Get rewarded for every client you send our way!
Already have a friend in mind? Send us their name today and we’ll reach out to see if we can help them save with solar.
We’ve broken down the basics on several important topics, including electricity, energy, power, and solar efficiency.
DownloadCheck out our library of system performance terms, such as energy production and peak power production, to learn what you can expect from your new system.
DownloadLearn about the different ratings of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels to better understand how they produce under specific conditions.
DownloadDiscover the different ways that outside factors, such as amount of sunlight, temperature, and soiling can affect your solar energy production.
DownloadGet the facts on the SunPower Monitoring® System, which helps you optimize your solar investment, evaluate your system performance, and see your energy use and estimated savings.
Download
Just as having a home heating system or a car requires periodic maintenance, inspections and monitoring, so does your solar system.
We recommend that you login and verify system operation at least once per week. Remember that while we can access your system in order to troubleshoot if necessary, our team is not actively monitoring or looking for issues. Self-monitoring your system and ensuring an active internet connection is an important responsibility of being a solar system owner.
Your solar electric system requires an internet connection in order to send the information to the internet. This allows both you and EmPower to monitor your system’s performance over time.
At the time of installation, your EmPower install team either ran a direct line or used your Wifi to connect your solar monitoring device to your router. It is the homeowner’s responsibility to maintain this connection. By unplugging this connection, moving the router, changing internet service providers, changing your password, etc., data will not longer be uploaded, and all parties lose the ability to access and track your system’s performance. Please contact the service department if you need any assistance regarding reestablishing your data connection. Please know, however, EmPower must charge for any services that require an onsite visit.
If you are unable to view your energy production online, please perform the checks below before contacting the service team.
After following the instructions above, the connection should be restored to your monitoring system. Note that it may take up to 30 minutes to reflect this within the monitoring portal.
If these steps have not fixed the internet reporting issue, please contact the service team. Please be advised there may be a charge to run a new wire in the event the issue was not caused by workmanship. Any workmanship issues will be covered as specified in your warranty.
Clients may have heard all major telecommunication companies like AT&T are shutting down their legacy 3G cellular networks. If your SunPower system has been using this cellular network to connect to the internet to provide your monitoring that is the reason you are experiencing monitoring issues at the moment. We are waiting to hear from them about a viable solution for this and will notify all clients proactively as soon as it becomes available.
Without a connection to the internet, the system will not be able to report monitoring information. The system will continue to operate normally, but data relating to the production and storage utilization won’t be visible in mySunPower app until the connection is reinstated.
Again, the system will continue to produce energy and will receive all the major benefits of the system, but it’s just the monitoring of the system will not be able to share information if it is not connected to the internet. This will not impact the financial savings or the energy production of the system.
Once connected, it’s critical to actively monitor your system’s production online or via your phone app. Not sure which one you have? Email service@empower-solar.com for guidance.
Schneider Conext (Battery Monitoring)
Tesla Powerwall (Battery Monitoring)
If you have any questions about your system or energy production, access our FAQ and monitoring links, or open a service ticket. If you have additional questions or need help configuring your monitoring, please contact us anytime at service@empower-solar.com.
Periodic array inspections are encouraged, even from the ground. Look at your system carefully to identify any of the issues listed below.
Depending on your system type, this feature may be available to you. If your system was installed after 2017, you may be eligible for an upgrade and can read more about the feature here. Contact service@empower-solar.com to confirm your eligibility.
We currently do not offer monitoring services. However, we do give you the tools to monitor your system independently, giving you full insight into its performance at any time, day or night.
We will send reminders throughout the year to help you ensure that you are monitoring and maintaining your system properly.
Please call 1-800-SUNPOWER and provide them with your address and current e-mail address. They will send you a link with instructions.
You can use the graphs to see how much energy your solar power system produces.
The energy graph shows how much electricity your system is producing over a period of time (measured in kWh or thousands of watt hours). The power graph shows the rate at which your system is converting sunlight into electricity at a specific point in time (measured in kW or thousands of watts).
Generally speaking, energy is more useful than power for analyzing the effectiveness of your system, especially over time. Power helps when you’re trying to analyze short-term variations in performance due to temporary external factors like weather changes.
To download the current graph and time setting you are viewing, click “download ” at the upper right of your graph. Data is saved to your computer as a “.csv” file that you can then view and use in a spreadsheet program like Excel or Numbers.
