Simply Solar Review

Simply Solar Overview

Simply Solar is a full-service solar installation company headquartered at Petaluma, California. Founded in 2014, Simply Solar is a small-sized company but far larger than most solar installation companies in the country. The company uses a customer-focused system that provides solar solutions, services, and products for clients looking to make a switch to cleaner energy.

They handle both high-cost and low-cost projects and offer services such as energy evaluation, solar design, solar installation, and solar financing, battery backup and storage, and solar energy system monitoring.

Simply Solar Services and Specifics

Simply Solar operates mainly in the San Francisco Bay Area. The company provides the following services;

• Site Evaluation: Simply Solar offers energy audit and site analysis for clients who wish to go solar. The analysis is usually followed by a solar design that is customized to the energy needs of the client.

• Solar System Design: Simply Solar experts design solar systems that are configured for a property’s energy needs. The company’s solar experts help the client choose the best solar panel, inverters, etc. depending on the client’s budget or energy preferences.

• Solar Installations: Simply Solar provides solar panel installations based on a solar design for residential, commercial and non-profits clients.

• Solar Financing: Simply Solar also offers solar financing options in the form of solar loans or leases.

• Battery Backup & Storage: For customers who wish to go off the grid, Simply Solar also provides standalone solar systems that are powered by backup batteries.

• Solar Energy System Monitoring: Simply Solar also offers solar monitoring system installations that tracks the performance of a solar system and reduces O&M costs by increasing system up-time and resolving faults more effectively.

Simply Solar services have received very positive reviews from clients.

In the reviews, customers commended the company particularly for their;

• Professionalism
• Transparency
• Helpfulness
• Product and installations quality
• Clear and polite communication

Solar Panels and Services offered by Simply Solar

Simply Solar offers solar products from the following solar manufacturers;

• LG Chem: LG Chem batteries can hold between 9.6 and 16 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity, depending on the size you choose. The newer LG Chem RESU 10H Prime and 16H Prime batteries are made to work with many different kinds of inverters from top solar brands such as SMA, SolarEdge, Sungrow, GoodWe, and Solis.

• SolarEdge Technologies: SolarEdge is an Israeli company that develops and sells solar inverters for photovoltaic arrays, energy generation monitoring software, battery energy storage products, as well as other related products and services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. One key SolarEdge product used by solar companies is the StorEdge inverter. It comes in different models ranging in output power from 2200 to 6000 watts, and operating at an efficiency of 99.2%.

Specific Solar Panels Offered

Simply Solar installs solar panels from the following solar manufacturers;

• REC: REC solar panels come in various specifications to satisfy a wide range of solar designs. The most popularly used REC solar panels are the REC Alpha Pure & Pure-R (410-430 Wp) and REC N-Peak 2 (360-375 Wp). REC’s solar panels range in efficiency from 16.5% to 21.9%.

• Solaria: Solaria is an American solar manufacturer. The company’s newest solar panel is the 400-Watt PowerXT. Achieving up to 20%+ efficiency, Solaria PowerXT solar panels are one of the highest power panels in the residential solar market today.

• Silfab Solar: Silfab Solar is a Canadian manufacturer of solar panels for residential, commercial and utility scale applications. For residential purposes, the Silfab Prime series is perfect, consisting the SIL-370 HC (370Wp, 20.2% efficiency) and SIL-400 HC+ (400Wp, 20.2% efficiency). The Silfab Elite is the highest-efficiency solar panel series, it is more powerful and more expensive.

For commercial purposes, we recommend the Silfab Commercial series. They are designed and engineered to meet the needs of commercial projects where maximum power density is required. They have a module power of 490Wp and efficiency of 20.9%.

Specific Types of Solar Offered

Simply Solar offers grid-tied installations. They handle the following types of solar projects;

• Residential Solar: In this service, Simply Solar installs a complete solar energy kit customized to the electricity needs of a resident’s home.

