Use this guide
Choose the questions relevant to your situation. Expand each answer, save the checklist and request written clarification where evidence is missing.
Questions homeowners ask
Are Cleco imports and exports simply netted as kWh?
Cleco describes separate delivered and received quantities and dollar amounts, with the bill obligation netted in dollars. Record both directions and their rates before comparing a solar forecast. Equal kWh do not establish an equal dollar value.
Source: Cleco: distributed generation billing overview. Reviewed 2026-10-07.
What evidence matters when asking about grandfathered credits?
The current DG tariff distinguishes grandfathered customers using interconnection or completed-application and completed-installation criteria before January 1, 2020. Ask Cleco to confirm the category using dated records; a panel age or sales promise alone does not establish eligibility.
Source: Cleco: DG tariff, revision 9 effective March 1, 2026. Reviewed 2026-10-07.
How long does the tariff describe grandfathered retail credits?
Revision 9 describes full retail export credit for grandfathered customers through December 31, 2034, then avoided-cost credit. It describes avoided-cost exports for its newer category. Keep the applicable category and current document together; this guide does not determine your account status.
Source: Cleco: DG tariff, revision 9 effective March 1, 2026. Reviewed 2026-10-07.
Why should I retain the current DG tariff rather than an old quote?
The tariff’s energy-purchase rate is adjusted annually. Check its effective date and ask which version applies to the billed period. Do not use a previous proposal’s export price as a permanent rate or as the retail price of imported electricity.
Source: Cleco: DG tariff, revision 9 effective March 1, 2026. Reviewed 2026-10-07.
Does an ongoing credit guarantee an automatic annual cash payment?
Cleco’s overview describes excess dollar credits applying to later bills and an annual account review where the utility may elect to reimburse ongoing credits. Preserve the balance and correspondence; annual review does not itself establish a guaranteed annual payout.
Source: Cleco: distributed generation billing overview. Reviewed 2026-10-07.
What should I ask before closing service on a solar home?
The tariff describes final-service credit settlement after amounts owed, with different wording for its customer categories. Request Cleco’s written calculation and applicable treatment before closure. Keep the closing bill and contact record; do not promise a buyer that the existing account balance or category transfers.
Source: Cleco: DG tariff, revision 9 effective March 1, 2026. Reviewed 2026-10-07.
Is a community-solar schedule the same as rooftop DG?
Cleco’s rates hub lists DG and community DG as separate schedules and explains that bills identify rate codes. Save your actual code, retail schedule and applicable riders. A community-program document is not evidence of your rooftop account’s export treatment.
Source: Cleco: rate codes, schedules and riders. Reviewed 2026-10-07.
Your decision checklist
- Confirm Cleco is the actual serving utility.
- Keep imports and exports in separate columns.
- Ask for written confirmation of the credit category.
- Save application, installation and interconnection dates.
- Match the tariff version to the billing period.
- Track carried credits and any settlement correspondence.
- Clarify closing-account treatment before a home transfer.
Save or print this guide from your browser. Keep completed records privately.
Separate the utility records behind a solar forecast
| Record | Evidence and next question |
|---|---|
| Account identity | Serving utility, rate code, billing dates and applicable retail schedule; verify the actual Cleco account. |
| Category evidence | Completed application, installation and interconnection records; ask the utility which dates and category it recognizes. |
| Tariff version | DG revision, effective date, relevant bill period and utility response explaining the rate used. |
| Two meter directions | Delivered and received kWh, separate prices and dollar lines; do not substitute total inverter production. |
| Credit history | Opening balance, new credit, amount applied, remaining balance and correspondence about any reimbursement. |
| Closing service | Proposed closing date, final bill, amounts owed, settlement calculation and requested written explanation. |
| Home transfer | Seller records shared securely, buyer utility confirmation and unresolved questions; no assumed transfer of credit or eligibility. |
Fictional bill example: a homeowner records 250 imported kWh and 250 exported kWh in a month. The worksheet labels the bill “zero” without listing the two prices or other bill lines. Leave the dollar result blank until the relevant records are available. Equal quantities are an observation, not a verified account calculation. Keep inverter production separate from the utility’s received-energy record and compare matching dates.
Fictional home-sale example: a seller’s folder contains an old installation invoice, an accumulated credit and a proposal calling the system grandfathered. The buyer creates three unanswered questions: which category does the utility recognize, how will the seller’s account close, and what documents apply to the buyer’s service? Do not use the proposal to answer all three. Obtain account-specific utility responses and keep the seller’s private identifiers out of a public listing.
Reviewed October 7, 2026 against Cleco’s distributed-generation overview, the current linked DG tariff, effective March 1, 2026, and rates and fees hub. The tariff contains more detailed category language than the overview. Ask the utility to resolve the actual records and account treatment; use the tariff rather than simplifying the overview into an eligibility promise. No cents-per-kWh figure, savings estimate or customer eligibility conclusion is provided here.
This guide concerns Cleco Power rooftop customer records in Louisiana. It does not establish a statewide policy, cover another utility’s export program, or substitute for the complete interconnection agreement. The organizer and fictional examples are editorial preparation aids, not extra legal requirements. Keep account numbers, signatures, service details and login credentials private. Request an explanation of a disputed bill in writing and retain the response.
Review existing records safely. Do not open electrical enclosures, climb onto a roof, switch on an unapproved system, change inverter or export settings, or conduct live tests to investigate a credit discrepancy. A billing question and a technical production question need their own evidence; neither an unexplained line nor a forecast mismatch proves the cause.
Continue with solar bill measurement checks, utility approval milestones and buying and selling a solar home. Solar Survey AI’s evidence methodology helps separate observations from unanswered assumptions. For technical concerns, confirm available inspection scope, location availability, qualifications, access, fees and commercial conflicts. Third-party does not automatically mean independent. An inspection cannot set a utility rate, decide grandfathering, authorize interconnection or guarantee a payout. Homeowner monitoring connections and planned free remote diagnosis remain coming soon.
About these guides
Published by Solar Survey AI, a commercial survey-services company. Our original decision checklists are recommendations; linked authorities support the referenced facts. We may benefit if you purchase our services. This is not independent certification of our company, a project-specific engineering decision or personal tax/legal advice. Local rules, contracts and site evidence control individual decisions. Reviewed 2026-10-07.
For available survey or inspection services, confirm your project scope and availability with our team. Our planned free homeowner remote diagnosis remains coming soon.
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