Thought solar panels were a scam until my neighbor's bill showed up

My neighbor across the street in Buffalo put them on his roof last spring and just showed me his electric bill from January - he owed $12 while mine was $214. Has anyone else had that moment where you realize you were wrong about something climate related?

2 comments

2 Comments

daniel_lane301mo ago

That quote "he owed $12 while mine was $214" really hits different when you see it in plain numbers like that. I heard a podcast where they broke down how the cost of solar panels dropped like 80% in the last ten years, so it's not just for rich people anymore. Sounds like your neighbor might be onto something unless he secretly works for the power company or something.

claire_ramirez1mo ago

Ngl the 80% drop stat is right but it's been more like 50-60% over the last decade depending on where you live and what kind of panels you're looking at. Solar's definitely more affordable now though, like a basic system for a small house can run you $10k-$15k before tax credits. Honestly the bigger issue is that not everyone has the cash upfront or good enough credit for a loan, even if the long term savings are solid. But yeah your neighbor probably isn't scamming you just because he's got savings on his bill.