• Commercial Solar: This service is designed for business organizations. It targets business owners who wish to opt for more economical energy-saving strategies to maximize profit long term. They design custom systems for a variety of industries which include;
  • Healthcare
  • Retail and shopping centers
  • Restaurants and wineries
  • Agriculture
  • Apartment buildings
  • Schools
  • Art galleries
  • Performance venues

Installation costs and process

Costs

Based on the company website, the cost of going solar with Simply Solar is about $3 per watt before any solar incentive. There are several solar incentives available that could cut these costs to very affordable levels. Incentives such as;

• Federal Solar Tax Credit (ITC): With this solar incentive, every solar patronizer in the US is eligible to a 26% tax credit for solar systems installed in the years 2020 to 2022, then it comes down to 22% in 2023. This means you can reduce the total cost of installing a solar system for your home or business by 26%. But remember this incentive applies to those who buy their system either by cash purchase or solar loan, and not leases.

• Net Metering Program: Electric utilities in California offer “true net metering” to customers with solar PV systems.

Some of the solar incentives available in California include;

• California Solar System Property Tax Exemption: California has a renewable energy property tax exemption so that residents of the State don’t pay extra taxes as a result of the value their solar panels add to their homes

• Local Utility Company Rebates: There are other cash incentives for installing solar panels in California;

• • Through San Francisco’s GoSolarSF program, residents can get a cash incentive of $100 to $2,000 per kW of home solar installed for up to 4 kW.
  • Sacramento Municipal Utility District’s (SMUD) solar rebate program offers a solar incentive of $300 to residential customers in Sacramento who choose to install a new rooftop solar system.

Simply Solar offers the following financing options;

• Loan: You can apply for a loan through your local bank or credit union or explore Simply Solar’ loan options, allowing you to finance your solar system even if you cannot purchase it outright. Clients can also utilize tax credits and rebates for a cheaper payment.
• Lease: Low monthly payments to add solar to your home or business.
• PACE: Through the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program, businesses in participating areas can pay for their solar system through their property tax, allowing repayment for up to 20 years on a fixed rate loan.

Based on our analysis of their competitors in the state, Simply Solar’ price rates meet the average standard solar rates in California. So their rates are not too expensive and not too cheap. The solar incentives available in California cut Simply Solar’ price rates by more than 50%. Any reader interested in going solar in California should take advantage of the solar incentives available in the state.

Legitimacy

1. Simply Solar is registered and licensed to operate in the state of California.
2. The company’s website is online.
3. Simply Solar is BBB accredited with an A+ rating.
4. The company is NABCEP-certified.
5. Simply Solar is a certified partner of top solar manufacturers, REC and SolarEdge.
6. The company’s contact details are publicly available. These include their street address, email, phone number and operating hours.

Based on our findings, we are confident to say Simply Solar is a fully registered and legitimate solar contractor in the state of California.

Maintenance

Simply Solar provides after sales support and maintenance. Their repairs and maintenance services are conducted by in-house technicians. Also SSS offers solar products with the following warranties;

• 10 Year Limited Warranty (Generac’s PWRcell)
• 20-year product warranty (REC)
• 25-year product warranty (Silfab Solar)
• 30-year linear power, labor and workmanship warranty (Solaria)
• 20-year inverter warranty, extendable to 25 years (SolarEdge)
• 10-year performance warranty (LG Chem)

Customers have expressed much satisfaction with Simply Solar’s maintenance team for their availability and timeliness.

Customer service

Simply Solar’s customer service has received mostly positive reviews from clients. They have been commended for their responsiveness.

The SolarEmpower View

Simply Solar is a solar solutions provider located in Petaluma, California.

Simply Solar has been in the solar business for more than eight years, which means they have a very good level of experience in the solar contracting business. From our findings, the company is very organized and its structure has been made transparent and public for all to see. All of their projects are handled in-house, this alone boosts their accountability score in our analysis. And over 93% of their customers have expressed much satisfaction with the company’s quality of service.

In conclusion, we highly recommend Simply Solar for any solar project in California.

The table below is a summarized review of Simply Solar: