Friedman’s Home Improvement store in Sonoma, California, last fall took advantage of California solar rebates and federal tax credits to make the switch to solar.

The company’s 40,000 square-foot store is now being partly powered by a 234-kilowatt solar photovoltaic (PV) system, according to the North Bay Business Journal. According to Friedman’s Chief Financial Officer David Proctor, the rooftop solar installation is expected to pay for itself by way of monthly energy bill savings in six or seven years.

Friedman’s decided to go with the solar energy system is because it aligns with the growing green business practices of the company — in 2008, the store received certification from Sonoma’s Green Business Program. Federal solar incentives and California rebates helped, too.

Some of the cost of Friedman’s $1.3 million solar installation was alleviated by the federal renewable energy investment tax credit, which is worth 30 percent of total systems costs, after rebates. California, for instance, offers a cash rebate for commercial solar projects. Known as the Expected Performance Based Buydown rebate, the incentive is available to those who own a solar energy system smaller than 50 kilowatts (kW). Once the system is up and running, qualified buyers receive a lump sum rebate that is determined by system’s expected performance.

For those who own a system between 50 kW and 1 megawatt in size, California offers a Performance Based Incentive (PBI) that is paid out in monthly payments for five years, based on the actual energy output of the system.

For their part, Friedman’s managers seem happy with their decision — and are excited to see how things go this summer, when the system will see the longest days of the year for the first time. ”It is wonderful in the summer,” said Proctor, according to the North Bay Journal. “You have maximum solar impact during the max demand time. I have been watching month over month and in April I started to see the shift from less solar impact to more.”