17 Best Solar Companies in Richmond, RI (Oct 2022 Review)

The Cost and Benefits of Solar in Richmond

While solar panels can help save you a decent chunk of change on energy over time, it's important to take into consideration the startup costs. There are a few factors you should consider when determining how much it will cost and how much you can save, such as:

• The type of solar panel system you can afford: This depends on your income and budget.
• Incentives: The federal solar investment tax credit currently allows you to lower your taxes by 30% of the project cost. Your state may also have various incentives that you can benefit from. In addition, you can save about $21,000 over 20 years on your utility bills, without incentives.
• Your power bills: This will determine how much money you might save. In Richmond, the average resident can save about $880 a year on their electricity bills.
• Average daily sunlight: Since Richmond gets a decent amount of average daily sunlight, your solar panels can generally generate enough energy to power your whole home, which influences how much your electricity bills will be.

Though a solar panel system costs a sizable chunk of money upfront, it can save you a considerable amount over time. The question of how much, though, depends on several factors, including the amount of daily direct sunlight available and your local electricity rates.

Solar Incentives in Richmond

In an effort to increase the adoption of solar power, federal, state and local governments — and even some utility companies — offer incentives to help make switching to solar power more economically viable and accessible. Everyone can take advantage of the federal Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), which allows you to claim 30% of how much you paid for your solar installation on your tax return, reducing the amount of taxes you owe that year. Plus, there may be some state and city incentives you can benefit from too. You can learn about the incentives you can use in the table below.

Environmental Impact of Switching to Solar in Richmond

A lot of people want to do their part to help protect the planet, which for many is the prime reason they're interested in installing a solar system. Something many people might be wondering about is how much can they really help save the environment by going solar anyway? The average person has a sizable carbon footprint. Between their car, which releases over 10,000 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions every year, and electricity for their home, it can be overwhelming to figure out what to do. Using solar power is a practical thing you can do to help. If you go solar, your carbon dioxide emissions can be cut by about 40 pounds every year. The advantages of solar power are infinite — just like solar power is! That's why so many homeowners have been happy with committing to solar.