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Comment by avgDev | Hacker News Reader

I have researched several companies which knocked on my doors. All of them have accusations online of scammy behavior and not really passing the benefit of the grant.

I was told I would get "FREE SOLAR".

At least in the midwest, when I hear solar, I hear scam. I would much rather purchase equipment myself and do the install myself.

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This matches my experience in the midwest as well. “Let me see your bill real fast”, “you pay nothing up front”, “you can get 4% extra value at resale”

All of it is a scam. I head these people off early if I see them walking around my neighborhood.

That's sad. When I had a company come by in California, they did the math on my house and bill and said "actually in your case this would never pay off, sorry" and moved on.

Although this was probably 10 years ago, so maybe it's changed now.

If you're knowledgeable enough to know how to do the installing, you'll save the money that way too. I feel like it's the community solar that's probably the worst offenders, they build it, you effectively rent the generation capacity, but ideally the cost of the electricity you get back is more valuable than what it cost you to pay your rent.

I still think everyone should believe in it as a value proposition, and as as a way to balance risk from grid instability, but I would like better information about who is reliable and who the bad actors are.

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