Our Commercial Customers

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM ALL OF US AT AMECO SOLAR!

May 2014 be a happy, healthy and very sunny year!

Yesterday we explained  how to access your online account on the Southern California Edison website. Now that you can see your electricity usage in a variety of ways (monthly, daily, hourly, etc.), we will explain how it can be useful when it comes to solar panel installations.

How Online SCE Usage Helps Solar Customers

For those who have already installed solar panels, seeing this type of data can help in many different ways:

1. Keep Track of Usage: While your electricity usage is much lower now that you are using solar energy, checking in online will help you keep an eye on your net usage. SCE keeps track of your usage for 12 months and then bills you for any leftover usage. If you check in online, you will have a better idea of how much you may owe at the end of the year. That is, if you owe anything at all!

2. See How Usage Has Changed: If you recently bought a new electric vehicle or have installed central air, you may be curious about how your electricity usage will change. By comparing monthly usage to previous months and years, you can get of an idea of how much it has increased and if you need to add more solar panels to your array to offset the additional usage.

3. Troubleshoot Possible Changes: Have you noticed a big change in your electricity bill and can’t figure out why? Looking at hourly usage may help you solve the problem. For instance, you may see that you are using more electricity during the afternoon than you were before. This could lead you realize that it’s because a tree has grown over the years and is now casting some shade on your solar panels.

How SCE Online Usage Helps Those Considering Solar

If you are considering solar energy for your home or business, you can use the online data to get an idea of when you use the most electricity.

After reviewing the hourly data, you might notice how much electricity the air conditioner uses during the day or see a large spike when you plug in your electric vehicle in the early evenings. Perhaps, you’ll notice that you tend to use a lot of electricity during the winter months when you put up Christmas lights or the spring is more expensive because you are heating your pool with an electric heater.

Either way, getting a handle on your electricity usage will help you decide whether you would like to install solar panels and offset it with solar energy instead.

Find Out More About Solar Panel Installation

Now that you have access to real time data, you may consider adding panels to your existing solar array or installing a new solar system on your roof. Contact us at (888) 595-9570 and one of our solar consultants. By review your recent usage, we can figure out how many solar panels you will need to power your home with solar energy and provide you with a cost.

Every month you receive an electric bill from Southern California Edison. Though some data is provided on the bill, you may not know that you can access a wealth of information through your online account.

Since some of our solar customers have found it difficult to navigate their online SCE accounts, we’ve written this step-by-step guide (complete with screenshots!) to help you view your electricity usage data online.

Step 1: Once you are logged into your SCE online account, click on “My Account” in the top right hand corner.

Step 2: Under “Amount Due” there should be a green rectangular bar that says “List Service Accounts”; click on the words in this bar.

Step 3: Click on the green “+” sign at the top right of the same box as your Edison Service Account number. This will bring up data on your electricity account.

Step 4: Now you will see a box with some basic information. Click on the black button titled “View Recent Usage” to access more information.

Step 5: At this point, you can choose different buttons to see data in different ways. The buttons circled in red below allow you to look at your usage by the hour, day or month. Note: when you click on the small calendar icon, you can scroll around and choose different days.

Disclaimer: While this blog post is meant to be helpful, we cannot claim to be experts on the SCE website. If you run into any issues or have questions, it is best to contact an SCE representative at 1-800-655-4555.

Now, when it comes to solar energy and solar panel installation, we can definitely say that we are experts. Feel free to call or email us at AMECO Solar if you would like to learn more about how to offset your electricity usage with solar energy.

Otherwise, stay tuned for our next blog post to find out how the data in your SCE online account can be useful for solar customers or those who are considering solar panel installation.

AMECO Solar recently joined community leaders and local residents to kick-off the release of Environment California’s new report about the importance of solar energy in LA County.

A Recap of the Solar Community Meeting

It was an inspiring event complete with stories told by Angelenos who have solar panels on the roofs of their homes or businesses, a letter-to-the-editor writing workshop, and a compelling speech in support of solar from Senator Kevin De Leon.

A big highlight of the meeting came from some of LA’s tiniest solar advocates. After the first graders from Betty Plasencia Elementary School gave their reasons for liking solar energy, they sang a song titled “Solar Power to the People” eliciting a lot of “awwws” from the audience.

Inspiring a City to Make Solar a Priority

The community meeting served as a kick-off for Environment California’s latest report, Solar in the Spotlight: Stories of Angelenos Investing in a Clean Energy Future. The intent of the report is two-fold.

First, it’s written to spread awareness of the benefits of solar power to all Angelenos. There are many misconceptions about solar panel installation, one being that many still believe that it’s only for the rich or those with large utility bills.

As you read about the 23 solar success stories highlighted in the report, it’s easy to see how the solar energy clientele has become diversified and is now accessible to people at all income levels. From churches to low-income housing and local business to homeowners, almost everyone mentions how the solar panels are saving them money and how happy they are to be relying on a clean, renewable energy.

Second, the report can be seen as a reminder to Mayor Garcetti about his welcome support for solar energy. While running for mayor, he endorsed the idea that Los Angeles should install 1200 MW of solar power to generate nearly 20 percent of the city’s needs. Now that he’s in office and putting together the plan for his term, Environment California hopes that the report will inspire Garcetti to continue to work on the “20 by 2020 campaign” an official city goal.

Support Solar and Take Action Today

Though Los Angeles has huge potential for solar installation, the city uses solar energy for only 2% of its electrical needs. We have a long way to go to meet the 20% goal.

If you have a couple minutes, please fill out a brief form at Environment California’s website to  sign the petition and help get Garcetti’s attention.

For those who are active on Facebook or Twitter, you can spread the word about solar in LA by posting or tweeting to your friends and followers. Use the @ericgarcetti and @EnvCalifornia handles to make sure that the Mayor doesn’t miss your post.