When you download energy data, the data included depends on the time period you are viewing in the graph:
When you download power data, the data included depends on the time period you are viewing in the graph:
You can also set up a report to be delivered monthly via email as a PDF.
Note: This process may differ slightly depending on platform and its state of development. Please call the service department at 516-837-3459 for assistance.
While inverter performance is important (on its own and as a warning sign of other issues), it is only one of many factors influencing the performance of a solar system. Looking at one or two of these factors in isolation can be misleading, just as calculating fuel efficiency can be misleading without considering traffic conditions, load, route variation, pavement type, driving style, season, tire pressure, and so on.
If there is an issue with your system, an alert bar appears at the top of the screen. Click the alert text or the icon on the left for details regarding the issue and for troubleshooting instructions. If you see an alert bar at the top of the screen, click the alert text or the icon on the left for details regarding the issue and for troubleshooting instructions.
Energy production is expressed in kilowatt hours (kWh) and refers to the amount of energy that your system actually produces.
Power production is discussed in terms of kilowatts (kW) and refers to the maximum output that a solar system can produce under 100% ideal conditions. Peak power production is determined by Standard Test Conditions (STC).
Standardized conditions usually occur for just a few minutes each year, and the power of your array will be affected the following factors:
When sizing your system, we considered all of the factors above, as well as a few others, to ensure that your panels would meet your home energy needs. While your system will produce different amounts of energy each year depending on available sunlight, it will generally remain consistent so you don’t have to worry!
Energy production (kWh) is the most important benchmark of performance. It’s important to consider the kWh your system produces over the year, so please be sure to monitor your system weekly.
You can read more about system ratings and real world expectations here.
You might get this alert because your home Internet network isn’t working. It’s also possible that your monitoring equipment is not connected or functioning correctly. The good news is that your solar system is most likely operating normally. However, you’ll need to reestablish a connection to verify this and to update your energy charts with any missing information.
Please follow these troubleshooting steps to reestablish your connection:
If you have a “Ethernet Over Powerline Adapter” located near your router make sure that:
If you don’t have a “Ethernet Over Powerline Adapter”:
You might get this alert because your home Internet network isn’t working. It’s also possible that your monitoring equipment is not connected or functioning correctly. The good news is that your solar system is most likely operating normally. However, you’ll need to reestablish a connection to verify this and to update your energy charts with any missing information.
Please follow these troubleshooting steps to reestablish your connection:
If you have a “Ethernet Over Powerline Adapter” located near your router make sure that:
If you don’t have a “Ethernet Over Powerline Adapter”:
If you have a SunPower system, there is not currently an option to receive error alerts if there is an internet outage or other issue with your system. We suggest you check on your system regularly – at least once a month to make sure that your system is working as expected. However, SunPower has enabled monthly reporting which allows you to receive an email recap of how much energy your system produced over the course of the month. Here are instructions to set that up:
Steps to setting up SunPower Monitoring Reports
Filing for your solar tax credits is easy. If you are using an accountant, simply send them a link to this page along with your signed solar agreement and they should have everything they need. If you are handling your taxes yourself, here is what you will need to file for your tax credits.
If you purchased or financed your system:
* Use this form to claim your tax credit for solar-connected battery projects.
You can find your qualifying expenditure figure on your signed EmPower Solar proposal, on the purchase or finance summary pages. For more information on the Federal tax credit, check out this resource.
Remember: If you participated in one of our partner financing programs, it is likely the case that your tax credit is planned to pay off your bridge loan. Keeping your tax credit and failure to pay off a bridge loan can result in fees and interest penalties.
If you leased your system:
Please make sure to file the NYS RP-487 form. It is not required for any tax refund purposes but this form pertains to the 15-year property tax exemption for solar energy systems and just logs your system start date with your city/town. Instructions here.
Residential Federal Income Tax Credit
Residential NY State Tax Credit
Other NY State Tax Credit Forms
Commercial Tax Credit Information
NYC Property Tax Abatement information
If you are a NYC resident, please note there is nothing for you to do in order to claim your NYC Property Tax Abatement. This paperwork is completed by EmPower Solar and we will reach out to you if there is anything for you to do regarding this matter.
For more information on the tax abatement, including eligibility, timeline, and inclusions/exclusions, please click here.
Definitions
How Solar Works
What is net metering and how does it come into play?
