14 Best Solar Companies in San Marcos, CA (Oct 2022 Review)

The Cost and Benefits of Solar in San Marcos

Solar panels are powered by a free energy source — the sun — but before you can take advantage of this you will need to pay to install your system. There are quite a few factors you should consider when trying to determine how much it will cost and how much you can save, such as:

• The kind of solar panel system you can buy: This hinges on what your budget is.
• How much sunlight your roof gets: This, plus how your roof is set up, affects affect how much power your solar panels can make.
• Incentives: The federal solar investment tax credit currently allows you to lower your taxes by 30% of the project cost. Your state and even local utility companies may also have various incentives that you can use. In addition, you can save about $31,000 over 20 years on your utility bills, not including incentives.
• Electricity consumption: The average home in San Marcos doesn't use much energy, and therefore may not see as many savings on their power bills.

Even though a solar panel system costs a good chunk of money upfront, it can save you much more over the lifespan of your panels. The question of how much, though, depends on several factors, including the angle of your roof and your current power bills.

Solar Incentives in San Marcos

In an effort to increase solar panel installation and usage, federal, state and local governments — and even some utility companies — offer incentives to help make solar power more financially viable and accessible. In addition to the federal tax credit incentive, there are also some local incentives, which in most cases, stack with the federal incentive, so you get to save even more. The table below tells you about the incentives you can benefit from in San Marcos.

Environmental Impact of Switching to Solar in San Marcos

There are tons of reasons to trade traditional energy for solar energy, like saving some money on utility bills and helping to reduce your carbon footprint. But how much can using solar energy instead of traditional energy actually help the environment? One thing that can dramatically affect your carbon footprint is how long your commute is and how much you drive in general. If you go solar and drive an electric car, you can significantly lower your carbon dioxide emissions by charging your car at home. Since solar panels don't release greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere when generating 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. For those who care about the environment, the upfront cost of solar is a small price to pay for the offset carbon emissions.