The air conditioner is off, it’s lunchtime, and the fridge is already full of cold drinks. Even though your house is almost asleep, your solar panels are still operating. What happens to those extra electrons, then? In a net energy metering setup, nothing goes to waste, but the story is more interesting than you may imagine.

Let’s start from the start. If your solar system makes more electricity than your home requires, the additional power goes right back into the electric grid. You’re not just helping your own meter; you might be powering a neighbor’s electric car or washing machine across the street. Your house is like, “Hey, does anyone want some sun?” And at some point, all those electrons are devoured.

Now it’s time for the bit that everyone loves: credits on bills. With net metering, your energy company keeps track of how much you lend to the grid. You get credit for every extra kilowatt-hour you send out. If you live in a certain area, you might obtain the full retail rate, which means swapping one for one, or just a part value (some places only give you wholesale prices for those items). In either scenario, this will lower your bills in the future. You’re building up good energy karma, and when the sun goes behind a cloud or your house suddenly requires a lot of energy, you save money.

These credits are not like the ones you obtain from a thrift store. In most regions, they usually roll over for months. Bad sun in January? No issue; you can utilize your credits on those scorching July days. In certain places, you can even carry credits over for a complete year. Some people who aren’t as pleasant might start over after a year, so it’s a good idea to consider about the rules in your area when deciding how big your system should be. When you make your system too big, you often get credits that you can’t use, like free concert tickets on a night when you’re not home.

In short, net energy metering ensures that surplus energy stays around. It turns into credits that you can use to buy goods later. The grid makes money by using green, reliable electricity from neighboring sources. Your neighbors drink in the sun without even knowing it. And every time a cloud goes past, your meter does a dance backwards.