GetWithGreen.com » Solar / Power

Texas utility leasing rooftop solar systems

Megan Treacy — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 00:26:00 +0000

TXU Energy, a large Texas utility company, will lease rooftop solar power systems to their customers in the Dallas area.

Homeowners can sign up for the program with TXU and their partner in the project, SolarCity, will design and install the systems. After tax incentives, an owner of a three-to-four bedroom house would owe about $35 a month for a lease, though for $26,000 they could buy the array outright. When leased, SolarCity continues to own the array and performs any maintenance.

Currently, the state utility infrastructure company Oncor has funds to offer rebates on about 400 home installations, but SolarCity expects the program to grow quickly over the next five years.

This is not the first program like this in the country making residential solar affordable for homeowners, though it is the first one run by a utility. The state of Connecticut and the cities of Berkeley, San Diego and Palm Desert have all started solar financing programs for their residents and a California non-profit organization started a statewide financing program.

via Green Inc.

New bill would create 10 million solar roofs in 10 years

Megan Treacy — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:11:00 +0000

A really exciting new bill was introduced to Congress last week by Bernie Sanders of Vermont. The bill lays out a plan to install 10 million solar roofs and 200,000 solar water heaters over the next 10 years through tax rebates and incentives. The installations would equal 30 GW of clean energy or the equivalent of 30 nuclear power plants.

The "10 Million Solar Roofs and 10 Million Gallons of Solar Hot Water Act" would build on the success of state incentive programs like those in California and New Jersey and also the rising popularity of distributed solar projects. The bill would provide tax rebates of up to half the cost of new systems and would make sure the receivers of the incentives also know how to make their buildings as efficient as possible.

Sanders sees the bill costing between $2 and $3 billion a year, but with the outcome of 30 GW of new energy at the end of 10 years, it's actually a very cost effective plan. The plan would also create jobs and, as Sanders says, "the more photovoltaics we use, the more will be built; the more that are built, the cheaper it becomes."

All I can say is I love this bill. Oh Congress, please say you love it too.

via Treehugger

Solar Roof Tiles by Open Energy Corp

Katrina Berg — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 10:04:39 +0000

Allow the sun to power your home or business by using Open Energy Corp’s solar roof tiles.

With an Energy crisis on the brink in the US, consumers are asking more questions and demanding responsibility and answers. Open Energy Corp is offering solutions to homeowners, business owners, and institutions alike: solar roof tiles.

Open Energy’s solar tiles will work on flat as well as sloped roofs. Their solar roof tiles offer quiet & reliable power generation. The power your roof will be generating is clean, safe, and of course, free, thanks to the sun. For those of you with an aesthetic eye, the tiles come in three colors: slate gray, terracotta, and brown, to help integrate with your existing roof materials.

Using the solar roof tiles will significantly lower your energy bill each month. You will also find tax incentives and rebates available to increase your savings. Should you produce more power than you need, your local power and energy company will actually buy the excess power from you. Adding to the savings, these long lasting tiles are maintenance free. Should you desire to resell your property in the future, the solar tiles will raise the value of your property.

Not only are Open Energy’s solar roof tiles great on your pocketbook, but they will positively benefit the environment as well. There are no emissions or pollutants emitted from Open Energy’s solar roof tiles.

Other considerations:

Should you reside in a windy area, know that with a wind clip, Open Energy’s solar tiles will endure winds of up to 125 mph.
For those living in areas with winter snow, the tiles can handle snow loads of up to 200 lbs per square foot.
The tiles are light in weight at 14 lbs per tile.
With 80% power output, there is a 25 year warranty on Open Energy’s solar tiles.
Tiles are easily installed.

For more Open Energy Corp’s specs and details, check out on Open Energy Corp’s site. You’ll find a page with their residential project portfolio, that has photos and a data sheet for the project shown. Read more about each of the Open Energy Corp products here. Finally, learn more about Open Energy’s vision, identity, profile, strategy, and history here.

In some of the project photos, you have to look intently to see the solar tiles. Efficiency, simplicity, and beauty; solar power becomes a reality with Open Energy Corp’s solar roof tiles.

Congress votes YES, President signs bill, Solar tax credits back on!

GetGreen — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 22:37:13 +0000

From CNNMoney.com

After months of failed attempts in Congress to extend crucial renewable energy tax credits, the end-game came with lightning speed Friday afternoon: The House of Representatives passed the green incentives attached to the financial bailout package approved by the Senate Wednesday night and President Bush promptly signed the legislation into law.

