Solar Panel FAQs

Most residential systems in British Columbia land between $9,500 and $30,000 installed, depending on size. A small 4 kW system starts around $9,500. A typical family home running 6–8 kW usually falls between $14,000 and $24,000. Large homes with a heat pump or an EV can reach $30,000.

The figure moves with roof orientation, shading, panel count and whether your electrical panel needs upgrading.

It depends almost entirely on how much electricity you use. Households with higher consumption — heat pumps, electric vehicles, larger homes, workshops — see the strongest returns, because every kilowatt-hour you generate offsets one you would otherwise buy.

A low-consumption household on a heavily shaded lot often does not clear the bar. Most well-sized North Okanagan systems fall in a twelve to eighteen year simple payback range at current rates, against warranties that typically run twenty-five years.

Rebate programs in British Columbia change regularly, and eligibility depends on your property, your utility and what else you are upgrading at the same time. Rather than list a program that may have closed, we check what is current and applicable to your specific address as part of the free estimate.

Financing is available for most residential installations.

Floor area is a poor guide — consumption is what matters. That said, a 2,000 sq ft home typically suits a 6 to 8 kW system, which runs from about $14,000 to $24,000 installed.

Two houses of identical size can need very different systems depending on whether they heat with gas or electricity, and whether there is an EV in the driveway.

The upfront cost, and the fact that production does not match consumption hour to hour. You generate most at midday in summer and least on a dark January afternoon. Net metering solves the timing problem by crediting your surplus, but it does mean the value depends on the utility program rather than on the panels alone.

The second real downside is that a standard grid-tied system shuts down during a power outage unless you add battery storage.

It is a rule of thumb, not a regulation, and it turns up in a few different forms — most commonly the idea that shading more than about 20% of an array does disproportionate damage to output, or that panels should be kept within roughly 20% of an optimal orientation to stay worthwhile.

Neither is a substitute for modelling your actual roof. We calculate real production for your planes rather than applying a rule of thumb.