NEM3 – What you need to know
NEM3 has now passed, and becomes effective in April 2023. The value of exported power will now be fraction of NEM2 rates. This means solar only has up to 75% LESS value than it did under NEM2. But there is a way around it – with effective use of storage! See how it’s done in our talk on the Value of Solar+Storage, link here.
You Have Questions – We Have Answers – NOW WITH 35% MORE STORAGE & 20 YEAR LIFETIME!
How Much Will I Save & How Much Does It Cost (in PG&E territory)?1
| Solar+Storage Savings | Raw Cost | Final Cost | Simple Payback Years | Payback with EV | kwh generated per year | |
| 4kw PV/13.5kwh | $2,540 | $32,700 | $21,903 | 8.6 | 5.4 | 6,400 |
| 6kw PV/13.5kwh | $3,291 | $34,500 | $23,235 | 7.1 | 4.8 | 9,600 |
| 7kw PV/27kwh | $4,766 | $41,925 | $26,434 | 5.5 | 4.2 | 11,200 |
| 8kw PV/27kwh | $5,137 | $45,800 | $29,302 | 5.7 | 4.4 | 12,800 |
| 12kw PV/27kwh | $6,619 | $49,200 | $31,818 | 4.8 | 3.9 | 19,200 |
| EV2 rate | Does not need EV to qualify – only solar+storage | |||||
| ITC | 30% | |||||
To use this table, find your annual electric use in kwh from your utility bill. Find the system in this table with generation at or more than your annual use (far right column). Keep in mind any future additions to electric use such as EVs or switching to electric appliances will likely increase your use. That line is the system with the best value.
How Much are the Savings from Storage
| System PV Size/Battery Size | Solar only | Solar+Storage | Storage Benefit |
| 4kw PV/13.5kwh | $1,430 | $2,120 | 48% |
| 6kw PV/13.5kwh | $2,147 | $2,863 | 33% |
| 7kw PV/27kwh | $2,410 | $3,758 | 56% |
| 8kw PV/27kwh | $2,863 | $4,241 | 48% |
| 12kw PV/27kwh | $4,295 | $5,725 | 33% |
Low Cost Solar+Storage Options
Looking for small systems to backup refrigerators, small appliances? Go here.
Storage Add-on to Existing Solar
Already have solar? Want to add whole home battery backup with the added benefits of storage cost savings? Go here.
Transitioning to 100% Renewables – with Solar Power + Storage – in 12 years
Read the latest update 2019 edition to our study on how we can meet California’s goal of transitioning to 100% renewables in 12 years – and make money doing it! Now updated to include the entire USA!
For those interested in exploring the cost benefits for their state or country, here is the Excel spreadsheet summary.
Simple Cost and Payback Calculator
We’ve created a simple set of Excel formulas and tables to make it easier for residential and commercial customers to calculate savings. Green cells are inputs. Download here
$0 Down PACE Financing now for select areas with Ygrene Works
We are now offering PACE Financing through Ygrene Works for select cities in California! With PACE financing, all your payments go on your property taxes. If you sell your home or business, the payments transfer to the new owners. With $0 down, we tailor payment programs that LOWER your costs per year compared to what you pay your utilities, AND YOU OWN THE SYSTEM! You can also roll in other energy efficiency projects, such as a new roof, insulation, or new energy efficient windows. Most homeowners qualify in 15 minutes! Going solar with storage & EV charging has never been easier.
Residential and Commercial Solar System Services
Custom Power Solar specializes in solar power systems with energy storage and EV charging. We offer a range of products for on-grid and off-grid solar power systems with battery storage that not only provides power in the event of grid failure, but additional savings on your power bill. Never go without power again! Contact us for a free quote with the savings you’ll receive with solar+storage and EV charging.
ALERT!
Residential and commercial energy rates have changed dramatically. ALL the utilities have switched from peak rates during the day (typically noon-6) to evening peak (4-9pm). LESS THAN 20% OF SOLAR POWER IS DURING THESE NEW PEAK PERIODS! And now under NEM3 the value of exported power (most solar systems export a lot of excess power during the day) is a fraction of the retail rate. This means with the new rates, the value of solar only can be as little as 25% OF THE CURRENT VALUE!! Energy storage SOLVES this, by storing your solar generated energy and providing it to your loads during the peak periods typically DOUBLING THE VALUE OF YOUR SYSTEM. Custom Power Solar keeps up to date on ALL rate schedules in California, and can provide you the BEST VALUE in your solar+storage system by giving you the MOST return for your investment.
Now with Lithium Iron Phosphate battery storage
Lithium batteries provide longer life, smaller size and weight, and higher efficiency than lead-acid batteries. We now use Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries – the safest in the industry.
Sol-ark Inverters & 200A Service upgrades WITHOUT a utility upgrade
We now use Sol-ark inverters – one of the few fully approved for residential AND commercial projects in California. The Sol-ark 15 includes a 200A ATS, and we can upgrade existing 100A services to a 200A service WITHOUT having to spend the $6000+ to PG&E to upgrade your service entrance. We add a 200A new main panel, and the Sol-ark provides the extra 60A+ to power new loads.
