Richard and Marvina – Indianapolis, Indiana

April 12, 2019 Homeowner stories, Indiana
Richard and Marvina Steiner with their latest EV, a 2018 Honda clarity plug-in hybrid.

Decreasing cost and net metering encouraged us to go solar.

Richard and Marvina – Indianapolis, Indiana
Went solar in 2017
System Size: 9.9 kW, 36 panels
Monthly home energy costs now lower than $30 a month

Why did you decide to go solar?

Residential solar installation costs have steadily decreased over many years. However, the passage of SB 309 in Indiana and threats of increasing import tariffs on solar panels threaten to slow this decline. So in March 2017, we hired a lawyer, a structural engineer, an electrician, and a solar contractor. On August 16, 2017, we started producing power, and we feed the surplus back to the grid under a net metering agreement with Indianapolis Power and Light (IPL).

9.9 kW rooftop solar system includes 36 panels.

Has anything surprised you about going solar?

By coupling our installation with off-peak electric vehicle (EV) charging, our system has supercharged our energy savings and drastically reduced our carbon footprint. We’ve virtually eliminated our nitrous oxide and volatile organic compound emissions.

Do you have any data on your solar system’s performance? What electricity saving have you experienced since going solar?

About half of our monthly bills are now just the monthly access fee of about $12.08. And our cost per mile to drive electric is 1.1 cents per mile!

What advice would you give to someone who is considering going solar?

If I could give any advice to future solar home owners, it would be to plan now!

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

We plan to add A/C-coupled battery storage for peak shaving and emergency power outages. But it does not need to be as large as an off-grid system because of the large capacity capabilities of the EV batteries.