A Charlottesville-based nonprofit has launched a campaign to help guide homeowners who are interested in going solar. WMRA's Randi B. Hagi reports.
From now until August 31st, the Local Energy Alliance Program is running their "Solarize Virginia" campaign. Homeowners in 33 localities across the state, including most of the Shenandoah Valley, central Virginia, NoVA, and the Tidewater area, are eligible to sign up.
KATIE VANLANGEN: Our goal is really to help folks that are interested in going solar and make the process as easy as possible for them.
Katie VanLangen is the organization's co-executive director. Through the program, you can get a free satellite assessment of your roof –
VANLANGEN: … or your property if you might be interested in a ground mount installation as well. [We] see if your roof is good for solar, and if it is, we can move participants forward in the process and connect them with our pre-vetted installers and the discounted pricing that we've set as a part of the program.
They aim to offer prices 10% to 20% below market rate by negotiating with hand-picked installers.
VANLANGEN: We're looking at the equipment that they're proposing, the warranties, how long they've been in business for. We check their references. … And, past experience – some of these partners, we've worked with before. And then we also look at pricing.
It's free to sign up for the roof assessment, and there's no commitment unless and until you sign a contract with a solar installer. To learn more, visit their website at solarizeva.org.
