Southern Exposure Solar - Ashland, Virginia

Jim R.

I recently had solar panels installed by Southern Exposure Solar in Ashland, VA, and I couldn't be happier with the experience. As a repeat customer (I added 1.2kW PV system to the previous 6kW PV system), I returned to them because of their exceptional service and expertise. Once again, they delivered beyond my expectations!

Grayson Goodstein, the CEO, was outstanding to work with. His professionalism, dedication, and clear communication made the entire process seamless. The installation team was efficient, courteous, and meticulous, ensuring everything was installed to the highest standard.

The quality of their work, combined with their commitment to customer satisfaction, truly sets Southern Exposure Solar apart. It's reassuring to know I’m investing in renewable energy with a company that values excellence. I wholeheartedly recommend Southern Exposure Solar to anyone considering solar panel installation!

David N.

In the world of solar there are plenty of companies claiming to be better than the others. Southern Exposure never made that claim with words but instead demonstrated it. I interviewed a number of companies before choosing them and in the end I am very glad that I did. My system looks great and is performing really well. Working with a company that is professional and has integrity is extremely important to me as I imagine it is to you. Both Grayson and Fred were a pleasure to work with. If you choose Southern Exposure you won’t be disappointed.

Marcus H.

If you are waiting on installing your solar panels - do NOT wait any longer. Southern Exposures is THE company to go with! From the time I met the CEO to discuss my project, the entire team was professional, courteous and on time. The proposal provided by Southern Exposures was extremely competitive from a price perspective, and perfect from a technical perspective. After conducting reference checks, we decided on Southern Exposures for our project. We are COMPLETELY glad we went with this firm. The safety measures they took during the install allayed my fears of injury, and the quality of their work was superb. Throughout the entire process, they answered all questions I had. The installation of the structure, infrastructure, panels and disconnects were all done in an extremely professional manner.

I could not be happier with the install, and know you will be also.

Best, Marcus

Cody H.

We had SES install our solar system, and we are very pleased with the result. The entire process was straight forward. Grayson and Fred would great to work with. They answered all of our questions and made us feel comfortable with the process. Highly recommended.

onyemaechi A.

Of all the solar companies I reached out to, Southern Exposure Solar were the only company that actually requested and showed up to my House to explain and go over the system with me. Grayson Goodstein and Dylan Kowal were very professional and knowledgeable. The warranty on their system was the best I was able to find, 25 years on everything!!. Fred Walker and his team were outstanding, I am glad I went with their recommendations for the conduit run . They definitely did not choose the easy route for the conduit run, which looks better than any other solar insulation I have seen. Got my system installed in 2 days and inspected by the city on day 3. Will recommend Southern Exposure Solar to anyone looking at installing solar, ask about their warranty.

Vanessa M.

I was in the midst of doing a lot of research regarding solar when I found Southern Exposure Solar. I got quotes from multiple companies but I wanted to go with a local company that had been around for long enough to be established. Grayson met with us multiple times and was very accommodating answering all of our questions and letting us take our time doing our own research. When we decided to go with SES, I was confident that we made the right choice. There was a delay with the county on permits but Grayson communicated throughout the entire process. Once installation began, the team was very friendly and efficient. Frank and team explained the systems and options very well. Overall, I'm so pleased with SES and would recommend them to anyone looking into solar.

Waggingtails K.

Background:
Wagging Tails Kennel is a family owned business located in Chesterfield,Va. We provide pet boarding and grooming services. We have 111 indoor/outdoor kennels with heating and AC. Our electric bills in the summer 2022 were over $1000 per month! We have wanted to add solar power to the business for years. Now, with the tax rebates from the Federal government and the Virginia Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SREC), it’s actually a very good investment.

Choosing an installer:
I was contacted by a solar panel installation company out of Phoenix, AZ 16 months ago about putting solar panels on my house. I did some checking on that company’s reputation and decided I needed someone else. I looked online for who was local and had a good track record and found Southern Exposure Solar. I sent them a message over the weekend and was pleased to get a reply first thing on Monday morning. Grayson impressed me immediately with his knowledge and honesty. Southern Exposure Solar evaluated my home and both of my business buildings and recommended against installing panels on my home and one of the business buildings, but the other building was an excellent candidate. Unfortunately, that is the building that uses the least amount of electricity. Grayson explained that the meters for both business buildings could be combined so that the solar panels on the west building could offset the usage of the east building also. If we could get enough panels on the roof of the east building, Wagging Tails Kennel would have low or no electricity bills for the life of the system (25 - 40 years). They installed CertainTeed solar panels which have an excellent warranty.
Design and Planning:
It turns out this is a lot more complicated than I had expected. Chesterfield County’s permit process is difficult for any contractor, but the county put extra hurdles in place for commercial installations.
We are a facility that cares for over 150 pets during our busiest weeks. We needed the installation done when the west building was empty.
Oddly, the fire department requirements for businesses is higher than for homes! Fire access cut into the available square footage on the roof.
Maximizing the number of panels on one building so that it could produce electricity for both required careful design - Southern Exposure Solar managed to get over 60 panels on a single story building.
The attic space in the building was already crammed with heat/AC ducts so there wasn't much space to work or add equipment.
Dominion Power was in the middle of a major grid upgrade - solar panel installations were not a priority for them. We were especially difficult because of the aggregated meters (Both meters are summed into a single account so it acts like it is a single building. This requires a special meter, but the excess produced by the west building is credited to the east building at RETAIL rates which is a really big deal!).

Installation:
Southern Exposure Solar worked with Chesterfield County and Dominion to meet all my requirements. Grayson kept me updated on problems and installation options. They beat the schedule that we had agreed to. They stayed on budget - there were no last minute unexpected costs. When the system was online, they showed me how to use an app on my phone to see the daily production - how much electricity is being imported and exported. The crew was great and made sure that there was no negative impact to business activities.

Results:
We have been producing solar power electricity for 8 months now. I looked at the year to date stats and the new system has generated 24 Megawatt hours of energy. (SES predicted 30 Megawatts per year and we are slightly ahead of schedule.). In mid-December it is still generating about 80 Kilowatt hours on a sunny day (about ⅔ of the amount it generated in the summer which surprised me because the days are so much shorter).

Ryan R.

I had five different quotes for our roof, the lowest and highest priced systems were the exact same setup. This didn't sit well with me and the whole thing started to seem like a scam. Then I met with Grayson, he was the most trustworthy and least pushy rep I met with. He actually downsized our system after seeing it in person and worrying that we wouldn't get a good return on our investment. The other guys were trying to put on as many panels as they could even on parts of the roof that wouldn't actually collect much sun. Southern Exposures quote ended up being the best priced quote after fitting the panels to the roof in person. The install was fairly quick, I think four days in total (because of rain they were delayed a day). The system has only been active for two months and the first full month of use dropped my bill to $30.This month is going better, currently producing a surplus with the smaller system in spring. I am interested to see how it will do this summer with the days getting longer.