By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent
OhmHome, a website devoted to educating consumers about the Solar Revolution and other energy issues, has decided it wants to one-up Google’s Project Sunroof with its new solar mapping service called NextDoor Solar.
In addition to showing consumers what other homes in the neighborhood have solar, it will also tell them which companies have done the installations – a feature OhmHome says is important because of its long-term financial implications.
In its release, the company cites NREL research that shows local installers can offer consumers 10% more savings than large national companies. It also cites Yale research that purchasing solar is contagious, meaning the more people in a neighborhood purchase solar, the more likely it is that others will also purchase solar. As a result, OhmHome believes its mapping program can provide the final nudge for a lot of potential solar owners currently sitting on the fence.
“The problem for consumers is that it’s often hard to research local companies and know anything about their quality,” Ohmhome said in a release. “We want to make doing that research easier.”
The website based its product launch on its database of more than 500,000 residential solar projects in the United States.
According to the annual Gallup Environment poll findings, 73% of Americans want the United States to wean itself of traditional fossil fuels and pour more research into alternative energy sources like solar and wind. And more than 50% prefer to protect the environment over more fossil fuel exploration.
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