Are Solar Panels Worth it in South Carolina? 

Do they play golf in Myrtle Beach? Should barbecue sauce have mustard? Do you have to pick between Clemson and the Gamecocks?
Yes, yes, and yes you do! And yes, solar panels are worth it in South Carolina!

Whether it’s hiking through the Blue Ridge Mountains, sharing a low country boil with friends on a perfect summer evening or strolling along Charleston’s King Street, there’s always something great to do in South Carolina. And nothing helps you enjoy the Palmetto State more than knowing you are helping keep it beautiful while saving money with solar energy.

South Carolina is a great state for outdoor adventure, fantastic food and gorgeous beaches, but it’s also an absolutely fantastic place for solar energy. With an average of 215 sunny days per year(1), solar makes a lot of sense. And with both the state and federal government eager to help you along, going solar is as South Carolinian as a day on the links.

South Carolina has over 2,099 megawatts of solar panels installed throughout the state—that’s enough to power 245,000 homes. More than 3,300 people work in the solar industry in South Carolina, with over 20 manufacturers of solar components.(2) South Carolina really does love its solar.

It’s not surprising that so many South Carolinians have installed solar energy systems on their homes. From the Piedmont to the Low Country, there are a bunch of great reasons to go solar. Let’s take a look at the top six.

Everybody has been talking about the Inflation Reduction Act. It’s a landmark piece of legislation that makes going solar much more affordable for most homeowners. For qualifying systems, this federal program is good for a federal income tax credit worth 30% of the cost of your new solar energy system*. And the credit doesn’t just apply to solar panels—it’s also good for stuff like batteries and the cost of installation. That’s a huge deal!

South Carolina offers a 25% state tax credit in addition to the federal tax credit. Yes, you read that right: an additional 25% credit. Sound too good to be true? It’s not. Check out South Carolina’s Solar Guide for Homeowners for details.

South Carolina’s Low Country is no stranger to hurricanes. That means power outages up and down the coast. And up in the South Carolina mountains, those winter storms and summer thunderstorms knock out the power for long stretches every year.

The South Carolina Emergency Management Division monitors all kinds of disasters: wildfires, tornadoes, floods and earthquakes. Now, homeowners even have to worry about vandals attacking county-wide power infrastructure in the Carolinas.

And if you think those natural disasters have been coming more and more often, you’re right. Climate disasters are a bigger problem every day.
A solar energy system with a backup battery can help you keep the power on during those brief inconvenient afternoon outages or even for the duration of a significant natural disaster**. By storing the energy you generate with your rooftop solar panels during the day and releasing it after the sun goes down, a backup battery is a kind of insurance policy for your power.

Whether it’s the miles of beautiful coastline, or the Blue Ridge Mountain landscape, every place feels special in South Carolina. And 215 days of clear sunshine per year just makes it better. Great weather means it’s time to get out and hike, play a round of golf or hit the beach. But it also means that a rooftop solar system can generate a lot of energy.

Solar panels can generate power on cloudy days, but they’re at their best and most efficient on clear, sunny days. South Carolina gets lots of them, and that means your panels can provide a lot of power.

On those bright, clear sunny days, there’s a good chance your solar energy system will generate more energy than you are using at the moment. When that happens, you want to be able to do something good with that extra energy. But what? Well, South Carolina has an answer—put it into the grid and help power your neighbors’ homes, all while getting credit for it. South Carolina has a robust net metering program that can help save money on your electricity bills¹.

Greenhouse gases are driving climate change, and one of the biggest contributors of such pollution is fossil fuel-based energy production. Right now, South Carolina depends on 12 coal-fired power plants, and coal is one of the worst choices for the environment. You might have heard about coal’s impact on the atmosphere, but burning coal also creates ash. There are over 50 coal ash ponds throughout South Carolina.(3) They are poisonous and they affect our groundwater. Even as burning fossil fuels causes climate change, it also affects the land we live on. Going solar helps us leave coal-fueled energy behind.

Powering your home through clean solar energy means that you are doing your part to help stop that process, while keeping South Carolina safer for generations to come. The more clean solar energy the Palmetto State produces, the quicker we can stop burning coal and keep South Carolina gorgeous.

More and more people in the Palmetto State say “yes!” Solar panels are worth it in South Carolina. With some of the best incentives in the country and lots of sunshine, generating your own power makes lots of sense.

A Solar Energy Specialist can sit down with you and go over the fine details of your individual situation, to help you answer that question definitively. All you need to do is contact us to schedule a free consultation.