North & East
Solar Panels in Big White, BC
Alpine chalets and heavy snow loads. We give you the output, rebate and payback numbers in writing before you commit to anything.
Solar That Makes Sense in Big White
At Big White the design driver is snow, not sun. Racking and roof attachments have to handle serious alpine snow loads, steep metal roofs need a specific mounting approach, and site access is planned around the ski season.
Big White is about an hour east of Kelowna. We schedule mountain work for the right time of year.
Call 250-250-2525 and tell us roughly what your monthly power bill is and which utility sends it. That is usually enough to tell whether solar is worth pursuing at your address. If it isn’t, we will say so instead of booking a visit to tell you in person.
Solar Services in Big White
All five of our services are available in Big White, about an hour from downtown. Most enquiries here are rooftop systems for homes, but farm and business buildings, battery backup and repairs on existing systems come up regularly too.
- Residential Solar Panel InstallationGrid-tied rooftop solar for Kelowna houses, sized to your twelve-month usage. From $10,000 installed.
- Commercial & Agricultural SolarRoof and ground-mount systems for businesses, wineries and orchards, with demand-charge modelling.
- Off-Grid Solar SystemsComplete stand-alone power with a battery bank and generator backup, sized for December rather than July.
- Solar Battery Storage & Backup PowerBackup for essential circuits during outages. New systems, or batteries added to solar you already have.
- Solar Panel Repair, Cleaning & MaintenanceOutput diagnosis, inverter replacement, cleaning and inspections, including on systems we didn’t install.
FortisBC, BC Hydro and Your Surplus Power in Big White
Depending on the address, Big White is served by FortisBC or BC Hydro, and the difference matters: only BC Hydro customers can claim the solar and battery rebates, and the two pay differently for surplus power. Properties further out also tend to have longer outages than in town, so we price battery backup alongside the solar and let you decide.
When your panels produce more than the house is using, the surplus goes onto the grid, and since July 1, 2026 the two utilities credit it differently. FortisBC still uses net metering: the surplus is banked as kilowatt-hours and carried forward, so a long Okanagan summer builds a balance that covers winter bills. BC Hydro closed net metering to new customers and moved them to self-generation: surplus is paid at a fixed 10¢/kWh on each bill and isn’t banked. Either way, we size a system to your annual use rather than to the size of your roof. Rebates by utility
What We Look at on a Big White Property
Before we give you a number, four things get measured. Any one of them can change the answer.
Roof planes and direction
Every usable roof plane is measured for direction and pitch. On many Big White homes the best layout is split across two planes, which affects the inverter choice and the price.
Shade, hour by hour
Trees, neighbouring buildings and the hills around Big White can all shade a roof. Because shade on a few panels can pull down the rest, we model it through the day and across the seasons.
A year of power bills
Your twelve-month usage from FortisBC or BC Hydro is the most important number. Solar pays you back mostly on power you would otherwise buy, so annual use sets the system size.
Your electrical panel
Some panels need upgrading before solar can connect, usually $2,000 to $4,500. We check this during the survey, so it is in your Big White quote and not a surprise on install day.
What Solar Costs in Big White
Rural Big White properties often have sheds or open land to consider, which widens the range in both directions. A starter system runs from about $10,000 installed, and a typical family home lands between $15,000 and $25,000 before any rebate.
| System size | Suits | Installed cost | Est. annual output | Est. annual saving |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 kW | Small home or partial offset | from $10,000 | ~4,600 kWh | ~$670 |
| 6 kW | 1,500–2,000 sq ft home | from $15,000 | ~6,900 kWh | ~$1,000 |
| 8 kW | 2,000–2,800 sq ft home | from $19,500 | ~9,200 kWh | ~$1,330 |
| 10 kW+ | Large home, heat pump or EV | from $24,000 | ~11,500 kWh+ | ~$1,670+ |
Typical Central Okanagan installs at about 14.5¢/kWh, with savings based on FortisBC net metering. BC Hydro customers can subtract a rebate of up to $5,000, but are paid 10¢/kWh for exported power, so their yearly saving is roughly 20% lower. Your Big White figure depends on orientation, shade, panel count and your electrical service.
Why Big White Owners Choose Us
Numbers in writing
Annual output, rebate position, credit for exported power and payback year, all worked out for your Big White property.
Racking rated for alpine snow
This is an engineering requirement at Big White, not an upsell. A system specified for the valley floor does not belong on the mountain.
Licensed and permitted
Licensed electricians, pulled permits, and every system commissioned to your utility’s interconnection rules, by our team and our vetted contractor partners.
An honest no
If the roof faces the wrong way, there is too much shade or your use is too low, we would rather lose the Big White job than sell you a system that under-delivers.
Get your free solar estimate in Big White.
Tell us roughly what your monthly bill is and which utility sends it, and we will tell you what solar would change. Free, no obligation.
Why a Local Installer Matters
For Big White, a Kelowna-based installer means your address is inside our normal service area. That matters most after installation. Every system needs an inverter eventually, and an installer who treats your drive as a long trip will be slow to come back.
Call 250-250-2525 and we will tell you honestly whether your Big White property is worth surveying.
Nearby Areas We Serve
We install throughout the surrounding area too. If your property sits between two of these, just call and ask.