What is time-of-day and how does it come into play?
Historically, most ratepayers in our region have paid one flat price for energy whether it was purchased at 4:00 pm or 12:00 am, and whether it was December or August. Our utilities are beginning to shift to a time-of-day (TOD) pricing model which will more accurately bill rate payers for the actual market price of the energy they are using. Energy will be more expensive during “peak” hours, and less expensive during “off peak” hours (think LIRR, or Metro North pricing model.)
Peak hours are typically around 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm on weekdays. All other hours are typically considered off-peak. Nights, weekends, and federal holidays are always off-peak. This means the TOD Rate Plan costs less than the 180 Flat Rate during 88% of the year.
This gives ratepayers the power and ability to reduce their electric bills by changing simple behaviors, or taking advantage of solar, storage, and smart home apps to ensure they are using and exporting energy at the ideal times of day.
Read more about PSEG LI’s time-of-day rates at psegliny.com/TimeOfDay. Read more about ConEd’s time-of-day rates at coned.com/en/accounts-billing/your-bill/time-of-use.
The energy production of solar energy systems varies according to the time of year. Due to the amount and intensity of sunlight, a system will produce much more power in June than in December. Additionally, the electric usage of most homeowners varies according to the time of year. Most homeowners will use more electricity in August than April due to air conditioning, pools, etc.
Because of these two factors, a solar energy system will rarely produce the exact amount of electricity that a homeowner uses in any given month. To compensate for this, your utility gives each solar client an “Energy Credit Bank.” The bank is shown on your bill and stores extra credits during months of high production/low usage and uses them in months of high usage/low production.
If your system was installed before 2018, you have a “net meter anniversary date” in which the utility will cancel out any credits you have built up and give you a check or monetary credit value for them.
If your system was installed after 2018, you are permitted to rollover your credits month to month for a period of 20 years from your installation date. After that, you will be entered into whatever the net metering program is at the future date.
First check the billing cycle days. The utility may start your billing period mid-month and does not often bill on a “monthly” basis and may sometimes bill for 26 days at a time, or for 36 days at a time. The amount of energy that your electric bill says you used and the amount of energy that your app says you used will always be different because they are measuring different things (whole consumption vs. net consumption.)
However, the number that should be similar is your net consumption figure – this will only be available if your app has consumption monitoring. If this number is significantly different, please contact our service department to look into the discrepancy for you. This could occur for a variety of reasons, such as the introduction of a second main service panel, introduction of a battery, presence of 3-phase electricity service, etc.
If you already have solar offsetting 100% or more of your energy needs, you’re doing as good as you could offset-wise, and you should stay on a flat rate instead of going on a time-of-day rate.
If you do not yet have solar, or your solar system is offsetting less than 95% of your home’s energy consumption, we suggest switching to a time-of-day rate. Some utilities (PSEG LI included) allow you to move energy credits from one period to another to offset peak or off-peak pricing. If you have solar, adding a battery system can help you unlock even greater savings with a time of day plan!
Contact us at customersuccess@empowersolar.com to learn how solar and storage can help you save with a time of day rate plan!
Note: time-of-day rates may only be available for solar customers installed after 01/01/18. Anyone installed before 01/01/18 may remain under their existing rate.
This could happen if you are in a time-of-day rate plan and you haven’t yet told the utility what you would like to do with your excess credits. PSEG LI allows you to move credits from one bucket to another to offset your ideal amount of energy depending on the season and your energy habits. Learn more about that here.
Note: this cross period exchange is not yet available for ConEd ratepayers. Please check back for future developments.
If you require additional assistance, please contact us at customersuccess@empower-solar.com or 516-837-3459.
Please contact us at feedback@empower-solar.com so that we may make a record of the ownership transfer and answer any other questions.
Make sure that your home is fairly assessed and includes the value of your solar system.
If you have leased or financed your system, you may need to contact the financing institution to transfer ownership to the new owner. There may also be UCC Fixture filings filed that need to be removed before closing. This is important to do in advance as soon as you know home sale is a consideration. Contact feedback@empower-solar.com for help navigating this process.
When the new homeowner takes over, please instruct them to give us a call at 516-837-3459 so that we make a record of the ownership transfer on our end. If you are interested in installing solar panels on your new home please e-mail cx@empower-solar.com.
