It’s fairly simple. Sunlight excites electrons in solar panels, and the electricity flows to an inverter where it is converted from direct current (DC) to alternating current (AC), the type of electricity our homes and businesses use. There is no net metering in the Tennessee Valley, so instead of selling your excess solar to the grid, you can store your extra solar in batteries to use at nighttime and for backup power during grid outages.

Solar and battery system size is usually determined by your home’s existing electric service, your electricity use, your available space and your budget. We will customize your system to help you reduce your consumption of grid electricity and have reliable backup power.

The cost of solar depends on many variables, but a typical residential solar + battery system cost range is $50,000-$80,000. Our turnkey price includes everything required to provide a fully installed system. Additional costs would be required for a ground-mount system, long distance ground work, concrete work, or extended travel.

We recommend obtaining a home equity loan through your mortgage lender.

You want your roof to be in the best condition possible because the average working life span of a solar system is around 30 to 40 years. Thus, we don’t recommend installation on composition shingle roofs over 10 years old. If you are building a new house, here is guidance on building a solar-ready home.

Yes! A solar system reduces electric costs and adds security and independence which can make it a valuable asset to any homeowner. According to a 2015 Berkeley Lab report, solar (without storage) adds at least $15,000 to the value of a home. The report shows an average selling price increase of $3.75/watt ($18,750 for 4kW system).

Some homeowners associations have rules regarding the installation of anything on your roof or grounds. If you belong to a homeowners association, contact them and ask about neighborhood guidelines. In our experience, most homeowners associations decide in favor of solar system installations. If necessary, we can help educate your HOA on the benefits of a solar system.

It depends on your home’s existing electric service, as well as how much solar and storage you add. Generally, if your home has only one electric service panel, solar and batteries can backup your whole home. If you have more than one service panel, solar and batteries can back up part of your home. If you have two or more service panels, LightWave can move your most important circuits onto the same panel so your desired loads are backed up.

Depending on sunlight, battery charge level, and your consumption, your home will have backup power for as long as you need it. With a mobile app, you will be able to keep an eye on these variables to ensure your system meets your needs. If you happen to deplete your batteries overnight, you will have more power as soon as your solar panels receive sunlight the next morning.

Yes! But it will be less productive. Production is proportionate to the thickness of cloud cover.

Our systems include online production monitoring so you can see your system’s performance on any computer or smartphone. You can compare your solar production to our estimates to ensure your system is on track.

For a typical residential system, it takes about three days to install the PV panels and equipment. Then, the system must pass a final State electrical inspection which normally occurs within 10 days of completed installation. Then, we coordinate system activation with your local power company.

The solar panels we install have a product warranty for 25 years and a power performance warranty for 25 years. The power performance warranty means that by the end of year 25, the panels’ actual power output will be no less than 80% of the labeled power output. Most of the inverters we install are warrantied for 10 or 12 years, and many brands offer an extended warranty. Tesla Powerwall batteries have 10 year warranties.

The panels are supported by high quality stainless steel and aluminum racking systems designed and mounted based on American Society of Civil Engineer (ASCE) wind load provisions. All solar panels are tested to UL-1703 standards and are capable of withstanding one inch (2.5cm) hailstones at 50MPH. They are covered with tempered glass, akin to a car windshield. Additionally, we recommend adding your panels to your homeowners insurance. In our experience, hail often causes damage to asphalt shingles around solar panels, but does not damage the panels.

We mount solar panels on your roof or on a ground-mount structure and run wires through conduit to an inverter. Wires from the inverter’s output go through conduit to an exterior-mounted solar disconnect. From there, we run wires through conduit to your breaker panel, which allows your home to use the electricity flowing from your solar panels. Whenever possible, we mount all gear close to your utility meter, and it occupies a space about 3′ tall x 4′ wide. To store solar power for consumption at night or during a grid outage, we incorporate batteries into your system. Each battery is about 45” tall x 30” wide x 6” deep, and we recommend installing batteries indoors, such as in a garage or utility room.