Harnessing the Sun: Passive and Active Solar Systems

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Installation and education We use a Sharp PV array. Alpha Technologies is our supplier of the PV system. They have an integrated system, with their own inverter. It comes as a kit, so it allows us to offer the customer a suite of options. The manufacturer helped in the specifications of the system and sent a representative to assist with the installation. The supplier sent a very capable person to help on the first house we did. There was a good instruction manual, too. It was on-the-job training for our crew and for me. Our crew put the panels up. We installed them with the help of an electrician, which the state and utility require. With some support from the supplier, the electrician wired it and checked for voltage, amperage and function. The panels were up in a day; the wiring took another full day and a bit of the next. We checked the system on the third day. It was probably a day longer than it should have been, because we were green. The only snag was that one of the panels was damaged by a forklift. The supplier FedExed a replacement panel, and it arrived the next day. When we provide energy systems only, we have to work with the builder to persuade him to do things our way—saving trees, for example. We'd never take out a tree for the sake of solar, but we might trim the lower branches of one if it was shading the house or the solar array. We mark the trees when the house is staked, and talk with the owners, the builder and excavators on site about how the trees function as a part of the whole to minimize utility bills. But you can run into resistance from subcontractors and others who have never done an energy-efficient home before, so you have to educate them on the advantages right up front. HVAC contractors, for example: They'll think we need a bigger air conditioning system than we do. Friends and competitors might go right to the homeowners and tell them they're wasting their money. They can make an impression. Then there are the building and trade inspectors. Most of them need to be advised of the differences regarding PVs and solar thermal systems. For the most part, if it's done right and they have the knowledge and assurance they need, it's fine. They just want to know it meets UL and national electric codes. Lead time ... and leadership We waited about two months for the panels, which worked fine with our work schedule. There is some shortage of panels, though, because of world demand. Supposedly the industry is working very hard to relieve that shortage. The challenges with solar and energy efficiency are not technical. We have the technology right now to save more than 50 percent of what we spend on home energy. We just need strong leadership. Many places promote and encourage solar. Some utility companies see it as a way of postponing new power plants. Distributed generation is more efficient, cleaner—and it will bring our energy dollars home to America. I just read an article in the March 2006 issue of Solar Today that challenges us to imagine life in 2106—what it would be like if green renewables proliferated. The environment would be better. The air would be cleaner. Health-care costs would be down. It's a real positive, lifting article, a "just do it" message. I am confident that it's going to happen. PREVIOUS  1 | 2 | 3