After our family spending over 3 decades in Wimberley and serving the community in numerous ways, we have become passionate about brining Solar to the Wimberley, Texas community. Wimberley Solar is a family owned and operated operation that has proudly partnered with RKG Roofing and Construction and Titan Solar to bring our community the absolute best roofing and solar solutions that are available to them.
Give Wimberley Solar a call today to schedule your free home energy audit to see how we can help you replace your energy bill, keep the lights on if the grid ever goes down again, and create an overall more energy-efficient environment in your home!
How does Solar work?
Solar Panels
The Solar Panels job is to catch excess energy from the sun and turn it into electrical power. Silver in these panels acts as a conduit to pass the energy to the inverters.
Inverters
The inverter acts as the brain of your solar system. It converts Direct Current (DC) electricity into Alternating Current (AC) power (the standard electrical current used in your home). Each solar cell generates roughly 1.0 Volt of electricity.
Electrical Panel
The AC power is run to the electrical panel (breaker box) where it can be distributed throughout your home as any electricity would be.
Utility Meter
This is where the utility bill savings happen. The utility meter measures how much energy you generate and use. In most cases, solar panels produce more power than your home will actually use. Your utility company will typically buy back the excess energy that is not used as well. PEC buys back the energy at the same rate they pay to purchase energy.
So how does the process actually work?
Savings Report
Submit your utilities information to us along with your address so we can take a look at your roof online. We will take this information and have our team of engineers build you your ideal system to offset you and your family's electricity usage. In many instances we will still need to come and take a look at your property ourselves so that we can ensure we are submitting accurate information so it's a smooth process for you.
Approval Process
Once we know what system you need we will have you submit an application to our funding partner Good Leap. We get approvals for 600 credit scores and up. This will decide what kind of rates and loan sizes you qualify for. After you receive your approval we can look into what additional things you may want to add in to increase the efficiency and security of your home.
Check our Financing Page for more information.
Documents
After you receive your approval and the proposal is finalized we will just need to get it signed and collect some other documentation. The documentation can vary slightly based on your location but in general we will need the following...
- Signed Proposal with any invoices for add ons
- Loan Documents
- Installation Agreement
- Titan HOA form ((not always applicable))
Site Survey
Titan’s dedicated technician will visit the property to confirm the system design, verify measurements, and adjust for shade and obstructions on roof. After the site evaluation, a solar design expert will make any number of adjustments to the customized plan to ensure everything looks and operates perfectly. From site visit to design, it can take between 3 to 5 weeks.
Permitting
After design plans are finalized, they will be submitted by Titan to the local city government Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) for permitting. Permit approvals are subject to schedule of the governing AHJ Department. This can take anywhere from 2 to 8 weeks.
Installation
After permit approval, Titan will contact the property owner to schedule installation. When Titan’s install team arrives, they will go over the design plans for final approval before they begin. Once the Titan installation crew wraps up the job, they’ll finish by giving the property owner a full Solar 101 on the system. Depending on the size of property and system, this phase takes 1 to 5 days.
City Inspections
There must be a final inspection by the city or county before the system can be connected to the grid. Depending upon the time of install, the backlog of solar inspections, and the local government, the estimated time to complete this step is generally 1 to 4 weeks.
Utility Connection
Two things that need to happen before the system can produce electricity. First, Titan will submit the documents to the utility company to connect to the grid. This usually takes 1 to 2 weeks. Second, the utility company has to install net metering to track how much energy is producing. Neither Titan or Wimberley Solar will have control over how long this step is going to take!
Celebration ((System Activation))
It's time to celebrate! You are giving back to the environment, lowering your utility bill in most cases, and eventually eliminating it. Plus it's all guaranteed for 25 years! Even if you decide to move you added value to your home that you will enjoy when you sell and the buyer will enjoy for years to come! Plus the financing is easily transferred to the new owner so you will never be tied down because of the system!
Add Backup Generators or Batteries so the power always stays on even when hell freezes over like we saw before.
How financing works?
- Credit scores as low as 600 currently, 550 approvals coming soon
- No down payment required
- Interest rates as low as 1.49% based on credit approval
- 26% Federal Tax Credit ((Consult with your accountant or CPA))
- 25 year warranties to match your loan term
- Add in other home efficiency upgrades with no money down...
- Roof work
- Windows
- Doors
- Smart Home Automation and Security
- Light Bulbs
- HVAC Systems
- and more...
Are you ready to get a custom energy estimate?
What is the process for going Solar?
The first step is submitting your energy bill to a reputable solar company or a sales rep you know and trust selling for a reputable installer. This is where you will want to do your research. With solar being such a hot topic, there are a lot of people trying to jump on the money train here. That means there are a lot of one man operations and fly-by-night companies coming out of the wood works.