There were goodies for wind, geothermal and alternative fuels, but the big winner by far was the solar industry.

“It feels like we should be popping the champagne,” said a Silicon Valley solar exec Green Wombat met for lunch minutes after Bush put pen to paper.

That it took the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression to save billions of dollars of renewable projects in the pipeline for the sake of political expediency does not bode well for a national alternative energy policy. But the bottom line is that the legislation passed Friday sets the stage for a potential solar boom.

The $2,000 tax credit limit for residential solar systems has been lifted, meaning that homeowners can get a 30% tax credit on the solar panels they install after Dec. 31. That will save a bundle – especially for those who live in states with generous state rebates – and goose demand for solar panel makers and installers like SunPower (SPWRA) and First Solar (FSLR). (If you buy a $24,000 3-kilowatt solar array in California – big enough to power the average home – you can claim a $7,200 federal tax credit. Add in the state solar rebate and the cost of the system is cut in half.)
Utilities like PG&E (PCG), Southern California Edison (EIX) and FPL (FPL) can now themselves claim the 30% investment tax credit for large-scale solar power projects. That should encourage those well-capitalized utilities to build their own solar power plants rather than just sign power purchase agreements with startups like Ausra and BrightSource Energy.

“The brakes are off,” says Danny Kennedy, co-founder of Sungevity, a Berkeley, Calif., solar installer that uses imaging technology to remotely size and design solar arrays. “In just six months since our launch we’ve sold about a hundred systems. With an uncapped tax credit for homeowners going solar, we expect business to boom.”

While elated sound bites from solar executives have been flooding the inbox all afternoon – along with invites to celebratory after-work drinks – solar stocks took a drubbing (along with the rest of the still-spooked market) after initially soaring on the news.

SunPower ended the trading day down 5% while First Solar shares dropped 8%. The bright spot was China?s Suntech (STP), which on Thursday announced a joint venture with financier MMA Renewable Ventures to build solar power plants as well as the acquisition of California-based solar panel installer EI Solutions.

Congress didn’t treat the wind industry so generously. The production tax credit for generating renewable energy was extended by just one year, guaranteeing the industry’s will continue to live year by year (at least through 2009). But given that 30% of all new power generation built in the United States in 2007 was wind, and that the amount of wind power installed by the end of 2008 is expected to rise 60% over the record set last year, the wind biz should do just fine.

But Congress did give a break to those who buy small-scale wind turbines. Systems under 100 kilowatts qualify for a 30% tax credit up to $4,000. Homeowners get a $1,000 tax credit for each kilowatt of wind they install, though the credit is capped at $4,000.

“This is a huge breakthrough for small wind,” says Scott Weinbrandt, president of Helix Wind, a San Diego-based manufacturer of 2-and-4-kilowatt turbines.

SOLAR: Will solar save you $$’s? We review the best/worst solar calculators!

GetGreen — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 17:37:16 +0000

UPDATED: 9/21/08

“Payback on solar isn’t the most important thing…it is the only thing the vast majority of potential solar homeowners care about.”

GetWithGreen took a look at how easy it is for us consumers to actually estimate the cost of installation/installing solar during a home remodel – using a web-based solar calculator.

Below are we have listed a number of sources for solar installation calculators, and we have compiled the most comprehensive list of these calculators available on the web. We want to warn you, many of these solar calculators appear to made by scientists for, well we couldn’t always figure out who the target audience was .

To help you, we have given a GetWithGreen Rating (“GWG Rating”) to each solar calculator, where 1 is very hard to use, and 10 is the easiest to use – for an average consumer. You should also know that MANY of the solar calculators on the web are from the same creators, and are just re-skinned (web terminology for different colors).

Before you begin, make sure you have a copy of your utility bill handy because you will need to input either your annual electric costs and/or your monthly electric usage in Kwh into the solar calculator!

Find Solar ( GWG Rating: 9 )
The “My Solar Estimator” solar calculator tool starts out simple with entry of a zip code and selection of your utility provider and remains easy to use from there on out. We like the navigation of this solar calculator and believe this solar calculator was designed for consumers like the GetWithGreen.com community. This solar calculator is used by a number of different websites, and is referred to quite often.

BP Solar ( GWG Rating: 7 )
Calculate the potential cost and savings by using a BP Solar Home Solution solar calculator. Easy to use and very fast calculator. This solar calculator will estimate out the savings per month off your present bill, and you can adjust the size of the system to determine further savings. Very easy to use, very friendly. We think this is a good solar calculator to get your feet wet with before proceeding to the My Solar Estimator tool from Find Solar above.

