This Week in Solar

What’s new Several companies want to install tiny AI data centers in people’s homes. It’s not as crazy an idea as you might think… AI needs more computing power, but Americans are beginning to loathe data centers and oppose them almost anywhere anyone suggests putting them. Homes already have power, internet, and space. Some homes already have solar panels, batteries, and smart electric panels, ma...

Aaron talks with Jeff Spies and Jason Vetterli, seasoned solar industry veterans and filmmakers who are about to release the documentary Solar Roots. They’ve spent nearly 10 years filming and editing this documentary to capture the wild, off-grid stories of the pioneers who built the foundation of the modern clean energy boom. You can check out the documentary and watch party here. Listen to this...

What’s New: Earlier this week, New Jersey lawmakers unanimously passed the Garden State Plug-In Solar Act, a bill that would legalize plug-in (balcony) solar across the state. If signed by Gov. Mikie Sherrill, the law will let residents use systems up to 1,200 watts (roughly 3 modern solar panels) that plug into a standard outlet and lower electric bills, without needing a local permit or utility...

This Week In Solar is always brought to you by Exact Solar, your locally owned, twenty-year-old solar installer for Southeast PA and New Jersey. We’d love to pay you $1000 if you refer a friend to us and they go solar (We only install in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, so please do not refer anyone outside those states) . All you have to do is: Click the “Earn $1000” button below. Fill in your inform...

What’s new Across the country, data centers are gobbling up power, and Americans are paying the bill for rising costs. Everyone involved in building these things needs energy now , but energy infrastructure takes years to build. Tesla, Sunrun, and Renew Home say they can help meet the ever-growing power needs of A.I. data centers by linking together devices that are already sitting in people’s hom...

Energy costs are skyrocketing, and no one seems to have a good plan to fix it. Between natural disasters, capacity auctions, utility rate hikes, and data centers gobbling up power, energy just keeps costing more. You have no control over how much someone charges for power for your home or business, but you can choose to opt out of the cycle by going solar. If you live in New Jersey or Pennsylvania...

Plug-in solar is one of the best defenses average Americans have against skyrocketing electricity bills. Sadly, not every state legislature agrees. Some state representatives are stuck battling utility monopolies in committee, just so that their constituents can legally use the sunlight that hits their homes. If you’re excited about potentially lowering your electric bill without a permit and live...

This Week In Solar is always brought to you by Exact Solar, your locally owned, twenty-year-old solar installer for Southeast PA and New Jersey. We’d love to pay you $500 if you refer a friend to us and they go solar (We only install in New Jersey and Pennsylvania; please do not refer anyone outside those states) . All you have to do is: * Click the “Refer a Friend and Earn $500” button below. * F...

Plug-in solar is sweeping the nation. What started as a fringe, under-the-radar DIY movement (look up “guerrilla solar”) will soon be a legally protected appliance class across the United States. Curious where your state stands on legalizing anyone’s right to harvest sunlight? Read on. Listen to this episode on: * YouTube * Apple Podcasts * Spotify If you’ve gotten some value out of this week in s...

Aaron talks with Dr. Janette Freeman, VP of Business Development at Fabtech and a leading expert in the circular economy for solar. Janette is a former minister and mindfulness coach who transitioned into renewable energy to help solve the issue of solar waste. Listen to this episode on: * YouTube * Apple Podcasts * Spotify Connect with Janette on LinkedIn here. If you feel you’ve gotten some valu...

What’s New: Two of the solar industry’s leading independent testing labs, Kiwa PVEL and RETC, just dropped their 2026 solar panel reliability reports. The high-level takeaway is: solar panels are becoming more efficient and delivering higher energy yields than ever before, but their failure rates during extended laboratory stress testing have skyrocketed to historic highs. We don’t say this to sca...

Aaron talks with Dr. Ryan Wartena, CEO and Founder of Southern Beams Builds and creator of Dragonwings. If you don’t already know what Dragonwings are, you should. They’re insanely cool. Imagine off-grid power in a box, Blade Runner style. You can look at ‘em here. Ryan has a PhD in electrochemical engineering and a long resume of awesome achievements. He’s now building robotic solar generators th...

What’s New: Earlier this year, Elon Musk set an aggressive goal for Tesla and SpaceX: to build 100 gigawatts (GW) of annual solar manufacturing capacity in the United States within the next three years. The plan’s moving forward, but there’s a lot to overcome. You can listen to this episode here, or on: * Substack * YouTube * Apple Podcasts * Spotify If you’ve learned something from This Week In S...

