Stop renting your energy.
Own it.
SDG&E's bundled residential rate reached 45.7¢/kWh in January 20261 — and is forecasted to keep climbing. A custom-sized solar and battery system can lock in your home's energy cost at a predictable rate for 25 years or more.
[NO OBLIGATION · FREE HOME ENERGY ASSESSMENT · 20+ YEARS LOCAL]
What you pay SDG&E versus what you could pay.
We're not asking you to take our word for it. These are public utility rates and Berkeley Lab research. Read the numbers and decide for yourself.
Average bundled residential rate as of January 20261
- —Rates have increased multiple times since 2020
- —Peak TOU pricing reaches 69.6¢/kWh on summer evenings2
- —Grid outages leave the home without power
- —You own nothing — rates rise indefinitely
Estimated effective rate for a custom-sized owned solar + battery system, levelized over 25 years.3
- Predictable cost — no surprise rate hikes
- Battery powers your home through grid outages
- Studies show owned solar adds resale value4
- You own the system — it's an asset, not a bill
A note on "from 18¢/kWh"
The 18¢ figure represents a well-suited home: good south-facing roof orientation, moderate shade, and a system sized to match annual usage. Effective rates for other homes typically fall in the 18¢ to 24¢/kWh range — still well below SDG&E. Final pricing depends on your roof, usage pattern, and any required electrical upgrades. We'll show you the math for your specific home before you commit to anything.
Three things change when you own the system.
Predictable energy costs
Once your system is installed and paid for, your fuel cost per kWh stays roughly flat. SDG&E rates, by contrast, have risen significantly over the past several years.1 If you plan to stay in your home, that gap compounds in your favor each year.
Backup power, included
Solar panels alone shut off when the grid does. A properly sized battery (Tesla Powerwall, Enphase, or similar) carries your essential loads — refrigerator, lights, medical devices, internet — through outages and public safety power shutoffs. It also lets you avoid the priciest peak hours.
An asset, not an expense
Berkeley Lab's multi-state study of 22,822 home sales found that owned solar adds a measurable resale premium — averaging roughly $4 per watt installed, or about $15,000 for a typical residential system.4 Leased systems generally do not.
Every system is sized to your home.
There's no "one-size-fits-all" residential solar. Your usage, roof orientation, shading, and budget all determine what makes sense. We design the system to your home — not the other way around.
Roof-mounted systems
Most pitched-roof homes are good candidates. We use micro-inverter or string systems with high-efficiency panels and integrate Tesla Powerwall or Enphase battery storage. Average residential install is 25-40 panels.
Ground-mount where appropriate
Homes with significant shading, complex roof geometry, fire-code restrictions, or available land may benefit from a ground-mounted system or solar carport. We assess this during your free consultation.
Honest "no" when it's not a fit
Some homes don't make economic sense for solar — heavy shade, very low usage, or upcoming moves can change the math. If that's your situation, we'll tell you. We'd rather have a useful conversation than a bad install.
Why batteries matter now.
California's NEM 3.0 reduced what utilities pay you for exported solar by approximately 75% compared to NEM 2.0. The right strategy under the current rules is to store your power on-site and use it during the most expensive hours.
Avoid peak-hour rates
SDG&E peak hours (4–9 PM) reach up to 69.6¢/kWh in summer.2A battery charges during cheap hours and discharges during expensive ones — covering the most costly part of your day.
Outage protection
When the grid goes down, your battery seamlessly takes over. Public Safety Power Shutoffs and weather-related outages become a non-event for your essential loads.
Electrical readiness
Batteries and Level 2 EV chargers usually require a modern electrical panel. We handle Main Panel Upgrades to 200A or 400A as part of the install when needed.
Year 1 monitoring, on us.
Most homeowners don't know their solar system has failed until they receive a surprise multi-thousand-dollar True-Up bill from SDG&E. Our Solar Care Plan provides 24/7 proactive monitoring — we catch inverter faults, communication drops, and production anomalies the moment they happen.
Every new ECE install includes the first year of Solar Care, free. After year one, it's optional.
48-Hour solar diagnostics for realtors.
When buying or selling a home with solar, you can't rely on the homeowner's word or a visual check. Realtors trust ECE for fast, independent, legally defensible solar diagnostics.
Wiring & mechanical inspections
Complete mechanical and visual inspection of solar wiring, conduits, connections, and mounting hardware.
NEM transfer advisory
Verify whether the property's solar is on NEM 1.0, 2.0, or 3.0 — preventing post-closing billing surprises.
The ultimate homebuyer closing gift.
Stand out from other agents by gifting your buyers peace of mind. For every escrow diagnostic audit ordered by a realtor, ECE provides a free 1-year subscription to the Solar Care Plan Remote ($240 value) for the new homebuyers — protecting them from surprise utility bills.
See the numbers for your home.
A 30-minute conversation. We review your last 12 months of SDG&E bills, look at your roof, and show you what an owned solar + battery system would actually cost — including the financing options available to you. No pressure. No obligation.
Prefer to talk now? Call 619.808.2403
[SOURCES & CITATIONS]
- SDG&E bundled residential rate of 45.7¢/kWh effective January 2026. Source: SDG&E January 2026 Electric Rate Change Alert; cross-referenced via publicly reported industry summaries.
- SDG&E TOU-DR1 effective rates as of January 1, 2026: summer on-peak $0.69654/kWh, off-peak $0.47560/kWh, super off-peak $0.38818/kWh. Source: SDG&E Schedule TOU-DR1 published tariff.
- "From 18¢/kWh" reflects an estimated levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for a well-suited residential owned solar + battery system over a 25-year horizon. Effective rates vary by home, with most installations falling between 18¢–24¢/kWh. Final pricing is determined by site assessment. Roof-mounted systems with exceptions; not all homes qualify.
- Hoen, B., et al. (2015). "Selling Into the Sun: Price Premium Analysis of a Multi-State Dataset of Solar Homes." Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Study analyzed 22,822 home sales (3,951 with PV) across 8 states; found owned solar premium of approximately $4/watt installed, equating to ~$15,000 for a typical residential system.
ECE is a licensed C-10 electrical contractor (CSLB #1088165). System designs and rate estimates are specific to each property and provided after a complete site assessment.