Southern California Solar Calculator (Southern Cal Edison & San Diego Gas Electric) ( GWG Rating: 7 )
Heritage Solar offers a solar calculator that is easy to use and provides savings information for ”small”, “medium” and “large” installation scenarios.

SunPower Solar Calculator (GWG Rating: 7)

This is a very complete and comprehensive solar calculator. This calculator is almost identical o the Sharp and Kyocera calculators below. It is built by Clean Power Research. You definitely have to know your stuff to answer all the questions, and to get an answer. The nice thing about this solar calculator is that it compares your costs to actually leasing a system through SunPower.

Sharp USA ( GWG Rating: 6 )
Estimate system cost, monthly savings, and payback using this solar calculator. This is the same solar calculator as Kyocea, but implemented a bit nicer. Still requires you to know the cost per Watt to get a good estimation.

Kyocera Clean Power Estimator ( GWG Rating: 5 )
Estimate the energy output, pollution prevention and cost of your grid-connected photovoltaic system using this solar calculator.

Select the residential option, and input your Zip Code to get started. Does incorporate tax benefits. This calculator is used by a number of websites, and can be easily identified by the “cleanpower” text in a webpage URL. We didn’t find this solar calculator particularily useful for the average consumer because it required you to put in what you think the size of your PV System should be (e.g. 4,000 Watts) and a cost per Watt (e.g. $8 per Watt dc).Â We question whether the average consumer trying to make a solar decision knows this?

Arizona (Phoenix) Residents ( GWG Rating: 5)
SRP delivers a Solar CostCalc for Phoenix residents. It estimates the cost of a system and cost savings of the system, but you have to estimate the size of the system. So you might want to start with the My Solar Estimator, and come back after you’ve done some estimating.

Long Island Residents ( GWG Rating: 5 )
Take a look at what Renewable Energy Long Island (RELI) has to offer.

PV Watts ( GWG Rating: 4 )
Calculates electrical energy produced by a grid-connected photovoltaic system. Created by researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to enable experts to obtain performance estimates for grid-connected PV systems with the US. This solar calculator, while getting many referrals on the web, appears to be made by rocket scientists for rocket scientists. It is very difficult to use for the average consumer, but there are instructions that can teach you the science behind the solar calculations.

SolarHome.com ( GWG Rating: 4 )
Online solar retailer with an easy to use solar calculator that quickly tells you how much solar energy your system will need to output to fullfill you needs. You can take this system sizing, and then use it on the Kyocera Clean Power Estimator or the PV Watts calculator above. So, as you can see this is not a complete solar calculator, but a piece of the puzzle.

Texas State Energy Conservation Office ( GWG Rating: 2 )
Basic solar calculator that estimates a system cost, but does not account for any incentives like almost all the other calculators.

So in summary, GetWithGreen believes the calculators we have Rated higher than 5 or higher, can offer you some guidance in your solar education and decision.

Clearly there is a lot that solar resellers have to offer in the way of estimations, and it’s likely they keep detailed tools close to their chest. We believe there is a market out there for one of you readers to create a free comprehesive tool. If it existed we suspect it could demystify solar to the average residential homeowner, and possibly accelerate adoption!

How do you finance or lease solar panels and electricity for your home?

GetGreen — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 04:47:33 +0000

Considering solar power for your home during your residential remodel? Financing solar panels is the big hurdle for most us. Fortunately, the financing options for solar panels is becoming more obtainable.

Whether you are looking at solar panel suppliers and installers such as SolarCity, SunPower, and others, you now have options. For example, SolarCity offers a leasing program that is targeted at delivering you solar power at a monthly payment less than your exiting monthy electicity/power bill. With leasing options such as this, any repairs are typically covered, and at the end of the lease you can upgrade, purchase or return.

This timely LA Times article offers additional details and several homeowner examples of how solar panel lease and financing options have helped residents afford solar power for their homes: Solar Power Hits Home

McCain / Palin or Obama / Biden, what happens to the environment?

admin — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 03:54:43 +0000

So you’ve probably seen the video where Palin is asking her church congregation to pray for the oil pipeline in Alaska, but what’s the full story? How have the candidates voted in congress? What have they said publicly related to their positions on environmental issues? Here are some things to consider (if you haven’t already made up your choice) before you head to the polls.

