To speed the adoption of solar power in homes and small businesses, One Block Off the Grid returns to the Los Angeles area with its group purchasing program. The San Francisco-based firm has twice before offered the program to residents and businessowners throughout Los Angeles County, bringing in about 102 members who made the installations. One Block co-founder David Llorens expressed confidence that new additions to the program – an online estimation tool and a group reward bringing savings with more members – will prove even successful. Purchasing a solar installation can be a complicated and expensive venture and One Block Off the Grid wants to simplify the process in the nine U.S. cities it operates in. “Then we can use group dynamics to spread the word and get the group to grow itself,” Llorens said. “That is a great way to increase the adoption of solar.” Homes and businesses using solar power remain a small number even in a state like California with abundant sunshine. The California Solar Initiative is trying to change that by offering incentive payments for home- and businessowners putting solar panels on their property. Through early December, the initiative supervised by the state utilities commission had received 30,500 applications of which more than 23,000 had been completed for a total of 277 megawatts. Los Angeles County ranked third in the state with 9.2 percent of the installations, putting it behind San Diego and Santa Clara counties. Utilities like Southern California Edison and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power offer rebates on use of solar. In addition, there is a 30 percent federal tax credit. These credits and rebates are automatically calculated in at the online estimation tool that One Block now offers at its website. Tarzana resident Alexandre Emelianov found out about One Block from an online banner ad. He had looked at getting solar panels from a chain home improvement store but didn’t care for the prices. The cost from One Block was much better, he said. “It makes sense financially,” said Emelianov, who bought his Valley home in 2002. “I save money and my property value goes up and it is good for the environment.” The current program accepts members through Feb. 9 after which those who have signed up will be contacted by SunWize Technologies Inc., the installer of the solar panels. One Block chooses its installation partners through the request-for-proposal process and makes a final determination bases on criteria such as the stability of the company, the installation practices and customer service. The installer can realize cost savings of its own because One Block members tend to cluster near each other so there is not a far distance to travel between jobs, Llorens said. Along with the group rates, One Block also offers general information about solar power to callers.
Group Purchasing Program Cuts Cost of Solar Panels
