I'm planning to install solar panels on my property to take advantage of federal tax incentives before they expire. However, I'm a bit unclear about the timeline for getting everything up and running, especially since I know the city and the electric company (in my case, PPL) have roles in this process. How long should I expect it to take to make the grid connection once everything is installed? Any advice would be appreciated!
5 Answers
In my experience, once the solar panels were installed and connected, we started generating power right away. However, getting the buyback agreement set up took about three weeks. In our case, the county wasn't involved, so I can't speak to that aspect. If you're not grid-tied and just installing your panels somewhere, the city or county might not even need to be involved!
The timeline really varies depending on your local authority and utility company. In some places in the USA, it can be as quick as a few weeks, while in others, it might stretch out to a year due to the specific requirements and approvals needed.
With AEP in Texas, getting the interconnection agreement took over a month. And if there are any issues, you might get pushed to the back of the queue, which sucks. After you get the agreement, everything else goes pretty quickly, though.
If you’re tackling this project solo and have no prior experience with wiring diagrams or permits, you should probably plan for about three months. That's factoring in the time from the very beginning until you finally power everything on, so expect a learning curve!
I’ve heard horror stories in Canada; it can take decades! Just kidding! But really, it varies widely by location, so it’s tough to give a precise answer.
Right? I hope it won't take that long! In Calgary, it took about 2.5 months from installation completion to seeing changes on the electrical bill. That's not too bad!