How we write our guides

Who writes our guides

Every guide on this site is written by the Soleil Energy Corp team and credited to the team, not to a named individual. We write about the questions homeowners and business owners ask us when they are deciding about solar, batteries and EV charging in Maryland and nearby.

Browse them on the guides page.

How we research a topic

We start from primary sources, not from other websites. For rules, rates and programs that means utility tariffs and filings, the Maryland Public Service Commission, the Maryland Energy Administration, county permitting offices and the statutes themselves. For federal topics it means agencies such as the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Laboratory of the Rockies (formerly NREL), the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Trade Commission.

Other companies’ articles can show us what readers are asking. We do not use them as the source for a fact.

How we write and edit

We write each guide in plain language, answer the question first and explain the reasoning after. Then we edit it for clarity and accuracy. We cut anything we cannot support, and we say when something is unsettled or depends on your utility, county or roof.

How we check our figures

We check the figures in each guide against the sources we cite, and we list those sources with their dates. If a number, date or rule cannot be confirmed in a source we can read, we leave it out or say plainly that it is unconfirmed.

How we cite sources and date figures

Sources are listed in footnotes at the bottom of each guide. Each footnote names the publisher, links to the page, and gives the date we read it and, when the source has its own date, that date too. A figure that comes from a tariff, a program notice or a market quote carries a date with it, because the same figure can be different next quarter.

The “Last updated” date at the top of a guide is the day we last reviewed the guide’s facts.

Prices, incentives and rules that change

Rates, rebates, deadlines and utility rules change, sometimes without much notice. We show an “as of” date next to time-sensitive facts. We revise a guide when a rule, rate or program it covers changes, and we note significant corrections at the top of the guide. When we cannot confirm that something is still current, we say so instead of presenting it as settled.

Where a guide includes a worked example, it is labeled as an illustration, states its assumptions and is not a quote for your property.

Corrections

If you find an error or an out-of-date fact, tell us. Email info@soleilenergycorp.com, call (301) 953-4140 or use the contact page. Include the address of the guide and the sentence you are questioning. A source link helps.

We check the report against the source. If the guide is wrong, we fix it and update the “Last updated” date. If a correction changes what a reader should do, we note it at the top of the guide.

Independence and commercial disclosure

Soleil Energy Corp is a contractor. We install solar and battery systems and EV chargers, among other work, so we have a commercial interest in people choosing solar. That shapes what we choose to write about: we cover the questions people ask us. It does not change what we report. If solar is a poor fit for a property, or a program does not apply, the guide says so.

Describing a public program in a guide does not mean Soleil Energy Corp takes part in it or can apply on your behalf. Check with the program’s administrator.

Our guides are general education. They are not legal, tax or financial advice. For decisions about your taxes, contracts or finances, talk to a qualified professional.

What we do not do

• We do not invent statistics, and we do not present our own figures as industry data.
• We do not publish fake reviews or testimonials.
• We do not attach a named reviewer or personal credential to a guide. Guides are credited to the team.
• We do not present a figure without saying where it came from and when.