How to Decrease Your Electricity Costs in North Texas
Summer has officially arrived in Texas with our first over-100 degree days beginning to stack up. That means residents all across Texas are firing up their air conditioners in an effort to keep cool. But high electricity costs and potential conservation calls are keeping many residents from setting their thermostats where they’d like, as even at 78 degrees their bills are high. So how can you stay comfortable without paying exorbitant rates? Going solar can help.

Net Metering Policies Save you Money
Net metering policies apply to homeowners with solar generating capacity. Oftentimes, solar panels on your roof produce more electricity than is actually consumed. With net metering, you can be compensated by your electricity provider for this excess power. A bidirectional meter measures how much electricity your home produces, as well as how much electricity you’re using from the grid to calculate the net electricity used. If a customer produces more electricity than they consumed from the grid, this net value will be negative and become a credit that can be banked for the following month’s bill or longer.

Be BeBBe self-sufficient During Blackouts & Brownouts with Solar+Battery Storage
Every summer the Texas grid continues to see record energy demand, and this summer is no exception. ERCOT forecasts are already predicting that Texas will break its previous demand record by a substantial amount. Many outages are short-lived – on the scale of minutes to perhaps a few hours. As we know, some last for days. Outages usually occur due to high demand spiknig to levels which trigger a self-protection shutdown of regional power grid. Luckily, though we will see high demand this summer, experts predict that the growth of solar in the state (2x as much solar capacity and almost 3x as much battery capacity as last year), will keep outages under control. However, the best way to truly protect yourself from blackouts this summer is to go solar and include a battery backup for your home. This way you’ll be completely independent of the grid, which can be highly unpredictable. Having battery storage means that even if the power goes out at night, you can keep the lights on and your appliances running.

Solar is a Great Investment
Without a doubt, solar is a great investment that benefits you, your community, and the planet. It helps you save money now while also increasing the resale value of your home, which is important if you don’t plan on staying in your home for the 10 years it will take to pay off. A study by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that homes with solar panels sold for an average of $15,000 more than homes without them, and in Texas sold 20% faster than properties without solar panels.

Now is also the best time in history to go solar thanks to lower overall costs combined with hefty government incentives (such as the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit that will cover 30% of the total cost of your system and local Texas incentives). It’s time to realize those cost savings and take advantage of the incentives and net metering policies available right now. Go solar with NATiVE and discover how easy it is to harness the power of the sun. We’re here to help with every step of your journey towards energy independence. #TakeYourPowerBack with NATiVE Solar!