What are the steps to install solar panels in neighborhood communities and single-family homes?

Euskaraz irakurri: Eguzki panelak jarri nahi ditut auzokoen erkidegoan edo etxebizitza familiabakarrean: zer egin behar dut?

It counts Marcos García, Commercial Manager of the Residential Sector from the company Zuia Engineering, from Vitoria-Gasteiz: the number of information requests received on photovoltaic installations in neighborhood communities and in single-family homes, “it has quadrupled in the past year and doubled since May last year.” Joshua Salazar, manager from the company Ekidom renewable energy, de Berriz, indicates that the increase compared to two years ago is “500%. In 2021 we will double our turnover, and this year too, compared to 2021.” The increase in the electricity price, as well as the energy crisis and the uncertainty with which the coming winter is proposed, explain this increase.

This is how more and more people think install solar panels in their homes, and more and more people are doing it; but,what are the steps to follow? to have this installation in our house? Let’s see.

1. Although it is less common, because according to Josu Salazar, most of the customers are owners of single-family homes or farms, if you live in a community of neighbors and you want to explore solar panel installation, you need get permission from the community to perform the installation. A meeting must be convened and the horizontal property law requires that: a third of the neighbors agree. Of course, Marcos García points out that it is advisable for a simple majority to support the initiative. When the initiative starts from a single-family home, the process to follow, the paperwork, is less complex.

2. Once you have received the support of the neighbors or your family, if you live in a house, farm or similar, the next step is go to an installation companywho will conduct a preliminary study and contact the municipality to apply for the municipal building permit, and the Basque Energy Entity (EVE) or the Consistory itself, to process the corresponding subsidies.

Among other things, it is important to know what it means for peace of mind that the installation company is the one who will be responsible for handling the permits. Marcos García points out that the support provided by the EVE is very important, and further explains that the Basque Energy Entity has significantly reduced the time needed to respond to each stakeholder. The municipal councils, for their part, sometimes give discounts on the property tax (IBI) or exemptions on the municipal building permit, explains Josu Salazar.

The previous study took into account the electricity consumption of the home (neighbouring community or single-family home) and also where the home is located (for example, on the coast or inland, because the number of hours of sunshine per year is not the same). There is an official computer application, a software, that helps with that. In this regard, the EVE describes on its website the three zones into which the Basque Autonomous Community is divided, according to the potential each has to exploit solar energy: it is the coastal zone, the intermediate zone, which it is located in the most central part of Euskadi, and the inner zone, south of the CAV, in Rioja Alavesa.

3. Formalization of the contract with the installation company. This is done after knowing the amount of aid provided by the institutions. An assembly manager explains the feasibility of the work and informs the customer about everything that needs to be done.

Four. Execution of the works for the photovoltaic installation: Marcos García, from Zuia Engineering, gives the time it takes to have the installation ready a few days, usually in less than a week. Of course, as Josu Salazar of Ekidom Renewable Energies recalls, there may be issues with the availability of the components at this point as there are supply issues.

5. Care and maintenance of the installation: Josu Salazar points out that the panels must be clean, although the rain usually takes care of that itself: “At the moment everything comes with monitoring”, he indicates. The guarantee of the panels, underlined by Ekidom Energías Renovables and Zuia Ingeniería, is 25 years, “but the service life can exceed 40”, notes Josu Salazar.

Finally, in a photovoltaic installation, Marcos García explains, there are three devices: solar panels, which, as we said, have a 25-year warranty; the inverter, which converts the direct current from the solar panels into alternating current for home use, has a 10-year warranty; and the battery, also backed by a 10-year warranty, stores the accumulated energy that is not used during the day. This energy can be used for the moments when the panels do not receive sunlight and also to supply it to the electricity grid for a sum of money.