Pat DeAngelis and Carol Lewis’s introduction to solar came by way of a major construction project: a deep energy retrofit of their 100+ year old house in Amherst.

“We had an inheritance from our parents and I don’t trust the financial markets. We decided on a deep energy retrofit because we wanted to make a concrete investment in something that’s tangible. And we also wanted a smaller carbon footprint. It’s not just about the money, we’ll leave this house to our son someday; we wanted to make a decision that would be good for the next seven generations.”

Adding solar panels to their home was an important part of the project. But Pat and Carol were concerned that it was not going to be possible because of the high upfront costs of solar.

“A deep energy retrofit costs a lot. We had applied for some grants from our utility, and we thought if we received them we would install solar panels. But we didn’t get the grants. We’re older and semi-retired. Without Sungage, we probably would not have been able to go solar.”

Pioneer Valley Photovoltaics introduced Pat and Carol to Sungage as a simple way to own their solar panels.

“When we met Sara from Sungage, we were so pleased that we could go solar in such an easy way. It was a no-brainer. Our architect and builder were there for her presentation and they both said ‘I want to do this!’”

“It all makes so much sense. With Sungage, I own my panels. It keeps it in our hands, it keeps it local. It’s something so simple that allows us to maintain control.”

Carol adds: “I was so glad it could all be explained to me so simply.”

Sungage did more than just help Pat and Carol with the high upfront costs of solar installation. Sungage helped them get the most from their new investment.

“Even if we could have paid for our solar panels upfront, we would still be stuck figuring out these SRECs. It’s amazing how no one really seems to understand solar. When we applied for new homeowners insurance, the company was more interested to know if we had an island in our kitchen or what kind of stove we had installed than our solar panels. Sungage understands solar. If it wasn’t for Sara, we wouldn’t have known about the tax abatement on our home.

“It’s great to have people randomly tell you that what you’re doing is important. Everyone should have solar on their roof. Sungage offered us a way to get there.”