Why Streamwood Homeowners Choose Solar
More Streamwood homeowners are looking into solar every year, not because it’s free (it isn’t), but because it reduces what you owe ComEd every month and builds equity instead of renting your power indefinitely. Here’s why solar makes sense in Streamwood right now.
Lower Your Monthly Bill
Generate your own power and reduce what you owe ComEd every month, with $0-down financing options available through our lease/PPA partner.
Built for Cook County Weather
Streamwood sees real winter cold, wind-driven snow, and humid summers like the rest of northwest Cook County. Panels are mounted and angled to shed snow and hold up to seasonal swings, not just perform on a mild-climate spec sheet.
A Real Illinois Track Record
61 completed installs across Illinois to date, including real projects on ComEd’s grid in the Chicago suburbs. See the honest picture below, not stock photos.
How Home Solar Actually Works
Understanding how a residential solar system works helps you ask the right questions before you sign anything. Here’s the short version.
Solar Panels
Mounted on your roof, panels convert sunlight into DC electricity. We size the array to your household’s actual usage, not a generic package.
Inverter
Converts DC power from the panels into the AC electricity your home actually runs on, the same current ComEd delivers.
Utility Meter
Tracks power flowing to and from the grid under ComEd’s tariff, so your system’s production is measured and credited accurately.
Monitoring
Track production from your phone, so you always know exactly what your system is generating.
What to Expect: Your Solar Installation Timeline
Illinois timelines run longer than some states because Illinois Shines processing and ComEd interconnection review add steps beyond installation itself. Many projects finish within 30 to 60 days of signing; we’ll give a project-specific timeline before you sign anything.
Free Consultation & Usage Review
We review your last 12 months of ComEd usage and model your roof’s sun exposure with Aurora Solar’s design software.
Custom System Design & Financing
We size your system to actual usage, and you choose the financing route (Lease/PPA or cash/loan) that fits your goals.
Illinois Shines Application & Interconnection
We file the Illinois Shines application through our Approved Vendor and the ComEd interconnection request on your behalf, often the biggest factor in overall timeline.
Installation Day
Our NABCEP-certified crew installs your system. Most residential jobs are completed in a day or two, depending on system size.
Inspection & Permission to Operate
Local inspection and ComEd’s permission-to-operate sign-off happen before your system is switched on.
Monitoring & Ongoing Support
You get app access to track production in real time, and SolQ stays available if you ever have questions about your system.
Real Proof From ComEd Territory Near Streamwood
We’ll be straight with you: SolQ doesn’t yet have a completed install on file inside Streamwood. What we do have is a verifiable track record elsewhere on ComEd’s grid, a few real streets from our completed project records:
Street names shown, no addresses. Cluster-wide size range, not attributed to a specific address: roughly 0.4 kW to 51 kW. From our completed project records, current as of July 2026. SolQ has 61 completed installs statewide across Illinois and more than 2,000 company-wide.
Real Customers, Real Stories
Hear directly from homeowners who made the switch with SolQ.
Serving Streamwood, Bartlett, Hanover Park, and the Tri-Village Area
Streamwood is home to roughly 38,300 residents (2025 U.S. Census Bureau estimate) and sits entirely within Cook County, forming the “Tri-Village” area alongside neighboring Bartlett and Hanover Park. The village hosts the international headquarters of Awana, a global youth ministry organization, and students are served by Elgin Area School District U-46, Illinois’s second-largest school district. The Streamwood Park District’s Sunny Hill Park, built on a former landfill, has become a local landmark with a sledding hill and disc golf course. On the commercial side, the Village has worked with nearly 40 local companies to secure Cook County Class 6B property tax incentive status, supporting roughly $60 million in local development, and its location near O’Hare International Airport, I-90, and the Elgin-O’Hare Expressway draws commercial and industrial growth too. SolQ installs throughout ComEd’s Streamwood-area territory, including neighboring Bartlett, Hanover Park, Elgin, Hoffman Estates, and Schaumburg. For full ComEd rate, rebate, and net-metering details, visit our ComEd Illinois hub. For Illinois Shines and how the process works statewide, visit our Illinois solar hub.
Check Coverage for My AddressFinancing Options
Lease or PPA $0 DOWN
A multi-year lease or power-purchase agreement with no upfront cost, through our financing partner LightReach. You pay either a fixed monthly lease payment or a per-kWh rate for the power your system produces, not ownership of the equipment.
Cash or Loan Purchase
Own your system outright with no ongoing lease or PPA payment. Loan options available through Salal Credit Union, with specific term and rate disclosed as part of your written proposal.
ComEd: What to Know in Streamwood
ComEd is the electric delivery utility for Streamwood and essentially all of Cook County. Here’s the real breakdown, not a one-size-fits-all pitch.
