32 | AUGUST 11 • 2022 

continued from page 31

SAVING MONEY, ENERGY
Reuven Gevaryahu has a 
different analysis for why 
he had solar panels installed 
at his Southfield home in 
2020. Gevaryahu, a software 
engineer at Rocket Mortgage, 
describes himself as “a tech-
nology person.” He invested 
in solar panels when he eval-
uated them as “saving money 
and saving energy.” 
When he began investigat-
ing solar power, Gevaryahu 
set a test for deciding whether 
to make the change. “I want a 
12-year deadline … If it won’t 
pay for itself for 12 years, it’s 
not worth doing. That was 
kind of my personal model. 
At first, I didn’t think it was 
possible.” 
At the end of 2019, when 
he calculated what DTE cur-
rently charged for electrical 
power, how much more it 
planned to charge and what 
DTE paid to buy power from 
homes with solar panels, 
Gevaryahu decided that solar 
panels would indeed pay for 
his initial investment within 
12 years. 
He feels pleased with the 
results: “So, here I am two 

years later and I am very sat-
isfied with it performing pret-
ty much exactly as modeled.”
As for environmental 
issues, Gevaryahu sees him-
self as “a lousy environmen-
talist, in that I’m not going 
to invest in something unless 
I see it having some sort of 
financial benefit to myself.” 
In this case, solar panels 
passed the test. Using the 
same test, Gevaryahu did not 
install battery storage, which 
he calculated would not pass 
his test: Batteries would not 
pay for themselves within 12 
years. 
Despite his modesty about 
his environmental creden-
tials, Gevaryahu has strong 
words about how Michigan 
generates electrical energy: 
“Drive down I-75 toward 
Ohio. You drive past that 
Monroe coal-burning power 
plant. That is the fourth larg-
est coal-burning power plant 
in the United States,” he says. 
“Look at those smoke-
stacks along the lake and 
that is what you’re breathing. 
A lot of the 20-whatever per-
cent of power generated … is 
just burning coal right there 

in Monroe, Michigan. 
“And so, part of the idea 
of people generating power 
with solar is that you’re 
reducing the need for these 
kinds of polluting energy 
sources.”
As one who enjoys out-
doors activities, Gevaryahu 
objects to having the fresh 
air of Michigan contami-
nated with pollutants from 
power plants that burn coal 
and gas. Even with scrubbers 
on their smokestacks, they 
contribute to respiratory 
problems for the people who 
have to breathe this air. He 

observes, dryly: “I like the 
ability to breathe, so the 
installation of solar helps 
with that.”
To explore getting solar 
panels for your home, John 
Richter, senior policy analyst 
at Great Lakes Renewable 
Energy Association, recom-
mends joining the Michigan 
Solar Users Network 
Facebook group for up-to-
date information. 
His first piece of advice 
when people want to install 
a solar system: Compare bids 
from several providers. 

OUR COMMUNITY

Reuven Gevaryahu installed solar 
panels on his Southfield house. 

The author installed solar panels 
on his garage in Oak Park.

