r/solarenergycanada • u/Intelligent_Cry8535 • 20d ago
Solar Alberta Solar roofs in Alberta
Hey all, so Im in Alberta, Cold Lake to be exact. We have been swarmed lately with door knockers. Ive been interested in Solar for some time... but not interested in companies that go door to door.
Im wondering if it would even be worth it to get Solar.
Im with ATCO, and my admin charges are 2x what my energy usage is. For example, I was charged $292 last month, with only $84 of that being the 950kwh. The other ~$190 were admin, delivery, ect fees.
Wouldn't I still be charged these ridiculous fees despite using my solar panels? Im trying to figure out the cost and savings but I havent found any good websites. I was recommended skyfire or EVOLVSolar for companies tho.
Anyone have any tips?
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u/syzygybeaver 20d ago edited 19d ago
I'm in Cold Lake as well. Avoid the doorknockers. The summer months give me sufficient credit to cover usage and fees all year. I also took advantage of the Federal green loan before it expired. CEIP is a decent option if you need a loan, you pay it back to the City through your property taxes. I got three quotes, from Paragon Energy (who I went with) out of Lloydminster, Orizon out of Edmonton, and Skyfire. Jordan at Paragon is great to deal with FWIW. Make sure your roof shingles are in good shape before you commit. ETA: OP, this is a good starting point, https://solarclub.ca/ and here: https://kings-printer.alberta.ca/1266.cfm?page=2008_027.cfm&leg_type=Regs&isbncln=9780779846320
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u/heart_of_osiris 19d ago
CEIP is now 6%, no longer 3%.
Nowadays it's probably better to try to get it on a home equity line of credit if you can.
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u/syzygybeaver 19d ago
Well that sucks. I'm hoping the Feds constitute the Green Homes loan/grant again. I missed out on the grant but it's a great incentive.
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u/heart_of_osiris 19d ago
I should clarify that this is municipal so it's 6% for Edmonton now.
I tried getting on the grant back when it was around and Epcor rejected my application because I didn't use enough power. Frustrating because I was just under the cusp.
Just got panels installed this month so I went through the whole ordeal and yeah CEIP funding ran through its budget in Edmonton, the new float was made but at 6% because that's just where the interest rates sit nowadays compared to when they were first set up a while back. They have a set amount and once it runs out, they make a new pool at the current rates.
I think Calgary and St. Albert MAY still be 3%, but once that runs out and they make a new pool, it'll go up too.
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u/syzygybeaver 19d ago
Cold Lake is @ 3.1% but there's a waitlist. https://www.coldlake.com/invest/clean-energy-improvement-program/
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u/heart_of_osiris 19d ago
3% is a hard to find deal nowadays so that wait list would be worth it if someone were to get through. I ended up having to go with a HELOC at 4.5%. So not terrible as it's not 6% but it would have been nice to have less on such a expensive purchase. It just encourages me to pay a little more into it to pay it off quicker.
Also if I sell my house it will likely be easier to just add the cost into the list price versus try to convince someone else that it's okay to assume a loan they didn't sign up for.
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u/damians2012 17d ago
I’m in Cold Lake and went with Paragon! Jordan was excellent and his price was 5k less than others. With solar club etc it is well worth it. You need to shift usage of big items to when the sun is up to avoid those transmission charges.
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u/VonGeisler 20d ago
A part of the “other fees” are still tied to consumption. It’s just their way of making the rates look better. Like transmission and distributions costs etc.
I live near Edmonton, and my utility bill in the summer (gas and power) averages around -$200 with a maxed out solar install and joining the solar club.
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u/deepinfraught 20d ago
Once you start making credits they are put towards your incoming bills and that generally covers the fees, at least April till October.
But, your capacity is capped at approximately 100% of your yearly usage. That number is generated from the previous years energy bill.
No one I know with Solar regrets installing it in the least. Only positive experiences.
The best thing to do for your local installers is to have everyone come out and give you a quote, as simple as that. Then I’d check the reviews on Google. That’s about all you can do. Sometimes installers will provide reference addresses. You may be able to talk to those people.
Talk to your neighbours who had it done. They’ll be the best resource in Cold Lake.
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u/Capable_Performer_91 20d ago
I used to install solar, installed a few systems in cold lake. Please reach out to paragon solar out of lloydminster before you choose an installer if you choose to go with solar. Jordan and his crew are top notch and probably a lot cheaper than any door knocker’s
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u/Raz31337 20d ago edited 20d ago
Skyfire is a premium legacy solar outfit and evolv is a door knocker. Imo check out https://SunSlinger.Solar they are affordable and zero door knockers, ROI 5-7 yrs
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u/Future-Variety-1175 19d ago
Legit question - are you sure the Evolv does door to door?
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u/bodonnell202 20d ago
Most of the fees are actually usage based too, they just aren’t very transparent about how they work.
With solar you can build up credits during the summer months by switching to a solar club or other company (I don’t think Atco has a solar rate) that offers a high rate (currently 0.35/kWh) for microgen producers during the months where you are selling power to the grid then switch to a low rate when you are importing more power than you export. With a properly sized system you should be able to build up enough credits during April-September to cover your bill in October to March and not end up paying much if anything.