ComEd
Northern IllinoisComEd serves Streamwood, its neighboring Tri-Village communities of Bartlett and Hanover Park, and essentially all of Cook County. New solar customers choose whether to receive their net metering credit in kWh or as a monetary credit, a decision made at the time of application. New systems here are also eligible for a one-time Solar Generation Rebate of $300 per kilowatt of installed generating capacity (smart inverter required, capped at systems up to 5,000 kW), plus a separate Battery Storage Rebate of $300 per kilowatt-hour, which requires enrolling in ComEd’s Rate BESH and cannot combine with Community Solar. It’s not recurring, and it’s only available once per system; ComEd’s stated timeline is roughly 90 days after your system is energized and your application is complete.
Since January 1, 2025, new ComEd solar customers are placed on supply-only crediting rather than legacy full-retail net metering; the credit offsets only the Supply portion of your bill, not delivery charges and taxes. If your Streamwood-area system was installed and interconnected before December 31, 2024, you keep full legacy net metering for that system’s life, up to 30 years. We confirm exactly which terms apply before you sign anything.
Illinois Shines: How the Incentive Actually Works
Illinois Shines is the state’s Adjustable Block Program, administered on behalf of the Illinois Power Agency. Here’s how it works for a Streamwood system: your solar array creates Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), the tradable proof that clean energy was produced. Through Illinois Shines, an Approved Vendor can sell those RECs into the program in exchange for payment, typically used to help offset your system cost. SolQ is a registered Designee under multiple Approved Vendors participating in Illinois Shines. We are not the State of Illinois, the Illinois Power Agency, the Illinois Commerce Commission, or ComEd, and we don’t control REC pricing or program capacity.
REC value depends on current program pricing and available block capacity, both set by the program administrator, not SolQ, and it’s factored into your financing rather than paid to you directly in most cases. You’re being compensated for an environmental attribute, not receiving free equipment, and we won’t tell you otherwise.
Illinois Solar Incentives, Straight Talk
No State Income Tax Credit
Streamwood solar economics run through Illinois Shines’ REC value and ComEd’s DG Rebate, not a state income tax credit, which Illinois doesn’t offer. Be wary of anyone pitching one.
Property Tax: Capped, Not Exempt
Illinois assesses your home as if it had a conventional heating/cooling system instead of solar, and applies whichever value is lower. It caps the tax impact rather than exempting it, and isn’t automatic; you (or SolQ) file with the Cook County Assessor’s Office, since Streamwood sits entirely within Cook County.
Federal Credit: Financing-Dependent Now
The 30% federal residential credit (Section 25D) ended for cash and loan purchases not completed by December 31, 2025. Lease/PPA agreements can still pass through a federal credit through 2027. See our FAQ for the breakdown.
Built Around Illinois’s Rules, Not a National Template
From ComEd’s net billing and rebate mechanics to Illinois Shines REC economics, every Streamwood proposal starts with your actual utility terms, not a copy-pasted estimate from a national call center.
Get Your Free EstimateAlready Getting a Solar Estimate? Ask About Battery Storage, Too
A lot of Streamwood homeowners evaluating solar also ask about battery backup for outages, especially with ComEd’s Battery Storage Rebate ($300 per kilowatt-hour through Rate BESH) available alongside the solar rebate. If your household runs solar farms, small commercial buildings, or agricultural operations rather than a single-family home, SolQ also designs commercial and agricultural solar systems — ask us during your consultation and we’ll tell you honestly whether it’s a fit, with no pressure either way.
Ask About Battery StoragePremium Equipment We Install
NABCEP-certified installation using trusted equipment, sourced through distributor CED Greentech. Panels shown below reflect what we’ve actually installed on ComEd’s grid.
See what solar could mean for your Streamwood-area home
Free, no-obligation estimate. No “free solar” pitch, no pressure.
Get My Free Solar DesignFrequently Asked Questions
Is solar really free in Streamwood?
No, and we’ll never tell you it is. Illinois Shines pays for the RECs your system produces, which can meaningfully offset cost, but it isn’t free equipment or installation. A $0-down Lease or PPA means no upfront cash from you, not that the system has no cost; you’re paying for its power over the contract term instead.
Is SolQ affiliated with the State of Illinois, the Illinois Power Agency, or my utility?
No. SolQ is an independent installer and a registered Designee under multiple Approved Vendors participating in Illinois Shines. We are not the State of Illinois, the Illinois Power Agency, the Illinois Commerce Commission, or ComEd, and we don’t set program rules, REC pricing, or rebate terms.
Does SolQ have completed solar installs in Streamwood yet?
