Enrollment Now Open at solarizemadison.com
(Wampsville, NY – April 2013) After a resounding success in 2012, Solarize Madison is back for Round II, and this year the program will offer homeowners, businesses, farms, municipalities and institutions in Madison County discounted pricing on both solar photovoltaic and solar hot water systems.
Sponsored by Madison County and the Renewable Energy Training Center at Morrisville State College, Solarize Madison is proud to announce the selection of CNY Solar, Inc., of Canastota, as the installer for this year’s campaign.
“We are excited to work with Madison County, through the Solarize Madison program, to educate our community on the benefits of going solar and to offer discount prices for program participants,” said Justin Williams, owner and NABCEP certified installer of CNY Solar, Inc.
Solarize Madison is a volume-purchasing program that streamlines the process and lessens the cost of installing solar energy for electricity or hot water. With this volume purchasing approach, the more people in Madison County who decide to install solar, the greater the price reduction for all participants in the program.
Prices for Solarize Madison participants start out at $3.70/watt for solar PV which is 38 percent lower than the state average of $6/watt, with the potential of further price drops based on the volume of total systems installed and an additional $1.40/watt rebate from NYSERDA in eligible areas.
Additionally, for conversion of electric hot water to solar thermal, the average out-of-pocket cost would be $4,000 per system before any federal or state tax credits are applied and a potential final average cost of $1,800 per system after tax credits. In total, participants in the program can expect up to 75 percent savings over full-market price for either type of system.
Also, effective January 2013, commercial solar energy systems are now exempt from state sales tax (residential systems have been exempt since 2005). With the Solarize Madison program, all permits and paperwork associated with installing the system are taken care of for the participant.
To learn more about solar and the program, interested participants are encouraged to attend the free public information meetings scheduled across Madison County:
Monday, April 29, 7 p.m., Oneida Public Library, 220 Broad St., Oneida
Tuesday, April 30, 7 p.m., DeRuyter Public Library, 735 Utica St., DeRuyter
Thursday, May 2, 7 p.m., Hamilton Public Library, 13 Broad St., Hamilton
Monday, May 6, 7 p.m., Canastota Public Library, 102 W. Center St., Canastota
Tuesday, May 7, 7p.m., Quack’s Village Inn, 7239 U.S. 20, Madison
Thursday, May 9, 7 p.m., Cazenovia Public Library, 100 Albany St., Cazenovia
Last year’s Solarize Madison campaign focused only on solar PV and resulted in 29 solar systems for a total capacity of 184.2 kw, doubling the amount of solar used in the county. County Planning Department Director Scott Ingmire is happy with those results.
“Last year’s program was a tremendous success, and we are excited to be offering the program again with the additional option for solar hot water this time around,” Ingmire said.
Bob Smith, a participant in last year’s program, had a 3 kw system installed on his home.
“I am very glad I decided to install my PV System with Solarize Madison,” Smith said. “They made it easy, and it gives me great pleasure to monitor the system daily and see its production record online using the monitoring system provided.”
With the new option to install solar for hot water, Solarize Madison is offering participants another way to harness the sun and save money. The water heater is often the second-largest energy consumer in the home (after space heating and cooling), accounting for 12 percent or more of a home owner’s annual energy costs.
No matter the present fuel source of the water heater – electric, propane, fuel oil – replacing it with a solar thermal system reduces the overall energy requirements to save money. Solar hot water systems have also become increasingly popular among dairy farmers, as these farms typically use a tremendous amount of energy to heat water for milking operations.
Solarize Madison is open to any home, business, farm and municipality in Madison County.
“Enrollment for the program is now open for interested participants to sign up for a free site assessment through our website, and we encourage anyone who is interested in learning more to attend one of the six workshops being held throughout the County,” Ingmire said.
To participate, those interested must enroll for a free site assessment by June 28. To sign up for a free site assessment or for more details on the program including testimonials from last year’s program, information on solar systems and pricing, visit solarizemadison.com.
Solarize Madison is a grassroots community effort in Madison County focused on community solar initiatives to help overcome the financial and logistical hurdles of installing solar power through high-volume group purchasing. The goal of Solarize Madison is to transform interest in clean energy into action by tackling cost, a complex process and customer commitment.