How Do We Design a Solar System?

One of the most common questions we get from homeowners and business owners is how we made our design related decisions.

There’s a few simple principles we follow and it’s important that we are not overthinking these designs, since we are going to pass them off to the engineers and they’re going to make them into the true best design for the site.

First we create a layout that is charming to look at. Some homes may be more difficult to do this than others! That is why we use black-on-black for most homes, to blend as much as possible.

Dormers. The #1 affliction of solar designers worldwide.

We’re looking to match the property owner’s personal preferences, and if you’re unsure how you want it to look, we will use some general aesthetic principles to drive the initial layout. We know it when we see it, right? Solar adds a great modern look to a home or business, but not if the layout is sloppy or awkward.

Second we want to work with that layout and move equipment around on the roof to give us the maximum savings. We LOVE properties that face South, look how easy it is to design with that.

It doesn’t get easier to lay out than this home.

This means placing panels where they will be the most productive, so we can use fewer panels to achieve the same results. We already love South, West, and East facing roofs, but we can learn to love a North facing roof if it helps us make all the energy a home consumes.

Third we’ll account for future energy needs and possible energy storage.

We’re not stopping at Mobil, we got gas at home!

We meet a lot of property owners who are planning for pools, HVAC, EVs, and other updates to their property or lifestyle in the next 1-3 years. With a short letter to the utility, we can get extra panels approved for most projects. Also, we will account for energy storage if we are adding that to a project. We want it to get charged as fully as possible all year round, so we may recommend slightly oversizing the system.

The best thing about our software is we can edit designs whenever we feel like it. We actually work as a team to complete your dream layout while we are sitting down together.

Rest Assured that we can meet almost any rational* request.

*If you want to hear what an irrational request sounds like, just request a checkerboard layout at any time during your appointment with us.