At Apollo Energy, we spend a lot of time talking to Colorado and Wyoming residents about their energy use – and now more than ever, it seems electrification is on the minds of homeowners up and down the Front Range.
Whether you are just starting your research or years into your personal electrification journey, in this article, we will outline precisely why a solar energy system should be one of your highest priorities.
The Power of Electrification + Solar
Electrification is an ongoing process filled with small and large opportunities to reduce your carbon footprint in the kitchen, basement, garage, and practically every room in the house. As a homeowner making sustainable decisions, pairing solar with electrification efforts can minimize your ongoing electricity costs and environmental impact.
Fossil fuel elimination
At its core, electrification is an environmental effort. However, if you replace your gas-consuming appliances with their electric alternatives, this does not mean your home will be instantly running fossil fuel-free if it is still powered by grid electricity.
As a large percentage of Colorado and Wyoming’s electricity is generated by coal and natural gas, pivoting to solar allows you to better control your home’s total environmental impact with less grid dependency. By adding a battery backup, you can also manage your stored energy around solar-generating hours to run more of your home directly with emission-free power at night or during a grid blackout.
Energy efficiency
Preventing unnecessary power consumption, energy efficiency plays a vital role in electrification within many different aspects of a home. This includes:
Building envelope improvements (new doors, windows, insulation, etc.)
Home energy controls and smart thermostats
Interior and exterior lighting
More than anything, however, energy efficiency is critical when updating your appliances and heating systems to keep your electricity costs low. In addition to high-efficiency washers, dryers, dishwashers, stoves, and refrigerators, heat pumps are largely becoming the technology of the future for efficient home heating and cooling.
Locally owned and operated In Colorado (just like us), we recommend Ductless Plus to our solar customers electrifying with heat pumps, mini splits, or other energy-efficient home improvements.
When paired with a set of rooftop panels, an energy-efficient heating and cooling system can help maximize the percentage of your home run on solar energy – resulting in the lowest possible costs for your electricity.
Rebates and incentives
With federal, state, and local efforts heading towards net zero, there are many rebates and incentives for solar and high-efficiency appliances available to homeowners going electric in Colorado and Wyoming. Denver residents alone can cash in on thousands of dollars of rebates for EV chargers, heat pumps, solar, batteries, and other home upgrades.
Most importantly, however, the Residential Clean Energy Credit is available to all Colorado and Wyoming residents – worth up to 30% of the costs of a solar system with no cap in value. Redeemed as a federal income tax credit, Wyoming and Colorado homeowners can now also take advantage of similar credits when purchasing heat pumps, home energy audits, and several other green investments, capped at $3,200 per year.
Wrapping Up
Although your electrification efforts may resemble a marathon more than a sprint, there is no better time than the present to take advantage of the nationally available rebates and incentives for solar, heat pumps, and other green energy technologies.
With solar as a pillar of your home’s electrification efforts, you gain more control over your carbon footprint and ongoing energy costs – which is especially true if your new stove, heater, or vehicle will increase your property’s annual electricity consumption.
Want to see how much you can save with solar?
Contact Apollo Energy today for a free assessment.