Live in Freeport, Falmouth, Yarmouth or outlying towns? Then join us this Saturday for a solar energy tour and see different public buildings that have installed renewable energy systems.

The tour will start at Falmouth High School at 9am, and there will be a van for those who wish to carpool. We will view a wood boiler, solar hot water system and several solar electric systems – the tour ends at the Freeport Public Library. This event is free and all are welcome.

You can also meet us at the Energy Fair, which will be starting at the Freeport Public Library the same day (May 1) from 11am – 2pm. Vendors will be on display to show you steps you can take to become more energy efficient. Lunch will be available to purchase – cash only.

Questions? Call us at (207) 221-6342.

Location Information:

• Falmouth High School is at 52 Woodville Road, Falmouth, ME (Map)
• Freeport Public Library is at 10 Library Drive, Freeport, ME (Map)

In an effort to take advantage of historically low solar electric prices as and state and federal government incentives, the Hope General Store recently installed a 4.6 kilowatt grid-tied solar electric system on the roof of the store in Hope Village.

To celebrate the installation, Hope General owner Andrew Stewart and ReVision Energy are inviting the public to a solar open house on Thursday, April 29th from 3pm – 6pm at the Hope General Store, 449 Camden Road, Hope. Stewart and ReVision staff will be on hand to talk about the solar electric system, how it works, current pricing, and available solar technology in Maine.

The solar electric system, designed and installed by our Liberty branch, consists of 20 Canadian Solar 230-watt photovoltaic (PV) panels. The 4.6 kilowatt system covers an area of 845 square feet and will produce roughly 5,900 kilowatt hours of clean, renewable electricity annually while offsetting roughly 7,700 pounds of CO2 each year.

Grid-tied solar electricity systems require no batteries and instead use the existing electrical grid to store any excess power created on site. Sun hits the PV panels and inverters change the DC power into usable AC electricity. Utility companies in Maine, under net-billing law, are required to credit any excess production (month-by-month) for up to 12 months.

Photo by woodleywonderworks

Today is Earth Day, which means a lot of attention to planting trees, cleaning up trash, recycling, and – more than ever before – working to make the energy we consume more sustainable.

We hope that means more people will be looking to the sun for a solution!

This weekend you can catch us at two events to talk about solar – one in New Hampshire, and another in southern Maine.

2nd Annual Earth Awareness Fair! – Apr 24 10AM – 2PM in Hampton, NH

Held at the Hampton Academy School, 29 Academy Avenue, Hampton, NH (Map and Directions), the purpose of the Fair is to draw attention to the 3 Rs: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, energy conservation, and sustainability.

Money raised will go to the Recycling Education Committee to further promote recycling education. Additionally, as part of the effort to “Reuse”, we are encouraging neighborhood “yard sales”. The event is sponsored by the Hampton Recycling Education Committee.

We’ll be there to talk about clean energy solutions for homes and businesses, and the available rebates and incentives in New Hampshire.

In addition to a 30% uncapped federal tax credit, solar electricity is eligible for a $6,000 rebate from the state of New Hampshire, and New Hampshire’s PUC recently launched a rebate that averages $1,250 for solar hot water systems. Furthermore, NH residents within the New Hampshire Electrical Co-op may be eligible for an additional $1,500 rebate.

Kittery Earth Day – Apr 24 10AM – 3PM in Kittery, ME

Held at Kittery’s Autoworks, (Map and Directions)

This event is being hosted by the Kittery Energy Advisory Committee in conjunction with Spruce Creek Association and the Kittery Land Trust. There will be mini-workshops with speakers to talk about energy saving ideas and information about the recent award of the $500,000 regional block grant.

If you weren’t already aware, residents of the KEYS area (Kittery, Eliot, York, South Berwick – as well as Ogunquit and North Berwick) will be eligible for low-interested loans of up to $10,000 for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects (see an article in The Green Alliance newsletter).

ReVision will there to discuss solar hot water and solar electric options for the home and business, and how these proven renewable energy systems can decrease your energy bills and help the environment.

Every Day is Earth Day?

The phrase “Every Day is Earth Day” may sound like a cliche, but it’s not if you’re running a renewable energy system on your house. With solar hot water or solar power, you’ll be offsetting fossil fuel use and enjoying the benefits of a clean energy system that will operate trouble-free for years to come.

Come join us this weekend to learn more!

The Union Leader, a local paper in the Manchester, New Hampshire region, reported on ReVision’s growth in New Hampshire:

ReVision Energy Ibnc., a company that says it installed more than half of all photovoltaic and solar hot water projects in the state of Maine last year, has plans to increase its market presence in New Hampshire after installing 12 projects in this state so far.

Read more (PDF Download)

Nicknamed “Green Bean,” this new energy efficient Habitat for Humanity home boasts an R66 roof and R25 wall system.

A few weeks ago ReVision staffers Josh Baston and Geoff Sparrow helped with our second Habitat for Humanity project.

They installed and vented a 95% efficient condensing gas boiler for a new home that will house a single mother and child. These boilers achieve this high rate of efficiency by condensing exhaust gases as water vapor and recovering additional heat from them.

The home is nicknamed “Green Bean” by Habitat for Humanity, as it represents the 5th home in their green building efforts and was originally owned by LL Bean.

LL Bean found they needed to expand their parking lot to where the house was located, and rather than demolishing it they donated the house along with some funds to Habitat for Humanity.

Habitat took the house to its new location, and started greening the 1930s-era house in earnest.

Using a product called Nailbase, Habitat achieved an amazing R66 rating in the roof, and built up the walls to R25. The house is now so tight that they needed to install an HRV! The gas boiler that ReVision installed will be used for heating and domestic hot water.

