Solar boom continues for CoServ Members

Workers installing a solar system on CoServ Member’s home. Photo by KEN OLTMANN
Workers installing a solar system on CoServ Member’s home. Photo by KEN OLTMANN

Zack Lindstrom’s usually quiet street in Little Elm buzzed with activity as workers climbed on the roof, crawled through the attic and drilled holes through the brick wall on the side of the house.

The CoServ Member was having an 11.6-kilowatt solar system installed on his roof. The end result will be a solar system that can power about 84 percent of the home’s needs.

“I’m looking to go green,” Zack said. “The solar will help as long as the sun is shining. I’ve been thinking about doing it for a long time.”

Zack is not alone in going solar.

Last year, CoServ Members installed 1,639 solar systems on their homes, up 130 percent from 2020.  The total capacity installed totaled 14,983.31 kilowatts, also up 133 percent from the prior year.

That pace continued in 2022 with more than 600 new solar installations adding another 6,372 KW in the first five months alone.

How does going solar work with CoServ?

CoServ maintains a Certified Installer list with 14 companies that have been vetted and perform quality work. Have questions? Reach out to our renewable energy experts at [email protected] before making a decision.

“CoServ has a great working relationship with the companies on the Certified Installer list so our Members can move forward with these solar projects in confidence,” said Josh Sterling, CoServ’s Manager of Energy Solutions. “As your electric cooperative, we want to also be your trusted energy adviser.”

CoServ’s Renewable Energy Technicians will typically be on-site to cut power to the meter to ensure safety while the solar installers are working. CoServ puts the final touch on the job by installing a new bi-directional meter on the home. This allows excess electricity to be sold to the grid.

For Members with solar, CoServ will buy excess solar power at full retail cost through net metering. However, the amount CoServ buys back during each billing cycle will not exceed the amount that your house consumed from the grid during that same billing cycle.

CoServ encourages Members to size their systems so it doesn’t produce more than they consume during their lowest usage month.