Pure Solar is a Vancouver company, and solar panel installation in Vancouver is where most of our 200+ Lower Mainland projects began. We design every system around the roof in front of us and your real BC Hydro usage, then our own crew installs it, our FSR certified electrician connects it and we look after the permit and the rebate paperwork.
We are owner operated and based in Vancouver, which is why the person who quotes your system is the one who turns up to install it. Over 14 years in solar PV we have worked on nearly every roof type the city has: shingle, metal, flat and composite.
Vancouver roofs come with their own puzzles. Older homes on the west side sit under mature street trees that shade part of the day, so we design around the sun path rather than the roof outline. Many older Vancouver houses still run a 100A service, and on those the electrical panel, not the roof, often sets how big the system can be. We check both on the assessment before you see a number.
The photos here are recent installs across the Lower Mainland, including our clients just over the bridges in Richmond and on the North Shore.
Vancouver has every kind of building we work on, from detached and laneway homes to small businesses and multi unit buildings, and each asks for something different.
Vancouver detached homes run from 1960s Vancouver Specials with low pitched roofs to newer builds designed for solar from the start. We put a microinverter under every residential panel so shade from a neighbouring tree only affects the panel it touches.
Residential solarFlat roof commercial and light industrial buildings suit ballast or low profile racking. Businesses can pair the 30% refundable clean technology investment tax credit with a 100% first year write off on the equipment.
Commercial solarWith Step Code and Zero Carbon rules pushing Vancouver homes onto heat pumps and induction, a battery keeps those loads running in an outage and lets you use your own solar after dark instead of exporting it at 10 cents.
Battery storageVancouver is one of the Metro Vancouver municipalities that issues its own electrical permits, rather than going through Technical Safety BC. We apply for it, book the inspection and handle the BC Hydro interconnection, so you deal with none of it.
Metro Vancouver produces roughly 1,000 kWh per kilowatt of installed capacity a year, which Natural Resources Canada puts between 950 and 1,100. The long, bright summers do the heavy lifting, and the winter rain rinses the panels for free.
Plenty of Vancouver houses still have a 100A service with a heat pump or an EV charger already on it. That can cap the size of a solar system, or call for a load management controller or a service upgrade. We size the system to what your panel can actually take.
We install on flat, shingle, metal and composite roofs, and we fasten into the rafters with flashed lag bolts rather than into the roof deck. We do not install on anything steeper than a 12 by 12 pitch.
Vancouver homes qualify for the BC Hydro solar rebate at $1,000 per kW of installed capacity, up to $5,000, and a further $500 per kWh of battery storage, up to $5,000 with Peak Saver enrolment. Both are capped at 50% of the installed cost.
Solar panels, inverters, wiring and controllers are also exempt from BC PST. We work the rebate into your proposal so the figure you see is the figure you pay.
Current incentivesIt starts with a look at your BC Hydro bills and a roof check, on site if the roof needs it. You get a 3D design with projected production, then a fixed contract. Most homes are installed in one to three days, and the system is live once the City inspection and BC Hydro connection are signed off.
Our 5-step approachWhat Vancouver homeowners ask us most before they book an assessment.
Yes, solar needs an electrical permit, and in Vancouver that permit is issued by the City of Vancouver rather than Technical Safety BC. We apply for it and book the inspection as part of every job. Whether anything more is needed depends on the property, and we confirm it at the assessment.
Yes. Metro Vancouver produces roughly 1,000 kWh per kilowatt installed each year, comparable to Germany. Panels also generate under cloud, and the summer surplus offsets a good share of what you draw in winter.
Usually, yes. Low pitched Vancouver Special roofs are straightforward, and on character homes we look closely at roof condition, shading from street trees and the electrical service before recommending a system.
Most residential installs take one to three days on the roof. The permit, inspection and BC Hydro connection add time either side, and we manage all of it.
Under BC Hydro self generation service, Rate Schedule 2289, the surplus you export is credited at 10 cents per kWh every billing cycle. Power you use yourself offsets the full retail rate of 11.87 cents within the Step 1 threshold and 14.08 cents above it, which is why we size systems to your consumption rather than to the roof.
Yes, at lower output. Panels generate from diffuse light as well as direct sun, so an overcast Vancouver day still produces. A December day makes well under a fifth of a July day, and the design accounts for that across the year.
Every product we install carries a minimum 25 year manufacturer warranty rated for California conditions. In the milder Vancouver climate these systems realistically run 30 years or more.
We cover the whole Lower Mainland from Vancouver. These are the nearby cities with their own pages.
Call 604 817 6527 or send us a request. We cover every Vancouver neighbourhood and the rest of the Lower Mainland.