One thing that most homeowners never ask is if their installer owns a building near them. Our installation partners at Titan solar power own buildings in most major markets and rent them in the areas where real estate is not available that they have pockets of customers in to ensure that everyone gets the best service possible.
There are a lot of other things you will want to understand, but we will touch on those in other episodes.
Once you know what company you are going to go with, the process is fairly simple. No matter who you are going with, they are going to need a copy of your most recent energy bill. The most important thing that they or ourselves need to see is the graph that shows your 12-month electricity usage in your home. This is what allows our team of engineers at Titan to create a custom system for your unique situation to offset you and your family’s energy usage. In many scenarios we have been able to save our customers on average 10-50% on their energy bill as well as locking them into their rate for 25 years and then eliminating their bill afterwards - there aren't even any pre-payment penalties. All this with a 25-year guarantee on the entire system and the roof penetrations.
After your proposal is finalized, their will be an approval process through their funding partner. At Wimberley Solar, we have chosen to partner with Good Leap to get our customers the best rates and programs available. We are able to consistently get approvals for people with 600 credit scores and above for 25 year financing starting at 1.49% interest. We will do an episode soon diving deeper into the financing plans available!
After you have received your approval, the company will need to collect a handful of documents from you. These documents include but are not limited to a signed proposal, completed loan documents, a signed installation agreement, and an HOA form where applicable.
Typically after all documents are collected, your installer will send out a surveyor to ensure that everything in the proposal is correct before permits are collected and the installation process begins.
After the site survey, the permits that I mentioned will be collected. These vary based on the regulations where you live. Many installation companies will cover some permits for you up to a limit and then invoice you for the remaining amount.
Something to note. Many of these fly by night solar companies that are trying to ride the money train will try bypassing the permitting process to get your glass on the roof faster. This is something to be extremely wary of. In most instances this can lead to all kinds of headaches and it is simply always best to ensure that your installers are facilitating a clean build.
After permitting is completed, your installation will be scheduled and in many cases is complete in one day. For larger systems or complicated installs, this can go up to 5 days or more. At Wimberley Solar our customers have access to the Titan installation app so that they track the progress of their installation from the start, so they are always in the loop on all deals large or small!
After the installation is complete you will schedule an inspection with the utility company so that the final connection to the grid can be made.
After the city inspection is completed, the utility company will need to be scheduled to install your net metering system. This is what allows them to buy back your electricity when you are overproducing in order to use the credits to offset any nighttime usage etc.
Something to note is that the city inspection and net metering installation time frames are completely out of control of your installer, so be patient with them if there are delays during these phases!
After that, it’s time to celebrate! You have officially gone solar!
Titan Solar's Commitment to us and YOU!
Wimberley Area Faces Future Energy Needs with Little Support from PEC...
"It's official. We're in an energy crisis, and it's not likely to get better soon. Every day it's becoming more clear that our dependence on fossil fuels is part of a system that must be changed. Harnessing the immense power of the Texas sun for clean, sustainable energy is one logical solution. Our local electric cooperative, PEC, has contributed to the problem through lack of support for technologies that replace sources like coal and oil.
The Wimberley area has been feeling the effects of continuing dependence on fossil fuels for some time. More than one homeowner or business in the Hill Country has been wishing lately their electrical power came from a renewable source like sun or wind.
Energy costs are skyrocketing and oil companies are making record profits. The president of OPEC, Chakib Khelil, warned the price of crude could hit $200 a barrel. He's probably right, despite bouncing recession-era prices.
And we've seen with the largest oil spill in history off our shores, BP's Deepwater Horizon, that the costs reach far higher than just the price we see at the pump.
Added to that is the fact that visitors now look twice at the astronomical costs of fuel for what was once considered a short drive to the Hill Country - and Wimberley depends heavily on tourism.
Hill Country residents are also become more aware of the fragility of a lifestyle dependent on unsustainable energy sources. Going green is no longer just for "tree-huggers," but has become a goal for every Texan with awareness of the inconvenient truths of our rapidly diminishing resources.
Wimberley is feeling the pain and it's easy to see why those who work and live in the area are looking for ways to cope more efficiently with the energy challenge..."
"Direct conversion of solar radiation to electricity (photovoltaics and concentrating solar power) is an obvious solution to the energy problem in Central Texas, converting heat from the infamously hot Texas sun to a priceless asset. Scaling up the use of solar energy is a no-brainer, it would seem." "
-visitwimberley.com article on upcoming Wimberley energy needs
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