McCain / Palin

John McCain
- Build 45 new nuclear power plants by 2030. (Jun 2008)
- Realistic climate plan that clashes with GOP. (Jun 2008)
- End moratorium on offshore oil drilling. (Jun 2008)
- Favors wind & solar in ad; favors nuclear in bills. (Jun 2008)
- Support much tougher regulations on emission requirements. (Jan 2008)

Sarah Palin
- Global warming affects Alaska, but is not man-made. (Aug 2008)
- Energy relief plan: $100 per person monthly, for oil & gas. (May 2008)
- Opposed protections for salmon from mining contamination. (Aug 2008)
- Sue US government to stop listing polar bear as endangered. (Aug 2008)
- We must encourage timber, mining, drilling, & fishing. (Jan 2008)
- Cut funding for alternative energy research (May 2008)

Obama / Biden

Barack Obama
- GovWatch: $150B for electric car batteries & new technology. (Jun 2008)
- GovWatch: Supports nuclear power if it’s clean & safe. (Jun 2008)
- $150B investment over 10 years to reduce oil usage by 35%. (May 2008)
- Figure out how to sequester carbon and burn clean coal. (May 2008)
- Raise fuel efficiency standards to reduce long-term demand. (Apr 2008)
- Reduce the consumption of energy and be more efficient. (Jan 2008)
- Aggressively address accelerating climate change. (Dec 2007)
- Passed tax credit for installing E85 ethanol at gas stations. (Feb 2008)
- Sponsored legislations that improve energy efficiency. (Sep 2004)
- Voted YES on removing oil & gas exploration subsidies. (Jun 2007)
- Voted YES on factoring global warming into federal project planning. (May 2007)
- Willing to suspend ethanol subsidy to keep food prices down. (May 2008)
- Genesis teaches stewardship of earth: sacrifice for future. (Apr 2008)
- Promote green technologies and fuel efficiency standards. (Dec 2007)

Joe Biden
- Supports cap-and-trade for greenhouse gases. (Nov 2007)
- Make every automobile sold be a flex-fuel automobile. (Apr 2007)
- Voted YES on tax incentives for energy production and conservation. (Jun 2008)
- Voted YES on addressing CO2 emissions without considering India & China. (May 2008)
- Voted YES on removing oil & gas exploration subsidies. (Jun 2007)
- Voted YES on factoring global warming into federal project planning. (May 2007)

For complete details, visit: http://www.ontheissues.org/ where you can also get details on the candidates’ views on abortion, family, the economy and national budget, civil rights, crime and much more.

SOLAR: Cleaner for maximizing the efficiency of your solar panels

GetGreen — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 11:50:00 +0000

SolarFrameWorks Introduces Solar Panel Maintenance Solution

While we haven’t tried this at GetWithGreenwe wanted to bring you this News, SolarFrameWorks, a manufacturer and distributor of photovoltaic technology, last week introduced a solar panel cleaning agent, PowerBoost®. PowerBoost is a touchless, biodegradable solution that is said to repel debris from solar panels to maximize solar power production and lower utility costs. According to SolarFrameWorks, PowerBoost provides an immediate and dramatic increase in power output.

Available for both residential and commercial applications, PowerBoost can be applied within minutes using a standard garden hose to clean your solar panels. The foaming solution contains surfactants that remove grime thereby in theory increasing the level of solar insulation that is able to reach the solar cells. The company says that PowerBoost works on all types of glass, such as the tempered glass layered on the top of most crystalline solar panels. Additionally, the product is said to not only enhances the cleaning process but leaves behind a specially-formulated coating to reduce the number of cleanings required.

?Last year, I installed solar panels to fuel my electricity,? said Richard Loesch, a Carmichael, California resident. ?In light of the wild fires raging throughout the state, I grew concerned about how I would be able to properly maintain my solar panels with all the ash and soot left behind. After using PowerBoost, my concern is gone. It?s very easy to apply and works instantly. In even the harshest environmental conditions, I am confident in the effectiveness of PowerBoost and highly recommend this product.?

Pricing and Availability
PowerBoost is available in both industrial and residential strength formulations. For more information, visit http://www.solarframeworks.com/powerboost.html or call 1-888-90-SOLAR.

DAYLIGHTING SYSTEMS: A Solatube installation review

David Putnam — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 03:34:47 +0000

Earlier this Summer, GetWithGreen.com selected a Solatube Model 160 DS Daylighting System for a residential hallway installation. A daylighting system was selected because a dimly lit hallway constantly required energy consumption for lighting — even during daytime hours.