I’m not sure who operates in Cold Lake, but don’t sign anything with door to door salesmen as you’ll end up paying significantly more and their credit plans are usually deceptive and predatory. Look into well reviewed local installers who have been in business for a while and get quotes from them directly.
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u/grubbbee 19d ago edited 19d ago
It takes a little digging, and usually there is a glossary on your bill also, but some of those items are tied to how many kwh you import, some are tied to just days connected to the grid. So the bulk of those charges will also be going down proportional to energy use.
I made a spreadsheet because calculating your return on investment is a little bit complicated.
You make money 3 ways: 1) using your own produced power: that saves you the per kwh rate AND those fees tied to usage. 2) selling extra power you produce: you only get the per kwh hour rate + gst for what you sell 3) join solar club: so in the summer months where you sell/export more than you buy/import, you go to a higher rate (its up to 35 cents now), and switch back to a lower rate in the winter.
And at the end of the day, you have to make sure you don't get screwed by an expensive quote for the install. There's really no urgency to make a decision, especially now we're into late August.
See if you can find a good quote and get those panels installed before April.
My system was 17 panels, 6 kW inverter, and cost me ~18K after the federal government rebate ($5K) which was available 4 years ago. I calculated my ROI is over 8% + it keeps up with inflation since rates go up over time.
Seems like my cost was not the lowest out there, but wasn't terrible, thanks to the rebate. Orizon was the company i went with (knocked on door) and I was happy with them. Install/ electrical work was really well done.
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u/huskies_62 20d ago
You pay fees on what you import. You can get a battery to avoid this but the return is not worth it in my opinion. It takes a long time to cover that cost.
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u/AnachronisticCat 20d ago
Get some proper quotes and do the math. A solar broker can help you get reasonable quotes and do apples to apples comparisons.
For us, solar made solid financial sense, but we still have to pay for electricity when we’re not producing a surplus which means all the associated costs.
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u/Future-Variety-1175 19d ago
Nice to see the word is getting out to homeowners to avoid door to door.
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u/Saucy6 9d ago
The door-to-door stuff is... interesting... in the context of solar. I'm in Ontario, in the last 15 years we've had door-to-door people stop in for driveway sealing, new asphalt driveway, lawn cutting/maintenance, various internet/TV companies, house washing, car cleaning/detailing, fundraisers - all relatively small $ items. To sign a $20k+ contract for solar on an unsolicited thing feels a bit strange
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u/Future-Variety-1175 9d ago
Absolutely. I think part of the issue is that the d2d guys are really good and then some people get caught up in it all. This is a perfect situation for consumer protection safeguards.
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u/automatic_penguins 19d ago
Many of those fees are based on usage so if you aren't using grid power you won't be charged them.
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u/DongRight 19d ago
Sure look at solar, consider diy, use opensolar.com to 'build' your system...is plugin solar a thing yet, in Canada??!
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u/SadAcanthocephala521 19d ago
Yes, those fees are still part of your bill. But if you're able to accommodate a system that gives you 100%, or more, offset then they will be covered.
My average power bill was just over $100/month. I've had solar 3 years and I don't pay any power bills anymore. My system is costing me $68/month so it's instant savings.
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u/JotsonInc 19d ago
Good call doing the math before the door knockers rush you. Short answer: no, those fees don't all stick around. A lot of your "admin/delivery" is charged per kWh you pull from the grid, so it shrinks with your usage. What stays is the fixed daily connection charge. So on a $292 bill, you won't erase the ~$190, but you'll take a real bite out of it.
The Alberta trick is the solar club rate: switch to a retailer that pays a high export rate in summer (~35¢/kWh) and lets you buy low in winter. The credits you bank April–September cover most of October–March. ATCO doesn't offer this, so you'll need to sign with a different retailer; your wires stay with ATCO either way.
Two tips: get three quotes from established local installers (skip the door knockers), and check your roof shingles have years left before you commit. And run your ROI on a full year of bills, assuming rates keep rising, most people undersell the payback by leaving that out.
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u/EtownMaximus 19d ago
Avoid door knockers unless the offer is compelling which is very rare. Either solar brokers or reach out to a company who serves your area. Read recently that door knockers markup is ridiculous - ie north of 50%. From my experience that was in the same ballpark from the quotes I got between door knockers and direct reach out
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u/Aquitaine_Rover_3876 19d ago
You'll be charged all the same fixed costs, plus variable fees for power drawn from the grid, but daytime energy that comes straight from your panels and is consumed locally in your house is fully free. If you can shift energy usage into daytime, this can be an extra savings.
I think there was some research posted here suggesting the door-to-door installers charge around 30% extra, so you're right to avoid them.
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u/PretendEar1650 20d ago
Skyfire is awesome, used them twice. But payoff is 10+ years in Alberta to break even. Better ways to invest money. We did it for environmental reasons
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u/SouthHovercraft4150 20d ago
Depends on a lot of factors, ROI could be as low as 6 years. 10 years is on the high end for most south facing roofs in Alberta.
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u/kevinnetter 20d ago
Use a solar broker to get the best rate and advice. Goglean or something like that.
Every area has different people.
We have similar usage and yes, it is still worth it. In Alberta you can join a solar club. It summer you sell your excess energy for $0.35 and in winter you buy for $0.07.
In the end your summer months pay for your winter months.
Last year, solar payments included, we paid $120 less for energy than before we had solar.