How a 2026 Solar Introduction Works

Step 1: the estimate

You enter a ZIP code and a typical monthly electric bill. You get a range, not a contract.

The ZIP code selects the state so we can use that state's 2025 EIA average price and a rounded sun-hour figure. It does not look up your roof, your utility account, or your credit. The bill should be a normal month, not the single worst summer bill, unless that is truly your typical month.

The result is labeled an estimate. It shows the rate, the sun hours, the shade treatment, and a list of things left out, including equipment cost and incentives. If the number is uninteresting, stop. You do not owe a conversation.

You can also read how solar works or a city page before you decide the number is worth a call.

Step 2: the house

Address, ownership, and a plain description of shade make the introduction useful. They do not replace a site visit.

We ask whether you own the home because an installation usually needs the owner's permission. If you do not own it, you can still ask for information, and we pass that answer along so nobody pretends otherwise.

Shade is full sun, partial, or mostly shaded. That is a coarse adjustment. Trees, chimneys, and dormers need eyes on the roof. The installer should do that before a price is treated as final.

The address is how a local company knows whether they work in that city. It is not a permit application.

Step 3: the call, if you ask

The consent box is unchecked until you check it. The call is the thing you are requesting.

The consent text is next to the button and is also on the TCPA consent page. It says American Solar Savings and its partners may contact you by phone, text, and email, including with automated technology. Consent is not a condition of buying anything. Message and data rates may apply. Reply STOP to opt out of texts.

We store the consent text, the time, the page URL, the IP address, and the browser user agent with the lead. That record is described in the privacy policy. have counsel review is a note for the company in the code and the README, not a claim that a lawyer has already signed the sentence.

You pick a morning, afternoon, or evening window. The caller should aim for it. An evening request may be returned the next day. You can say you are not interested.

Step 4: a written proposal, from the installer

The installer, not this website, prices the job. Compare it with a second proposal if you can.

A useful proposal names the modules and inverter, shows a production model, states the tariff it assumed, and separates cash price from any financing. Choosing an installer lists the documents. Financing explains why a monthly payment alone is not a price.

We do not mark up the installer's price on the page you see, and we do not guarantee their work. If the proposal and our estimate disagree, believe the more specific document only after you understand its assumptions. Disagreement is a reason to ask questions, not a reason to feel rushed.

You can stop after the proposal. A deposit is a separate decision. Same-day pressure is a reason to wait, not a reason to sign.

After you hire someone

Permits, installation, inspection, and utility permission to operate are the installer's project.

We do not schedule your inspection or file your interconnection. Those steps belong to the company you hired and to the local building department and utility. Timelines vary. Berkeley Lab's data update discusses permit durations because they are a real part of the experience, and they are not uniform.

When the system is on, watch the monitoring. A silent failure is lost production. Who you call when the portal is dark should be written in the contract. That phone number is the installer's, not a number we have withheld. We have not published an operations line because we are not the operator of the array.