Isn’t it frustrating that you have to pay thousands of rupees each month as maintenance charges on top of paying your personal electricity bills?
For most people, it sure is – now, what if we tell you that those maintenance charges can be substantially reduced? Installing a rooftop solar system is the answer!
Hasn’t the solar power housing association in your society been telling you the same thing that we are?
If you were never ready to let them shell out the corpus (maintenance charges that all residents pay every month) on the installation of a solar system then that is because you probably never knew the benefits of installing solar panels on the roof.
We will walk you through the many reasons that’ll help you understand why solar power is sustainable for your housing society. That’s what the solar power housing association has been saying, we’ll just explain it to you with facts.
Dive in!
What’s a Corpus?
We know you might want to know what corpus exactly is.
Here’s the answer: the monthly maintenance charges that you and all other residents in your society pay each month get collected. That money amounts to crores of rupees over some years. It’s known as corpus.
The solar power housing association keeps that money safe and proposes various options to use that money for the betterment of society.
So, where and whether the corpus has to be spent has to be a joint decision of all the residents, not that of the solar power housing association since it’s not their money – it’s yours.
TOP 6 reasons why you should spend the corpus for the installation of a solar system
1. It will save you a lot of money
CAM (common area maintenance charges) is no joke, and you know it. You pay for it each month! But, have you wondered why?
Let’s begin with the basics – electricity from the commercial grid is bone-breakingly high. It comes from fossil fuels; hence, it’s expensive.
The major chunk of the CAM you pay is used to pay the electricity bill of the common areas: water pumps, lifts, lights in the parking area, lights on each floor, etc.
The reason why CAM keeps increasing is that the cost of electricity generated by fossil fuels keeps increasing. Therefore, installing a rooftop solar system is very sustainable.
When you let the solar power housing association use the corpus for the installation of a rooftop solar system, you’re basically buying a free pass to not pay for the electricity required for the common areas at all. Why? Well, solar electricity is free.
2. It will make your housing society self-sustainable
We’re sure that the solar power housing association has been saying this to you over and over again – the committee wasn’t lying.
A rooftop solar system generates free electricity for decades. It means you will no longer be dependent on the expensive electricity from the grid to power the common areas. Your society will generate its own electricity.
3. It will make you walk the path of protecting the environment (and yourself)
We keep hearing this over and over again about how important it is to depollute the environment. But now, the level of pollution has risen so dramatically that weather changes are clearly visible.
The floods in Pakistan and Bangalore, the landslides in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, and even the Kedarnath tragedy in 2013 are all a result of climatic changes.
Had there not been that flash flood, thousands of lives would have been spared from a tragic end in Kedarnath.
When the solar power housing association tells you that installing a solar system can protect you and the environment, believe them – they’re telling you the truth.
Housing societies emit greenhouse gasses with probably the same speed with which an open tap leaks water.
When the power being generated will be solar power, the emission of those harmful gasses that are increasing the temperature of the Earth – resulting in floods and landslides and whatnot – will come down.
As a result, your society and you will no longer be responsible for letting out dangerous greenhouse gasses. In short, the carbon footprint of your housing society will come down drastically.
4. It will make your society an ambassador for going green
Your solar power housing association knew this, you didn’t and now you do. But how? If that’s your question, we have it covered too.
Did you know that every 1 KW solar system equals planting 15 trees? Can you imagine if your society installs a solar system with a capacity of hundreds of KW, what impact will it have on the environment?
Your society will be an example for all others to do what’s right.
5. The sales value of your property will go up
You don’t have to pay high maintenance charges because the solar system is producing free electricity for you. Naturally, neither will your tenants nor the person you’re selling your apartment to will.
Hence, the sales value of your property will be higher – electricity is the biggest expenditure, and not having to pay for it means substantial savings.
6. The government offers financial assistance
Now that we and your solar power housing association have convinced you (hopefully) that installing a rooftop solar system will make society sustainable, we’d also like you to know that you’re not alone in the journey to pay the installation cost of the solar system.
The Indian government offers small housing societies a subsidy of 20% on L1 rates up to 500 KW when:
- The solar panels are DCR (made in India) and ALMM-approved
- The solar system is on-grid
Conclusion:
Your solar power housing association knows these benefits and now, you do too. You must let them use the corpus for installing an on-grid rooftop solar system. Not only will the CAM reduce, but your personal bills might also come down.
Since the panels will absorb most of the sunlight to produce electricity, the entire building will automatically remain cooler. It will reduce the use of cooling units (air conditioners as well as fans) in your flat. Hence, your personal electricity bill will get lower too.
Besides, a solar system keeps on producing electricity at 70% to 80% efficiency even after 25 years.
Needless to say, having a rooftop solar system is worth every penny you spend upfront since the cost will break even within 3 to 5 years, and then you will get free electricity for a lifetime.