13 Best Solar Companies in Atwater, CA (Jan 2023 Review)

The Cost and Benefits of Solar in Atwater

The cost of putting up solar panels has dropped significantly over the past several years, but it's still a substantial investment for most homeowners. Some important factors that dictate how much it will cost to install a solar panel system on your home and how much money you could save over time are:

• Average daily sunlight: Since Atwater gets lots of sunlight, your solar panel system will most likely be able to generate enough energy to power your whole home, which influences how much you can save on your energy bills.
• The type of solar panels you want: More efficient panels have higher prices, so that will determine your budget for your solar project.
• How much you spend on energy: The typical family in Atwater shells out around $1,000 a year on home energy use alone, so you could gain that much in savings.
• Incentives: Tax-paying citizens who install a solar energy system this year can save 30% of their installation costs by taking advantage of the federal solar investment tax credit. You can also save about $33,000 on your electricity bills over 20 years without incentives.

So is installing solar panels worth it? Whether you're trying to reduce your energy bills, carbon emissions or both, solar panels are a worthwhile investment for many Atwater homeowners.

Solar Incentives in Atwater

To increase solar panel installation and usage, federal, state and local governments — and even some utility companies — offer incentives to help make solar more financially viable and accessible. Regardless of where you live, you can take advantage of the federal Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), which lets you claim 30% of how much you paid for your solar installation on your tax return, lowering the amount of taxes you owe that year. Plus, there may be some local incentives that stack with the ITC too. For more information about incentives for homeowners in Atwater, check out our our article on solar incentives.

Environmental Impact of Switching to Solar in Atwater

There are tons of reasons to make the switch to solar energy, like saving on utility bills and helping to reduce your carbon footprint. Something many homeowners might be wondering about is how much can they really help the environment by going solar anyway? Something that can drastically shape your carbon footprint is your commute time and how much you drive in general. If you go solar and drive an electric car, you can vastly decrease your carbon dioxide emissions by charging your car at home. Since solar panels don't release CO2 emissions into the atmosphere when creating electricity, they're a good substitute for nonrenewable energy sources. In fact, you could expect to reduce your carbon dioxide emissions by about 50 pounds each year. The great things about solar power are abundant — just like solar power is! That's why so many people have been happy with making the switch to solar.