Lethbridge, Alberta
Firefly Solar shows Todd and Stacey solar was within reach all along
“Firefly didn’t just install the panels. They educated us on what solar energy could do, how easy it can be, and walked us through every step of the process.”
Todd and Stacey assumed solar was out of their budget. Their Firefly solar representative walked them through the monthly numbers, which for their Lethbridge home came out about the same as the power bill they were already paying.
A bigger home, and bigger utility bills
Todd and Stacey moved to their Lethbridge neighbourhood when their kids were young, to be close to schools. The house was a lot bigger, with a big backyard on a nice, quiet street, and the character of an older home was part of the draw.
The space came with costs. Utilities sat in the family’s top five monthly expenses, at around $500 a month for gas and electricity combined.
Is solar affordable for an average family?
Todd and Stacey knew solar was an option, but they didn’t know much about it, and they both assumed it was way out of their budget. The environmental case was easy: “We can produce energy with all that sun, so it just made sense.” The money was the open question.
Tim, their Firefly solar representative, walked them through what going solar would look like month to month. For their home, the monthly cost came out essentially the same as what they were already paying for power. They were on the same page about going ahead, even with a little hesitation going in.
What happened when the first power bill arrived?
The real test was the first power bill after their system started generating credits. The balance came in below zero.
“We were like, ‘Yes, okay. We knew this would work, and here’s the proof.’”
These days, their question is why more of their neighbours haven’t done the same. “It makes me feel like, why doesn’t everybody else have them, honestly.”
What made the difference?
For Todd and Stacey, it came down to education. Firefly explained what solar could do for their home, showed them how easy the process could be, and walked them through every step.
Every home is different. Monthly costs and bill credits depend on your energy use, your roof, your system size, your utility rates, and the incentives available where you live. Book a consultation and we’ll model your home’s numbers from your actual usage.
Todd & Stacey shared their own experience. Every home is different: your system, costs, and bill credits depend on your energy use, roof, system size, utility rates, and available incentives.
Video transcriptWhat Todd & Stacey said on camera, lightly edited for readability.
We moved to this neighbourhood because we had young kids and wanted to be close to schools. It was a lot bigger. I like older homes. The big backyard, nice quiet neighbourhood. That was a draw, for sure.
Utility bills are right up there in the top five expenses for the month, I think. Around $500 a month, for gas and electricity. Since we’ve got solar, it’s a lot different.
I just felt like environmentally, we can produce energy with all that sun, so it just made sense. We knew solar was an option, but we didn’t know a lot about it. And I think we both kind of assumed that it was something that was way out of our budget, that wouldn’t be affordable for us.
We were both on the same page for going solar. Of course, I was a little hesitant. Tim really walked us through what it would look like as far as monthly expenses, and it’s essentially the same price that we were paying for our power bill.
First power bill where we had generated credits, our utility bill was negative dollars. That was great. We were like, “Yes, okay. We knew this would work, and here’s the proof.” It makes me feel like, why doesn’t everybody else have them, honestly.
Firefly didn’t just install the panels. They educated us on what solar energy could do, how easy it can be, and walked us through every step of the process.
Project details
- System size
- 7.5 kW
- Solar panels
- 15
- Installed
- 2024
- Customer
- Todd & Stacey
- Location
- Lethbridge, Alberta
- Project
- Residential solar installation
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