All-Electric Homes
You can now go all-electric in your home – NO GAS – with solar+storage, EVs and all-electric appliances including heat pump heating/cooling, water heaters, and induction stoves. See how in our latest webinar. See here.
Solar Power with Battery Storage + Save $
A battery storage solar power system uses a bank of batteries that stores power from your solar array. When the grid fails and when electric power is no longer being fed to your home or business, the batteries and solar array supply power. In the event of a power outage, battery power is restored by solar power each day. With careful management you can operate indefinitely off grid.
In the San Francisco Bay Area, with frequent power outages due to storms, PSPS events due to fire danger, and the inevitable earthquakes – a battery backup solar power system gives you the peace of mind to know you will have power to run your home or business in the event of a grid outage, whether just a simple line failure or as a result of a major earthquake. IN ADDITION, the storage system saves you $ – as much as 100% MORE than your solar savings by shifting energy use from low rate periods to high rate periods.
Payback
With Custom Power Solar, you can have a custom solar system for $0 down. There is a 30% Federal Investment Tax Credit, which can be applied to reduce your property taxes under the PACE program. When you are done, you OWN your system, and YOU reap the financial benefits, plus the peace of mind that in the event of grid failure, YOU will always have power. Contact us for details!
Plug-In Hybrids and Electric Vehicles
It’s clear that the future of transportation is moving towards plug-in hybrids and all electric vehicles. A typical vehicle uses 0.25-0.35kwh per mile. With your solar system the power for your EV is free! It’s like having free gas! A typical EV owner driving an average of 40 miles per day can save almost $4000/year charging from solar and powering your home!
Quiet Power
The battery backup system operates quickly & quietly – unlike generator systems which have to power up the generator to feed power. Time to switch may be as low as 50 -100 milliseconds.
Reduce your electric bill
To reduce your electric bill on an annual basis to zero and have a typical 1-2 day backup battery system, a good rule of thumb is take your annual electricity usage in kwh and divide by 1500 to get the PV size in kw. Then multiply the solar size by 4-5X to get the storage size. If you’re adding a plug-in vehicle, add 1kw for every 15 miles of commute. For example, if your annual usage is 6000 kwh, divide by 1500 = a 4kw array. If you have a 30 mile round trip commute add another 2kw. The total is then 6kw. 6kw * 5 = 30kwh for the storage size. This also reserves 1/3 of the battery for emergencies – in practice you’ll only use 2/3 of the capacity.
Sizing
Most residential systems have more than enough roof space to generate power to zero your electric bill. Modern technology has the capacity to deal with virtually any shading situation. Using Google Maps we can take your address and look at the size of your roof space to find the best fit.
Alternative Mounts
A driveway, garage, or parking area can be used for solar power. In agricultural areas unused farm land, barns, warehouses, and access corridors can also be used.
Monitoring & Remote Control
You will have instant access to current production of your system through web access and see exactly how much your system is producing at any time. Our monitoring system provides access to every vital piece of information about your system, including power output and battery state. You can also operate it remotely! We use Powerview – see example here
Lifetime
Solar modules are rated to degrade less than 10% over 25 years. In real life testing, they last much longer. There are systems over 40 years old with 80% of their original power. Expect to replace the batteries once every 10-20 years, and inverters may need maintenance every 10 -15 years. The cost of battery replacement averages $20/month over the battery lifetime.
Warranty
Components have warranties from the manufacturer, which runs 25+ years for solar modules, up to 10 years for electronics. Battery warranty is prorated based on time used based on battery manufacturer’s warranty – 10 years. Contractor provides a one year warranty on installation and labor. We will continue to monitor and troubleshoot your system for 10 years under an available 10 year service contract.
Time to Install
A typical home system can be in place in as little as a month. PG&E and permitting procedures can add up to another month, depending on the area and workload.
Power your car and home with solar power – Call now for a free estimate!
How We Work
Custom Power Solar has one goal in mind – satisfaction for you the customer. We help you get a solar power system at the lowest possible cost, THAT YOU OWN. First, we work with you to design the best system for your needs. We aim for a zero sum – the sun and your solar system generates enough power each year to equal the amount of power you use. We’ll help you select the best financing plan for your needs. We arrange all permitting and PG&E commissioning. Our partner contractors install the system – this part typically only takes 6-8 days. We’ll handle the paperwork for the permits & rebates. In the end, YOU will own the system that saves you thousands of dollars a year in energy costs. With a battery storage system from Custom Power Solar, you will never go without electric power.
Made in the USA – Custom Power Solar primarily uses electronics components made by US manufacturers. We are dedicated to keeping solar manufacturing and installation jobs here in the USA.
Contact us for a free home estimate
(1) Maximum savings are based on based on EV2 solar+storage rates – YOU DO NOT NEED AN EV TO GET THESE RATES – only solar+storage, and maximizing battery usage. EV savings are based on $4/gal gasoline fuel costs, compared with 30mpg ICE vehicle, and 31 miles per day use (California average) – about $1500/year.
Costs vary according to permitting costs, accessibility, and roof type.