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Solar + Batteries are the answer to rising electricity costs

Solar + Batteries are the answer to rising electricity costs

The future is electric, the only question is where and how that power will be generated and at what cost. The issue facing home and business owners is whether to take matters into their own hands or hope for the best with the utility. Over a million Californians have...

Brief History of the Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC)

In honor of President's Day Weekend, we offer a brief history of the federal solar tax credit: The Investment Tax Credit (ITC) was originally established by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 under the Bush Administration but was scheduled to sunset at the end of 2007. The...

Allterra Urges Bold Action On Climate Change

Allterra Urges Bold Action On Climate Change

Go Big On Climate Action Congress is debating the biggest and most important climate and clean energy legislation our country has ever known. Predictably, the US Chamber of Commerce, the American Petroleum Institute and other Washington D.C. lobby groups are dusting...

Public Safety Power Shutoffs & Squirrels | The New Normal?

Public Safety Power Shutoffs & Squirrels | The New Normal?

Thousands of customers in the Santa Cruz Mountains have been left without power for extended periods this summer with no relief in sight.  PG&E recently installed safety triggers in an effort to reduce the risk of wild fires. Whenever anything (including...

Why is California Threatening to End Rooftop Solar?

Why is California Threatening to End Rooftop Solar?

A steady chorus of California politicians, high priced consultants and labor activists have been singing a similar tune in Sacramento lately. It goes something like this; “Net Energy Metering, or NEM, is a $3 billion subsidy for rich people with solar paid for by...

Santa Cruz Sentinel Op Ed | Solar Fight About Utility Profits

Santa Cruz Sentinel Op Ed | Solar Fight About Utility Profits

Originally Appeared in the Santa Cruz Sentinel 5/19/21. Click here to subscribe to the Santa Cruz Sentinel. Op Ed By Dave Rosenfeld Editor’s note: The Sentinel recently published a Guest Commentary critical of rooftop solar credits. The following Commentary provides...

Solar Under Threat On Central Coast | An Open Letter to 3CE

Solar Under Threat On Central Coast | An Open Letter to 3CE

Dear Central Coast Community Energy,    California is a solar leader. We are asking you to make it easier, not harder, for more people in 3CE territory to go solar, to meet 3CE’s bold commitments to clean energy and to maximize the public benefits of our area’s...

$6,600 Federal Tax Credit When You Go Solar

$6,600 Federal Tax Credit When You Go Solar

Americans are waking up in 2021 realizing that 2020 wasn't a bad dream and that they still have to pay taxes on the income they earned. While most of us would prefer that 2020 be omitted from the official record, taxes and all, you can count on Uncle Sam to come...

Top 10 Reasons to Choose Allterra for Your Solar Project

Top 10 Reasons to Choose Allterra for Your Solar Project

Considering a home improvement project that requires a professional? For many homeowners, the most stressful and painstaking part of the project is finding a licensed and reliable contractor. Solar is no different and while there are a multitude of reasons to hire...

Cleaning Your Solar Panels

Cleaning Your Solar Panels

Cleaning Your Solar System    Congratulations on going solar! Whether your installation occurred last week or many years ago, it is important to know how to keep the panels clean to maximize production and cost savings. While rain is helpful in keeping the system...

Allterra’s COVID-19 Safety Plan

Allterra’s COVID-19 Safety Plan

Solar has been deemed essential by the state of California and we are excited to get back to work. We've spent the last six weeks preparing our staff, office and vehicles to safely resume operations and wanted to share what we're doing. Watch the video below to...

Ross Clark, Earth Matters | Solar in a time of coronavirus

Ross Clark, Earth Matters | Solar in a time of coronavirus

[Originally published April 4th, 2020 at Santa Cruz Sentinel] My daughter has hosted a set of family discussions about what our family can do to slow climate change. Her dilemma is that we already have rooftop solar and an electric vehicle so options seemed limited....

5 Common Misconceptions About Solar Energy

5 Common Misconceptions About Solar Energy

The residential and commercial use of renewable energy, particularly solar, is slowly but steadily rising. California alone reported 127,000 residential photovoltaic (PV) systems in 2017, and given the state’s new regulations mandating solar panels on newly built...

Electric Vehicles (EV) & Solar Have Never Made More Sense

Electric Vehicles (EV) & Solar Have Never Made More Sense

Did you know? A typical person will drive their Electric Vehicle (EV) 10,000 miles in a year. To fully charge an EV each day would require six panels and the solar investment would pay for itself in about 4 years. Converting the sun's energy directly into driving...