Robbie has been pretty much homebound since the coronavirus hit, only going into town maybe once a month with her kids to get supplies.
A disabled mother and veteran living on a fixed income, she has to be very cost-conscious, and with shelter-in-place, “there’s somebody here all the time, with the TV or computer on all the time.” She’d make sure her kids don’t do laundry after 4 PM (when the PG&E rates go up) and keep the heat around 64 degrees because she couldn’t afford to turn it up, and still, she was paying around $200 a month for electricity.
Now, a year since getting solar with GRID, “I’m just amazed with how well the solar has done. It's been a real game-changer,” she said. “Going from paying $200 a month to paying less than $200 a year is just amazing.”
Robbie had been saving $100 a month to make sure she had enough to pay the “True-Up” bill once it came due, one year after her system was installed.
The annual True-Up bill for PG&E customers is the total summation of monthly electric costs for solar customers. Typically, spring months create credits because of longer days and less need for A/C, summer days are hot and more expensive, and fall and winter months are very low cost. Add all of the credit-creating months and cost-inducing months, and you have the annual True-Up bill.
“When the electric [True-Up] bill came out this month … I thought, maybe it will take off half of what it was before, and when I got the bill I was like ‘WHAT?!’ [laughs] I can buy my kids a Christmas present this year!” she said.
“[Solar] saved [me] at least 2,000 in one year. That’s pretty big. When you’re on a fixed income ... 2,000 dollars is amazing,” she said.
Robbie wanted to show people how much solar has helped her, so she shared her PG&E bill summary comparing her bills from last year.
“It's been absolutely such a help to me, and I know that there are so many people that will benefit,” she said.
Of course, each person’s savings will differ based on their system size, environment, energy use, and appliances. We are so happy to have been able to help out Robbie and her family! We love to support our Veterans every day of the year and hopefully help them save for things like their mortgage, groceries, medicine, and of course, the holidays.
