01
Why solar?
I'm allergic to vague answers. Solar is one of the few big purchases where every claim is testable: production, payback, warranty, financing. Either the numbers hold up or they don't. That fits how my brain works. I like being in an industry where I can promise something specific to a customer and then prove I delivered it twelve months later. There are very few jobs like that. This is one of them.
02
What I tell nervous customers.
I send them everything in writing. Every assumption in the model, every line item in the quote, every warranty document. Most nervousness comes from the feeling that something is hidden. The cure is making nothing hidden. If a customer wants to take three weeks to read every page with their accountant, that's exactly what I want them to do. Solar isn't a 24-hour decision and I won't treat it like one.
03
An install I'm proud of.
A homeowner in Calgary whose permit got tangled with the city for nine weeks. He'd basically given up on it. I called him every Friday with a status update — even when there was no update — just so he'd know I hadn't forgotten about him. When the permit finally cleared he told me that was the difference between us and the company he almost went with. The install was clean. He's referred two neighbours.