In accordance with your local building department, NYSERDA, and PSEG Long Island, we strongly recommend against uninstalling and relocating your solar system. You will be able to receive more incentives and cover more of the cost if you install a system at your new home instead of taking yours with you.
Owner Documents
All Powerwall manuals and warranty documents can be found online at tesla.com.
Severe Weather Events + Grid Outages
To prepare for storms or severe weather, we recommend familiarizing yourself with the Tesla app’s Storm Watch feature, as well as monitoring recommendations and instructions on restarting your system. All information can be found by clicking this link.
Let’s get your home set up with a battery system! Contact service@empower-solar.com to add a Tesla Powerwall to your existing system.
Please contact service@empower-solar.com or call 516-837-3459 x3. If urgent, please email feedback@empower-solar.com.
You can begin by power cycling the inverter, or trying the “test” and “reset” buttons. For more information on using your daytime power supply, please refer to this document.
Please see “SYSTEM MONITORING” section on this page.
Please contact our accounting department at 516-837-3459 x134.
Please see your contract paperwork for description of your system’s warranties. We are available to provide additional services, if not already included, such as:
Please contact our accounting department at 516.837.3459 x135.
It is rare for a critter guard to be breached, but some animals are very aggressive so it could happen. If you happen to notice any critter activity on the roof including frequent paths of travel, nests, burrowing sounds, etc, please notify us right away.
Our service team is available M-F and can usually get a team out within a few days time for issues like this. They will come and make sure critters are relocated outside the array and the technicians can re-secure any breaches and make sure the critter guard is intact around the perimeter. Please contact us at 516.837.3459 x3 to request a quote for this service.
Note that critter damage is not covered under warranty, so there will be a labor charge to fix the guard.
Critter guards do not fall within our workmanship warranty, but we would like to help. Please contact us at 516.837.3459 x3 with additional details so that we can assess the extent of the damage and figure out the cause.
Please contact us at 516.837.3459 x3 to request a quote for this service.
Once installed, solar panels are very low maintenance. Natural rainfall does a great job of keeping your panels clear of any dirt or debris. If, however, extenuating circumstances cause your panels to accumulate a lot of dirt or if you would like to schedule a cleaning, you can contact us at 516.837.3459 x3 for a quote.
Usually our region gets enough precipitation to clean off your panels periodically. For safety purposes, we discourage homeowners from cleaning their own panels. Our service team is trained in the best practices for rooftop safety and equipped with the appropriate cleaning tools for your panels. If you would like a cleaning, please contact us at 516.837.3459 x3 so that we can provide an accurate quote for this service.
It may be necessary to remove and reinstall part or all of your system for reasons not known at the time of the initial installation (ie: roof replacement, siding replacement, house raising). In these unlikely situations, our service department is available to provide you a quote on the costs associated with your particular situation. Please contact us at 516.837.3459 x3. We can work with your contractors and your timeline to provide the most convenient reinstallation services to you.
Please contact us at 516.837.3459 x3 so that we can connect you with a preferred service provider.
Please contact marketing@empower-solar.com regarding your outstanding referral payment.
We researched and vetted many products over the years to makes sure our solar installations are safe and secure. We chose the “Flashlock Duo” and selected this product because it’s a proven technology that successfully does the two most important things – water proofing and structural integrity. We also specifically chose this system because it doesn’t matter whether our installers hit rafters or not when attaching mounting brackets. It was actually designed and engineered as a decking only product.
When installing, we aim to hit rafters, but sometimes very difficult to hit, due to many reasons including uneven rafter spacing, unique framing designs (roof hips, etc.) If a rafter is missed, then we add additional screws per very specific policy guidelines. So, while it is desired to hit rafters in every case, missing a rafter does not impact the quality of the installation. Again, while Empower strives to hit rafters, the product was designed for rafterless installations.
Please contact cx@empower-solar.com.
Please note that anniversary dates no longer apply, and that your net metering credits will remain for 20 years from your installation date.
Please review all relevant information above for the fastest resolution.
If you cannot find the answer to your question above or have any additional questions:
Customer experience is important to us. We thank you for your patience and we look forward to connecting with you about any questions you may have.
Online reviews from awesome customers like you help future customers feel confident in choosing us. Please take a moment to share your experience on one (or all!) of the websites below.
Get our FREE savings guide
“Top 15 Ways to Save Energy + Money”.
516-837-3459
