I'm also skeptical that the power is really "free". It's not as if the power company is making a market decision to buy the excess electricity produced by their

I'm also skeptical that the power is really "free". It's not as if the power company is making a market decision to buy the excess electricity produced by their solar panels: Vermont state law requires it[1]. While their net consumption may equal or exceed their net production, that doesn't mean the net value of the electricity they produce and consume is 0. The electricity they're "feeding" back into the grid at 10am may not be worth what they're pulling out at 7pm after the sun sets. [1] http://publicservice.vermont.gov/topics/renewable_energy/net_metering http://publicservice.vermont.gov/topics/renewable_energy/net...