Solatube was selected by GetWithGreen.com because of the sheer amount of clear information on the company’s and reseller’s website, and because it was so easy to find the product locally. It’s now time to update you on the install, and our final opinion of this specific daylighting system.

The Solatube 160 DS installation was a snap. Our GetWithGreen.com contractor installed the daylighting system within 90 minutes, and if you use a Solatube dealer this time could likely fall well below an hour! Our installation did require the wiring of electricity to the daylighting system, so that it could be used during the night as a light as well.

So what happened to the once dark hallway?? The hallway is now brilliantly bright during the day, and often glowing with moonlight in the evenings. GetWithGreen.com did use both a diffuser AND a softening lense for the installation because the light coming through the Solatube was too bright at first!! In addition the light was very white, and not as soft as a traditional incandescent bulb. The diffuser and the softening lenses took care of this. (Special thanks to Marjorie at Sunlight Concepts for allowing GetWithGreen to sample the various diffusers and softening lenses!) Should you still want to tone down the light, or perhaps change the color of the light, you might be able to use a colored gel to further alter the color and mood of your daylighting system — but this has not been confirmed by Solatube.

It does take time to get used to a new daylighting system. For weeks following your daylighting system install you will reach for a light switch because you will think a light has been left on!! You may also feel it is too bright, but we urge you to give it a few weeks. You will grow accustomed and fall further in love with your free and environmentally friendly light source.

GetWithGreen.com gives daylighting systems two green thumbs up!! In our opinion, the Solatube daylighting system performs beyond expectations, and Marjorie at Sunlight Concepts (our dealer) was amazing to work with. If you are considering one of these systems, GetWithGreen.com urges you to take the plunge. If you haven’t considered a daylighting system before, then take note and check out these incredibly eco-friendly products for lighting your home!!!

WATER HEATER: Velux delivers new solar water heater

GetGreen — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 17:30:35 +0000

Add Velux (the skylight company you find at The Home Depot) to the list of companies now offering Solar Water Heaters. This week the company announced their plans to start offering the products that have been proven in Europe.

The company worked hard to ensure that the roof collectors aesthetically pleasing and to integrate well with rooflines while delivering exceptional energy collection capabilities. The units also integrate with VELUX roof windows. The collectors are certified by independent testing agencies in Europe (Solar Keymark) and in the United States (SRCC) and installers must have completed advanced training to assure reliable installations.

The cost of installed systems will vary depending upon the volume of heated water required in a home. Two to three rooftop solar collector panels will usually be installed and solar hot water holding tanks are available in 80- and 120-gallon sizes.

Tim Miller, President of VELUX America, says that federal tax credits can help pay 30 percent up to $2,000 for a system and that some states and utilities offer additional support resulting in credits that could offset up to half of the cost. This, combined with savings on home energy bills, he says, should result in an anticipated payback period of 3-7 years in most areas depending on geographic location, utility rates and other factors.
Jim Cika, manager, solar products for VELUX, says that the systems can provide up to 100 percent of the demand for heating hot water in a home, with typically up to 80 percent of hot water needs coming, ?free from the sun,? while replacing or adding on to an existing water heating system.

The U.S. Department of Energy, in it?s EERE Consumer?s Guide, says that, ?On average, if you install a solar water heater, your water heating bills should drop 50%-80%. Also, because the sun if free, you?re protected from future fuel shortages and price hikes.?

Solar energy systems can take advantage of this free energy source throughout the year as solar energy can be produced even at low temperatures. According to Cika, the capacity for widespread use is a particularly attractive feature of the VELUX system. ?We us a glycol, or antifreeze solution in our system,? Cika says, ?so it?s suitable for use anywhere in the United States, with the exception of some parts of Alaska, which is not the case with all solar water heating systems.?

Cika says that the VELUX system has a much lower system and installation cost than solar photovoltaic (PV) technology. ?Basically, our system utilizes low-profile roof-top solar energy collectors to gather heat. An electronic controller activates a pump to feed the heated solution through insulated tubing to a solar hot water tank. The heat is transferred from the solution, through a heat exchanger, to the water in the insulated tank, where it is held until needed, and the glycol solution, which never enters the water supply, is returned to the collectors to be reused,? Cika says. He also points out that the solar collectors utilize the same proven flashing materials and techniques employed to install VELUX roof windows.