In This Week In Solar’s one hundredth episode , Aaron Nichols sits down with Mr. Money Mustache . They dive into the unnecessary red tape surrounding traditional solar installations and explore some highly unconventional, DIY ways to capture the sun’s energy without asking for permission. Pete became an internet legend under the pseudonym Mr. Money Mustache. By optimizing his spending, earning, an...

What’s new: The U.S. energy storage sector just posted its strongest first quarter in history, installing 9.7 Gigawatt-hours (GWh) of new capacity. Why it matters: I don’t like to throw large numbers at you without context. Here’s what you need to know to understand what 9.7 GWh means: * Battery capacity is measured in energy. Energy is power (measured in Watts) times time (expressed in hours). Wh...

Aaron talks with Vaughan Woodruff, the founder of Equinox DG. Vaughan’s an interconnection expert, industry veteran, and “muck shoveler” who tackles bureaucratic and technical hurdles that no one else wants to take on. If you’ve ever wondered why we haven’t connected way more solar to the grid, this one’s for you. Listen to this episode here, or on: * YouTube * Apple Podcasts * Spotify Connect wit...

Since we started This Week In Solar last year, three news stories have gotten far more attention than any others: * Plug-In Solar * Large solar companies failing (Sunnova, Titan, Posigen, and Fredom Forever, specifically) * The One Big, Beautiful Bill. So in today’s episode, we sat with solar legend Sean White to get his opinion on all three. Sean is a self-described "chronic optimist” and solar p...

Aaron Nichols sits down with Deep Patel, Founder and CEO of Gigawatt, to explore how we can return to the original promise of the solar pioneers (power to the people). They discuss how the industry shifted from selling energy independence to pushing complicated financial products, the growing DIY solar installation movement, and how off-grid systems, coupled with technologies like Starlink, are cr...

Note: Apologies if you saw this go out on Monday and tried to watch the video. I accidentally sent it early. If you were waiting for the video, please enjoy! What’s New: Plug-in solar panels are cheap, easy to install, and massively popular in Europe. But as more states legalize them in the U.S., utilities and electrical experts are raising red flags about uniquely American safety hazards. Why it...

Aaron Nichols talks with Lisa Shulock, Director of Commercial Programs at the Philadelphia Energy Authority. Lisa is a policy expert dedicated to proving that solar is a powerful tool for economic stability and poverty reduction (and not just for hippie tree-huggers). Listen to this episode on: * YouTube * Apple Podcasts * Spotify Connect with Lisa on LinkedIn here. Expect to learn: * Why commerci...

We decided to try something new for this episode! I invited Anders Alexander to give commentary on this developing story, but kept it under 5 minutes. If you like this format, let us know in the comments, and we’ll do more of them! You can listen to this episode here, or on: * YouTube * Apple Podcasts * Spotify What’s New: Four GOP House members have introduced the American Energy Dominance Act, a...

Aaron Nichols sits down with Laura Gutierrez, seasoned solar professional and co-founder of SolarSync. Laura shares her journey from journalist and yoga teacher to the front lines of international solar business development. They dive into what solar companies do wrong when communicating with homeowners and what the U.S. market can learn from the necessity-driven clean energy innovation happening...

What’s New: On Tuesday, Chief Judge Denise Casper of the U.S. District Court for Massachusetts issued a preliminary injunction halting five Trump administration policies designed to stall solar and wind development. Why it Matters: The ruling protects over $905 million in already-invested capital and ensures developers will be able to access between $8-$25 billion in federal tax credits that were...

Aaron talks with Tim Montague, host and creator of the Clean Power Hour podcast and a WSI Certified AI Business Consultant. Tim is a 30-year industry veteran. Today, he helps solar EPCs and developers use AI as an accelerant to automate repetitive workflows and scale twice as fast. If you’re ready to cut through the hype and find practical uses for AI, this episode’s for you. Listen here, or on: *...

What’s New: Freedom Forever, the second-largest residential solar installer in the U.S. as of 2025, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday. The company reported a massive capital gap, with estimated liabilities between $500 million and $1 billion against assets of $100-$500 million. Why it matters: This bankruptcy filing follows a string of national solar contractors that have filed for bank...