Not yet on file. We do have a verifiable track record of completed installs elsewhere on ComEd’s grid, including in neighboring Elgin, Mount Prospect, Prospect Heights, and Palatine, plus 61 completed installs statewide and more than 2,000 company-wide. We’d rather tell you that honestly than pretend otherwise.
Is the federal solar tax credit still available in Streamwood?
For cash and loan purchases, no. The 30% federal residential credit (Section 25D) ended for systems not completed by December 31, 2025. Lease/PPA customers still benefit indirectly: our financing partner owns the system and claims a separate federal credit for commercial-owned solar (Section 48E, active through 2027), part of how they offer $0-down payments below what you pay ComEd now. We’ll walk through what applies before you sign anything.
Do I keep the RECs from my Streamwood solar system, or does SolQ?
Depends on financing. Own your system (cash or loan) and you own the RECs, free to sell them into Illinois Shines. Finance through a Lease or PPA and the financing company typically owns the system and its RECs unless your contract says otherwise.
How does ComEd credit my solar production?
New customers choose kWh credits or a monetary credit, offsetting only the Supply portion of the bill. Systems interconnected before December 31, 2024 keep legacy full-retail net metering for up to 30 years. We walk through both before you decide.
How much does a solar system cost for an average Streamwood home?
Depends on system size, roof condition, and financing choice (Lease/PPA vs. cash/loan). SolQ provides a written estimate, not a guaranteed savings figure, after reviewing your ComEd usage.
Who are SolQ’s financing partners?
For Illinois homeowners, SolQ offers $0-down Lease and PPA options through LightReach, and loan financing through Salal Credit Union for those who want to own their system outright.
Does the Village of Streamwood have any city-specific permitting requirements?
Yes, a village building permit is required alongside the ComEd interconnection filing. Streamwood sits entirely within Cook County, so permitting and property-tax filings run through Cook County and village offices rather than a second county. SolQ confirms exact requirements for your address before we design your system.
Does SolQ also serve Bartlett and Hanover Park, the rest of the Tri-Village area?
Yes. Streamwood, Bartlett, and Hanover Park make up what locals call the Tri-Village area, and all three sit on ComEd’s grid in Cook County. We install throughout the Tri-Village area and neighboring Elgin, Hoffman Estates, and Schaumburg as well.
What kind of warranty comes with my system?
Most panels carry a 25-30 year manufacturer warranty (varies by brand), most batteries carry 10 years, and inverters typically range 10-25 years. Lease/PPA agreements through LightReach typically include a bumper-to-bumper warranty with a production guarantee for the full term.
How long does a Streamwood solar installation take, start to finish?
Many projects install within 30 to 60 days of signing, though Illinois Shines processing and ComEd interconnection review can extend timelines. Installation itself is usually a day or two.
Ready to Get Started?
Schedule a Free ConsultationSolQ is an independent solar provider and is a registered Designee under multiple Approved Vendors participating in Illinois Shines. SolQ is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of the State of Illinois, the Illinois Power Agency, the Illinois Commerce Commission, ComEd, or any government agency. “Illinois Shines” and the Adjustable Block Program are administered by the Illinois Power Agency and its program administrator, not by SolQ. Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) pricing and Illinois Shines block capacity are set by the program administrator and change over time; figures on this page are general program information, not a quote or guarantee for your system. Solar RECs are a form of compensation for your system’s environmental attributes, not a rebate on the equipment itself, and selling them does not make a system “free.” Savings, rebate, and incentive figures shown are general information and estimates, not guarantees. Actual results vary by system, usage, and current program terms. The federal residential solar tax credit (Section 25D) ended for cash/loan purchases completed after December 31, 2025; a separate credit may apply to third-party-owned Lease/PPA systems through 2027. Financing offered through third-party partners (LightReach for Lease/PPA, Salal Credit Union for loans); terms, including contract length and payment structure, are disclosed in your specific agreement and subject to partner approval. Illinois’s property tax treatment of solar is an alternate assessment method, not a full exemption, and requires an application to your county assessor; confirm current eligibility with your tax advisor. Battery storage and commercial/agricultural solar are offered by SolQ as separate services; mentioning them here is informational, not a savings or performance guarantee for any specific property. SolQ does not yet have completed installs on file within Streamwood; local proof shown above reflects real, completed ComEd-territory projects elsewhere in the Chicago suburbs. Population figure (approximately 38,300) reflects the U.S. Census Bureau’s July 1, 2025 population estimate (V2025) for Streamwood village; the 2020 Census count was 39,585. Streamwood lies entirely within Cook County, Illinois. Local civic and economic details (Awana headquarters, Elgin Area School District U-46, Streamwood Park District’s Sunny Hill Park, Cook County Class 6B incentive figures) reflect publicly available Village of Streamwood, U.S. Census, and school district information as of August 2026. Content verified as of August 2026.