This week, Aaron Nichols sits down with homeowner and clean energy enthusiast Thomas Crookham, who shares his journey of going solar with Exact Solar in 2024.
Expect to learn:
Why Thomas finally chose to go solar in 2024 after decades of wanting panels.
How Exact Solar’s customer service and communication stood out compared to competitors.
How Thomas cut his electricity bills by 65–80%.
Quotes from the Episode:
“Exact Solar wasn’t the cheapest, but they were head and shoulders above on service. Every question was answered.” – Thomas Crookham
“I don’t know why anyone wouldn’t do this if they can afford it and have the right roof.” – Thomas Crookham
“When I reconnect with people, they say, ‘I used to get so mad at rate hikes. Now it doesn’t even apply to me anymore.’” – Aaron Nichols
You can listen to this episode here, or on:
Transcript:
Aaron Nichols:
Hello everyone and welcome back to This Week In Solar. I met today's guest at a conference a few months ago and he's also a homeowner who went solar with Exact Solar. So, please welcome Thomas Crookham to the show, everybody.
Thomas Crookham:
Hey, thanks for having me, Aaron.
Aaron Nichols:
Yeah, of course. I’ll just launch right into it. I'm really curious—what motivated you to go solar this year, and why did you choose Exact Solar as your installer?
Thomas Crookham:
Sure. I mean, I've been wanting to go solar probably since I heard about PVs, when I was reading about it in science magazines before the internet. So, I've wanted solar panels for a long time.
This year, you know, we finally saved up for it. The IRA was in place, and we had just finished our addition. Our original roof was too pitched and not quite right for solar panels because we have a 120-year-old home, but on the addition, the roof is perfect.
So everything just sort of aligned in that regard.
And why Exact Solar? I did some research. I checked in with different non-profit organizations—gosh, I’m blanking on the name right now... Solarize Philly! Yeah. They gave a couple recommendations and I got a few contacts, got some quotes.
The reason I chose Exact Solar was they were competitively priced—not the cheapest, not the most expensive—but the service and answering all my questions was far and above everyone else.
I felt bad for Dave because I asked way too many questions, went deep into the details. He was super patient and answered everything. That was great.
Aaron Nichols:
That's wonderful, man. Yeah, we get quite a few of those reviews. Someone just commented on the episode we put out yesterday saying something very similar: “You guys weren’t the cheapest price, but you had the best service and answered all my questions.”
And when it came time to put solar on their second property, they just called us without even looking at anybody else. Hearing stuff like that, man—that’s awesome.
Thomas Crookham:
Yeah, it wasn’t like Exact was way more expensive either. Everyone was competitive. It was just head and shoulders above on the service.
Aaron Nichols:
Yeah. I heard a quote from that financial guru Dave Ramsey that I love repeating: “If you do what you say you’re going to do, on the timeline you say you’re going to do it, you won’t be able to beat people off with a stick.”
That’s something we’ve ingrained in our philosophy, and it’s been amazing to see how positive people’s experiences are—and then they refer more people, who then also have positive experiences.
Thomas Crookham:
Yeah. I don’t know why anyone wouldn’t do this if they can afford it and have the right roof.
I just got my most recent PECO bill. I had my system turned on in March or April. There was some issue with PECO not billing me properly. They weren’t billing me at all, actually. Once the new meter went in and it got corrected, I finally got bills a couple days ago—and it’s amazing to see how little I’m paying now.
Aaron Nichols:
Correct. Yeah. Are you comfortable talking about the difference?
Thomas Crookham:
Yeah, I mean, you’re recording me, so I guess you’re quoting me. These numbers aren’t exact, but my bills are at least 65–80% lower depending on the month. That was actually slightly better than expected.
I never projected to hit 100% offset just because of roof size and positioning—it’s not perfectly optimal, not south-facing—but the savings are still great.
Aaron Nichols:
Awesome. That’s everybody’s favorite part. When I reconnect with people, they say, “I used to get so mad every year with another rate increase, but now it doesn’t even apply to me anymore.”
Thomas Crookham:
I know. My family gets annoyed because I’m always on the app, like, “Hey guys, guess what I’m doing? I’m generating electricity!” They roll their eyes.
Aaron Nichols:
How old are they?
Thomas Crookham:
Thirteen and eleven.
Aaron Nichols:
Oh wow—so right at the age where whatever you do isn’t cool.
Thomas Crookham:
Not quite there yet, but getting close.
Aaron Nichols:
Well, thank you for passing that education on to the next generation, man. That’s amazing.
So, during the project—you mentioned our team was communicative and answered all your questions. How did the experience go? Were there any hitches? How did we exceed your expectations?
Thomas Crookham:
It was completely seamless. The install took place within the day-and-a-half expected. There was a small issue with the inverter not getting online, but it was just a quick callback, a calibration, and it was fixed.
Even PECO, aside from the billing, got their part done within about three weeks after installation.
Exact Solar was super organized: “Here’s what’s going to happen next, and here’s why.” It was all step-by-step.
Aaron Nichols:
So if someone comes to you and says, “Should I do this?” what do you say?
Thomas Crookham:
Heck yeah—do it as fast as possible.
Aaron Nichols:
Amazing. That is so good to hear.
Okay, I’ll end with my fun little moonshot question. My grandma just turned 80, and I realized she was born into a world where renewable energy didn’t exist. Within her lifetime we’ve gone from only fossil fuels to inventing renewables, improving efficiency, and even putting solar panels on the White House.
So—80 years from now, what do you think clean energy looks like?
Thomas Crookham:
Eighty years? My gosh. Honestly, I think technologically we already have a lot of what we need. The biggest hurdle is just getting humans to do what they need to do.
I think we’ll be at or near 100% renewable. Anything hard to decarbonize will still be synthesized from renewable energy sources. Maybe even solar airplanes if they advance far enough.
Fusion might finally be real by then. Geothermal will play a big role too. Personally, the thing I’m most excited about is solar paint—just painting houses and generating electricity.
I think we’ll have solar on every roof, solar fences, even solar balconies. We’ll have solar everywhere.
Aaron Nichols:
I’d love to have a solar fence. My neighbors might not like it, but who cares—I’ll just design something that looks cool.
Well, Thomas, thank you so much for coming on today. If anyone has questions about going solar or wants to connect with you, where can they go?
Thomas Crookham:
They can send me an email. Or if people contact you, you can connect them with me. I’m happy to talk to anyone.
Aaron Nichols:
Perfect. I’ll keep myself as the barrier there. Thanks for coming on, man. It was a pleasure talking to you, and so nice meeting you at the conference.
Thomas Crookham:
Likewise—let’s stay in touch.
Aaron Nichols:
All right. Thanks for tuning in, folks. That’s This Week In Solar.
