Understanding Your First Solar Bill

What Virginia Homeowners Should (and Shouldn’t) Expect

Opening your first electric bill after going solar can feel confusing—even stressful—if you’re not sure what you’re looking at.

Many homeowners expect the bill to disappear entirely or look dramatically different right away. In reality, your first solar bill is often a transition bill, not a final verdict on how your system is performing.

Here’s how to read it correctly—and what actually matters.

Why Your First Solar Bill Often Looks “Normal”

One of the most common surprises is that the first bill after solar still includes charges from the utility.

This is usually because:

• Solar activation may occur mid-billing cycle

• Net metering credits may not have fully posted yet

• The billing period includes pre-solar usage
  
  

Electric bills are backward-looking. They reflect energy used before the system was fully producing or credited—not just what happened after installation.

You’re Still Connected to the Grid (and That’s a Good Thing)

Solar does not eliminate your utility connection.

Homes with solar still:

• Pull power from the grid at night or during low production

• Send excess power back during high production

• Rely on the grid for consistency and backup
  
  

That’s why your bill still comes from your utility—even when your solar system is working exactly as designed.

How to Read the Key Sections of a Solar Bill

While layouts differ slightly, most solar bills include a few core components:

Energy Used From the Grid

This shows how much electricity your home pulled when solar wasn’t producing enough.

Energy Sent Back to the Grid

This reflects excess solar production exported to the utility.

Net Usage or Credits

This is where net metering comes into play—offsetting usage with production over time.

The most important thing to remember: solar performance should not be judged by a single bill.

Dominion Energy vs. Appalachian Power Company Bills

Most Virginia homeowners receive electricity from either Dominion Energy or Appalachian Power Company.

Both utilities support net metering, but their bills can look different.

Dominion Energy

• Often shows production and usage across multiple line items

• Net metering credits may apply one billing cycle later

• Bills can look busy even when the math works out correctly

Appalachian Power Company

• Typically presents net usage more directly

• Credit handling may be easier to spot

• Still follows the same seasonal production rules

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In both cases, the underlying concept is the same: energy is tracked over time, not judged month to month.

Why Winter Bills Can Be Misleading

If your system is activated in winter, your first few bills may feel underwhelming.

That’s normal.

Winter months have:

• Lower solar production

• Higher household energy usage

• Fewer excess net metering credits
  
  

Solar systems are designed around annual performance, not winter-only output. Spring and summer are when systems typically build the credits that balance the year.

What Actually Matters More Than the Dollar Amount

Instead of focusing on one bill total, look for:

• Solar production starting to register

• Credits appearing or beginning to roll forward

• Grid usage is decreasing over time
  
  

Those are signs the system is doing its job.

Solar is not instant gratification—it’s a long-term energy strategy.

When a First Bill Is a Red Flag

While most confusion is normal, it’s worth asking questions if:

• Solar production shows as zero weeks after activation

• Credits never appear over multiple cycles

• Usage numbers don’t align with actual household habits
  
  

That’s when clarification—not panic—is the right move.

The Big Picture

Your first solar bill is not a scorecard.

It’s a snapshot taken early in a long-term system designed to:

• Reduce reliance on the grid

• Stabilize energy costs

• Perform across all seasons
  
  
  

Understanding that context makes solar far less confusing—and far more predictable.

VirginiaSolar.org was created to give Virginia homeowners clear, unbiased information about solar—so decisions are made with confidence, not pressure.

Our Help Desk and resource library are here whenever you want to go deeper or ask questions.