Why this site exists

Search for almost any solar question and you’ll land on a page owned by a company that profits when you buy. That doesn’t make the information wrong, but it does shape which questions get answered and which get skipped.

The gaps are predictable. Nobody selling rooftop solar writes a good page about what happens during a power outage, or how the fee buried in low-interest financing works, or why a salesperson might tell you about a federal tax credit that no longer exists.

That last one is why I finally started writing. The 30% residential federal tax credit ended on December 31, 2025. Months later, a great deal of solar content still says it runs through 2032 — including pages carrying a 2026 date. People are making twenty-five-year decisions based on it.

How I decide what to publish

• Every figure gets a source, listed at the bottom of the page. Where possible that means a primary source — the IRS rather than someone summarizing the IRS.
• Every money page carries a review date. Solar pricing and policy move quickly. If a date looks old, treat the numbers with suspicion — here or anywhere else.
• Ranges rather than single numbers. A range that’s right is more useful than a precise figure that’s wrong.
• If I don’t know, I say so. “This depends on your utility” is more honest than inventing a national average that fits nobody.

How this site makes money

It doesn’t.

There are no ads, no affiliate links, no quote forms, no lead generation, and no installer paying to be listed or recommended. Nothing you do here is sold to anyone, and there is no form to submit — the sizing calculator runs entirely inside your own browser and sends nothing anywhere.

If that ever changes, it will be disclosed plainly at the top of this page rather than buried. A site whose whole argument is independence doesn’t get to be quiet about its own incentives.

What I’m not

I’m not a solar installer, an electrician, an accountant or an attorney. Nothing here is professional advice, and the pages touching tax and financing say so where it matters. What I can do is read the primary sources carefully and explain what they say in language that doesn’t require a background in tax law.

For anything that affects your actual money — your tax return, a financing agreement, a contract you’re about to sign — talk to a qualified professional. Use this site to walk into that conversation knowing what to ask.

Corrections

If something here is wrong, out of date, or unclear, I want to know. Accuracy is the only thing this site has going for it. Corrections get made and the review date gets updated.