ReVision’s first Habitat for Humanity project was a solar hot water system for a LEED home, installed in Portland. See the blog archives for a write-up or see more project photos.

From our Schools and Nonprofits Solar Photo Gallery:

See more installations in our Solar Projects Map

This 4.3KW solar array will offset roughly 7,700 lbs. of CO2 emissions annually.

ReVision recently completed the installation of a 4.3KW solar array onto the historic Hope General Store in Hope, Maine. A nice writeup of the project was featured in the The Herald Gazette.

A few things they had to say:

Andrew Stewart, owner of the Hope General Store … said the price for the panels was so good that he couldn’t pass it up. Besides the environmental benefits, one can also receive state and federal credits for using solar power, he said.

Stewart will still rely on Central Maine Power but expects to save 20 to 30 percent on his bill. He hopes to see a payback on his solar power venture in about eight years.

Besides record low prices for solar panels, there are a number of tax and credit incentives for businesses considering solar power. There remains an uncapped 30% federal tax credit for system costs, and businesses can choose to accelerate depreciation on solar installations for further tax benefits. There is also a $2,000 State of Maine rebate for solar electricity.

All told, incentives can come close to 50% of the system cost, dramatically reducing the payback time for a system that will last 25+ years.

Meanwhile, the solar system will offset roughly 7,700 lbs. of CO2 emissions annually, or the equivalent of taking 3-4 commuter vehicles off the road!

More Photos from Our Commercial Solar Photo Gallery:

For more installations, see our Solar Projects Map

Janet Ward, a friend of ReVision Energy in Concord, New Hampshire, recently alerted us to some questionable legislation making its way through the New Hampshire State Senate.

Bill SB 334, which states that it is “encouraging the installation and use of small scale renewable energy resources by homeowners and businesses,” is coming under fire because it would allow Public Service of New Hampshire (PSNH) to divert $5 million of money that should purchase renewable energy credits for a single solar development project in Manchester.

As reported from the New Hampshire Sustainable Energy Association:

PSNH is asking the New Hampshire House of Representatives for permission to fund a single solar energy project in Manchester with funds it is supposed to use to purchase Renewable Energy Certificates or pay into the State’s Renewable Energy Fund(REF).

The REF funds are intended to be available throughout the State for renewable energy projects to benefit residents, small businesses, and municipalities. The funds are vital to the small businesses which are building New Hampshire’s green economy.

The PSNH project, funded via the RPS program, undermines investment in New Hampshire’s small business future.

The bit of legislation that is causing the controversy:

In lieu of PSNH making payments under RSA 362-F:10 for class II electric renewable energy standard obligations or purchasing certificates, as defined in RSA 362-F:2, III, to comply with RSA 362-F class II electric renewable energy standard obligations, beginning upon the effective date of this act PSNH shall retain such payments and utilize $5,000,000 of such amounts to invest in the development of the solar photovoltaic renewable energy project in Manchester. The amounts retained by PSNH shall be used to amortize the outstanding capital investment for the project. When the nominal payments retained by PSNH equal $5,000,000, PSNH shall return to routine compliance with RSA 362-F:10 for going-forward class II electric renewable energy standard obligations.

What This Means

Under current law, the $5,000,000 would go towards the purchase of Renewable Energy Certificates (the Renewable Portfolio Standard or RPS) or pay into the New Hampshire’s Renewable Energy Fund (REF).

According to The Green Energy Times, “The REF funds are intended to be available throughout the State for renewable energy projects which benefit residents, small businesses, and municipalities. The funds are vital to the small businesses which are building New Hampshire’s green economy.”

In other words, the act would allow PSNH to create their own special project and avoid the current process, which incentivizes small businesses and entrepreneurs to create renewable energy projects, and drives a competitive renewable energy marketplace.

RPS requires New Hampshire to generate 16 percent of new energy from renewable resources such as wind, solar, biomass and hydro by 2025, and Renewable Energy World predicts New Hampshire’s energy will be 22-25% renewable by 2025 should the effort be successful.

Performance requirements for the PSNH project are not defined in the bill, though there is some verbiage in the Bill that suggests that performance of the PSNH project would be subject to review.

Opponents to SB 334 claim that the RPS program has led to regular employment for 126 electricians and solar installers and grants for more than 270 renewable energy projects across New Hampshire. In contrast, they claim that the PSNH project will create only five full jobs a year, “at a cost of $1 million per full-time position.”

What You Can Do

ReVision Energy encourages you to read about the legislation and then take action – there is a great amount of information as well as links to newspaper articles and opinion pieces at http://www.nhsea.org/public-policy.php.

You can contact members of the New Hampshire House Science, Energy and Technology Committee via e-mail: HouseScienceTechnologyandEnergy@leg.state.nh.us or visit the New Hampshire House website for for complete contact information for the Committee.

Most importantly, you can attend the Committee’s Public Hearing on SB 334, which will be held this Thursday, April 15 at 1pm in room 304 of the Legislative Office Building, 33 North State Street, Concord, New Hampshire (map and directions).

Meg Simone and Dave Eiermann contacted ReVision Energy to collaborate on their new construction – a home that was to incorporate sustainable material sources, and designed for high efficiency despite the harsh winters of the White Mountains.

The 30-tube Apricus evacuated tube array provides Dave and Meg with 80% of their hot water annually and, by reducing fossil-fuel usage, cuts CO2 emission by about 4,000 lbs.

You can visit their blog for information on sustainable living and their projects, with a focus on original and local woodwork.

From our Residential Solar Photo Gallery:

Return to Solar Projects Map