Everything You Need to Know About Net Metering

If you are considering switching to solar, you may have heard of net metering. This is a solar energy incentive that gives solar power users who produce excess energy some great benefits. 

Wondering how net metering works? Our team at Solar Bear outlines everything that you need to know. 

What is Net Metering?

Net metering allows solar users who produce excess solar power to send their surplus energy back to the electric grid. When you supply energy to the eclectic grid, your energy meter will run backward until you stop producing more than you use. 

Other customers who use the same utility company will use the extra power that you send to the grid, and you will be compensated for supplying the energy. This credit will help offset your monthly energy bills making it a very enticing incentive. 

Keep in mind, while you can receive utility bill credits for the electricity that your solar panels produce, in most cases you won’t receive a cash payment from your utility for your excess solar electricity. Instead, you will build up energy credits to use during the night or the winter months when solar output is less. 

If you generate more electricity than you use in a year, utility companies in some states will let you carry credits over into the next year, while others will reduce your credits. 

With that in mind, size your solar panel system to be large enough to offset close to 100 percent of your energy needs, but not too large that you produce significantly more than you use. 

Why Does Net Metering Exist? 

Net metering was designed for two purposes:

• To encourage the adoption of solar power throughout the country
• Utilities can benefit from the influx of low or no solar energy into the grid

Solar energy helps balance the cost of purchasing electricity from other less environmentally friendly resources, especially during the summer when electricity is the most expensive. 

What About Going Off the Grid? 

Net metering is like having the utility grid serve as a giant solar battery. If you install an off-grid solar panel system, you won’t receive the benefits of net metering and won’t be able to rely on the grid. Rather, you will need your own batteries to keep the power on when the sun goes down. 

For most solar applications, staying connected to the grid is a good idea. 

Net Metering Reduces Pressure on the Grid 

Residential solar panels provide many benefits to utilities and their customers because ultimately, they help reduce the dress on the grid. Because solar-powered homes aren’t using electricity directly from the grid, there are fewer people drawing power directly from the grid. 

Plus, when excess energy is sent to the grid from your solar system, this takes even more pressure off the utility company. This is especially important now in places where heat waves are becoming more common, and utilities can’t adequately meet energy demands. 

Use Net Metering to Save on Solar 

Net metering is one of the best benefits of installing solar since it allows you to store every unit of excess energy that you produce to be used later from the grid. 

Thanks to net metering, you can save thousands of dollars over the lifetime of your solar system by offsetting your need to draw electricity from the grid. 

Start Your Solar Journey with Solar Bear 

Ready to harness the power of the sun and send excess energy back to the grid to take advantage of net metering? Call our solar installation professionals at Solar Bear for a solar installation consultation! 

Make your home more efficient by going solar. Call Solar Bear today — 407-904-7585!