Net metering explained

When your panels produce more electricity than your home uses, the extra flows to the grid. Net metering is a billing arrangement that credits you for that exported electricity. The rules are set by states and utilities and they change, so the value of solar can differ a lot between neighbors in different utility territories.

Questions to ask your utility (or installer)

• Is exported power credited at the full retail rate, a lower "avoided cost" rate, or a time-of-use value?
• Do credits roll over month to month, and what happens to unused credits at year-end?
• Are there fixed monthly charges or minimum bills for solar customers?
• Is there a cap on enrollment, and are existing customers grandfathered if rules change?

Look up your state's current net metering and interconnection policies in our state directory (linked to DSIRE, the Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency, run by the N.C. Clean Energy Technology Center).