More than 200 homes in the Lake Minnetonka area have solar systems made and installed by All Energy Solar; Sid and Brian Curtis are among those recent solar pioneers.
The Curtises had been thinking about generating energy with solar for the past five or six years, checking for tax credits and rebates that would lower the cost. In 2018, they had a rooftop system installed on their garage for an investment of $1,000. Sid Curtis said a federal tax credit cut their cost by about a third, and a loan paid for the solar panels.
“The amount of energy we produce each month saves us more than the cost of the loan. Once the loan is paid off, the excess energy produced will be sold to Xcel, our energy provider,” Sid Curtis said.
With storage batteries mounted on the back of the garage, the system feeds power back to Xcel. So instead of paying monthly for power, the Curtises have received credits on their bills.
Sid Curtis said she also appreciates the system keeps track of how much energy each of their 28 solar panels is generating. “If too much tree shade is impacting productivity, we can identify that and do something about it,” she said.
