Spring Electrical Services Ltd. vans ready to bring staff to job sites
LANTZVILLE – The future for Sprint Electrical Services Ltd. revolves around the sun.
As in solar power, as Senior Manager Paul Hotchkiss says the company owned by his wife Sarah has strategically diversified its focus to enable customers to take advantage of federal and provincial solar power incentive programs. The company, started in 2015, continues to provide commercial and residential services for customers, along with low voltage and security system design and installation. They already done over 200 new homes, and do all of the homes for a major Parksville builder as well as projects for other builders.
“Our big emphasis now is solar, and with BC Hydro starving for power, they put a call out months ago for alternative energy sources,” Paul explains. “They announced a new program that rolls out a $10,000 grant – $5,000 for solar panels and $5,000 for backup batteries, or power walls.
“That combines with the federal government still offering a loan for up to $40,000, interest free, for 10 years for solar.”
He notes that with such financing opportunities, it could be viewed as trading one’s hydro bill for a solar installation – which typically works on a 12-year return on the initial financial investment.
“Solar is typically a system that lasts a minimum of 25 years, and batteries come with 15 year warranties,” he explains. “BC Hydro is moving to time-of-use billing, which means that when someone uses power from 4 to 9 p.m. they’re going to pay more for it then, and in off-peak times it will be cheaper.
Solar panels installed on a house
“The idea behind the battery/power wall is that during those peak times someone can run their houses on the battery, and the off-times the system will charge the battery, either because the sun is shining, or from cheaper, off-peak times from BC Hydro.”
People don’t generally consider the fact that if they have solar power for their homes without a power wall, if the sun is not shining and the power is out, they have no power. But if they have solar and a battery/power wall – they get power whether the sun is shining or not.
Not only that, but areas like Qualicum Beach, Nanoose and the Gulf Islands are regularly dealing with power disruptions.
“I spoke with one customer who says they received their 18th notification about a power outage this year,” Paul notes. “And then there’s the possibility of a major earthquake. We’ve worked on gas-powered generators for years, and when something like an earthquake happens, the first thing they shut off is gas – which means if someone has a natural gas generator, they have no power. If you have solar with a power wall, they will have power.”
A propane generator could burn an estimated $550 worth of fuel in just three days of usage.
“That’s significant,” he adds. “If someone uses solar power with battery back-up, they will burn nothing in three days. As long as the sun comes up in the morning, they’re going to charge the battery. It makes people energy independent.”
Sprint Electrical Services has 13 employees and is a family business in every sense of the word. Sarah handles all of the administration and manages the office, while Paul manages operations, and their children work in the company. Fabian is a master electrician and has technical qualifications for low voltage who is also an alarm technician who specializes in data and sound, Nick is a journeyman electrician, and Jessica looks after electrical and is moving into solar layouts and costing. Chloe Connery, an extended family member, “eats and breathes solar”, Paul notes.
“A few years ago we couldn’t keep up with the business that just came in the door, but we’ve diversified since and solar has been a great fit,” Paul adds. “Especially with a $10,000 interest-free loan. If someone can trade the $200 they’re spending on hydro for a $200 investment each month in solar that will be paid off in 10-15 years, they can save thousands of dollars over the life of their home.”
