temperatures across the country and skyrocketing utility bills, many people are tempted to blame their air conditioners, but another utility hog in the house needs to share that blame – your laundry washer and dryer.

Cyndi Bray, household energy savings expert and inventor of Wad-Free, tells ConsumerAffairs that using laundry machines correctly can unlock new ways to save on monthly expenses.

Washers and dryers aren't the energy guzzlers that water heaters and air conditioners are, but they can account for close to 6% of people's utility bills. According to Energy Star, the average American family spends $2,060 per year for utilities, so playing out that 6% factor, that’s about $120 back in your pocket. 

“It’s one of life’s unending tasks: no matter how diligent you are about doing laundry, it will never end,” Bray told ConsumerAffairs. “With a few tweaks to your laundry routine, you can drastically cut your energy consumption, and save time and money in the process.”

Bray’s utility-saving tips

We probably don’t even think about how a kilowatt hour breaks down, but Bray says that 90% of the energy consumed in the clothes washer goes toward heating the water and if you wash in cold water instead, you can save up to 50 cents per load in energy costs.

You may be saying, “But hot water gets out stains better!” Bray suggests you should rethink that position, however.

“Don’t fear clothes and sheets not coming out clean. Most of today’s laundry detergents are formulated to clean best in cold water, and most of the fabric care tags of your clothes and sheets call for cold water anyway,” Bray said.

Another washing machine insider tip is to only run full loads or schedule your laundry routine during non-peak hours. When are those? According to PowerWizard, the cheapest time of day to use electricity is late nights and early mornings – the times of day when most folks are in their beds and not hogging electricity watching TV or washing dishes.

When it comes to the clothes dryer, Bray says that’s somewhat of an uphill battle because the dryer is often the least efficient appliance in the household and the average dryer can use more energy than the refrigerator, clothes washer, and dishwasher combined! 

“An easy way to save energy is to select a low heat setting. Even if you have to run the dryer for a longer period of time, consumers save a lot of energy over running the dryer on high. The bonus is your clothes and sheets will last longer, too,” Bray advises, adding that if you dry loads consecutively, the heat of the dryer is used one load after another and doesn’t have to do a complete reset.