Meg Simone is known for creating timeless wedding films at New England’s most gorgeous destinations. Her home post-production studio is where precious moments come to be – thanks to a fair amount of electricity! Making her operation a little greener this year is a pole-mounted 3.7kw photovoltaic sstem installed be ReVision Energy just in time for the holidays.

Meg shares her enthusiasm for the system in this quick video:

Seasons Greenings From Meg Simone Wedding Films from meg simone on Vimeo.

We touched based with Meg to ask her about the process and what she likes about the new system:

When we built our house we put in a evacuated tube solar hot water system with ReVision. We know there are other options out there for solar installers but we love the personal attention, ease of install (thanks Jen for taking care of the paperwork) and customer service that stands behind the product. The vast experience from the team at ReVision is unmatched. You don’t have to take my word for it, you can read their bios!

We had wanted to add solar electricity for a long time, and finally the incentives and rebates afforded us the opportunity. ReVision made my life easy and this process FUN. The guys are so friendly we told them to come in for lunch on the 2nd day of the install! In fact, the team is so friendly and personal it feels like a friend has helped install this not just a business.

We love seeing how much power the system makes each day. It’s a good feeling to know that the sun can power our at-home businesses and reduce our carbon footprint.

See some more photos of the installation on our Facebook page, courtesy of Meg:

George Longstreth’s dreams of a solar home started nearly a decade ago, when he had a crude off-grid system installed for a seasonal beach cottage on Baker’s Island, MA. “It was basic, just four small panels, but it was enough to run the microwave for a few minutes or brew a pot of coffee. It got me thinking about how this technology could be applied for a normal home.”

This thinking process lead him to Yestermorrow Design/Build School in Warren, Vermont, where he learned the basics of green building and passive solar design. Then, he scoured Northern New England for an ideal location to build his solar home, a search that took him from Southeast New Hampshire to Portland, Maine, before he found the property of his dreams in Kennebunkport.

“It was a beautiful property with good access to solar south,” he says, “That’s when I started assembling the best team of local contractors to make the project happen.”

His search for a solar contractor brought him in contact with a number of companies in Southern Maine, but he chose ReVision Energy because “you knew what you were doing.” After a preliminary meeting with engineer Geoff Sparrow, ReVision worked with George and his architect, Hans Warner, to design a 8.28kw solar electric system to be mounted on the home’s south-facing roof along with 2 flat plate solar hot water collectors for his domestic hot water supply.

Solar PV + Geothermal = Synergy

Solar is just one part of the renewable energy systems in Longstreth’s new home. George also contacted Dr. John Logan of Water Energy Distributors for advice on installing a geothermal system. Dr. Logan connected George with New Energy Solutions of Standish who designed and installed a geothermal system consisting of two heat pumps, one for 1st floor radiant heat, and another for cooling and 2nd floor heating.

“It was great when I got all these smart people in the room together to talk about the synergy between renewable energy systems,” George says, “Our predictions are that the solar will provide around 50% of the electricity used for geothermal heating during the heating months, and 100% of my household ‘plug’ loads the rest of the year.”

Designing a home that is mostly renewable-powered requires being very conscious about energy use, and Longstreth’s home takes this concept to heart. His home is heavily insulated, consisting of a double-framed 2×6 + 2×4 wall system filled with compacted cellulose insulation, for a R40 rating in the walls and R60 in the ceiling. His home takes advantage of its south-facing orientation to incorporate passive solar features, such as windows installed for optimum solar gain and a special 1 1/2″ slab to collect passive heat.

Investing in Solar

As his project nears completion, George looks forward to a life of minimal energy bills. “The new home uses no oil whatsoever, very little electricity and very little propane. We bucked the attitude of ‘fly now, pay later’ to ‘pay now, fly later.’ The tight-fisted Yankee in me can’t let this bountiful renewable energy go to waste while we purchase oil from our enemies overseas.”

George estimates that his mechanical systems made up about 25% of his overall project budget, and that with state and federal incentives, his renewable systems were cost-competitive with installing a traditional heating system. “It’s a no brainer, and we’re already seeing results. After our first month, our electric bill went from around $80 to -$10! We can’t wait to see how it performs long term.”

For Cheryl Frederick, Assistant Professor of Captive Wildlife Care and Education at Unity College, the tipping point for energy came this past semester when she had a guest lecturer in her classroom talk about coal.

“There is nothing clean about coal,” she remembers, “And our environment is in crisis. I thought – I need to go beyond teaching this to living it.”

That decision brought her to ReVision Energy, who she learned about through colleagues at the university who were familiar with our work. She appreciated not only the lofty recommendation she received, but that she would be employing Unity alumni for her project.

PACE Financing Makes it Possible

Cheryl’s system took advantage of the new PACE program by Efficiency Maine, a low-interest loan tied to the value of your home specifically made for renewable energy and energy efficiency improvements. Maine is the first state in the country to offer PACE financing and Cheryl’s may be one of the first home to use it for solar electricity. But despite the newness of the program, she says the experience was great.

“The whole process took about a month,” she says. “Now our money now goes to the loan instead of the utility bill, and if we stay here long enough we’ll get most or all of our electricity for free. It’s an amazing program – we wanted to do solar and the PACE loan made it possible.”

Solar As a Form of Entertainment

Cheryl, like many solar electric system owners, finds herself having lots of fun watching the performance of her system through her web-based monitoring portal. She can now see how much power she generates in a given day and check in from anywhere with an internet connection.

“It’s like watching stocks go up – you have a nice sunny day and then get to see how much power you generated,” she says, adding “The website also tells you what your carbon offset is and how many trees you have saved.”

She finds that being aware of how much power she’s generating makes her more aware of how much power she’s using. “We have become more careful about our power use, and are hoping to bank more power this summer than we use.  That way, we can use more electric heaters this winter to offset our oil use.”

The best part? “I feel like I’m finally doing my part,” she says, “Instead of cutting down trees, I’m saving them.”

Thought you couldn’t build an apartment building in Maine without depending on fossil fuels? Think again! Paul Ledman proves with his new 3-unit dwelling in Portland that exceptional insulation and smart mechanical systems can work to make a home that requires no source of energy other than the sun… even in Maine! Even with tenants!

We’re proud to have this exceptional building in our backyard and thank Paul for taking the time to talk to us about this exciting project.

SMCC’s SEA Director John Brautigam standing before a suite of solar energy systems recently installed by ReVision Energy.

ReVision recently wrapped installation of a suite of solar systems at Southern Maine Community College’s Sustainable Energy Alternatives (SEA) Center.

The SEA Center is a major part of SMCC’s efforts to become a regional center for education and training on renewable energy and sustainable building practices. The building is equipped with cutting-edge professional equipment and state-of-the-art educational tools designed to help students understand theories of building science including air infiltration, insulation issues, and thermal properties of building materials to help equip them for a career in energy efficiency and/or renewable energy.

To showcase the variety of solar energy installations likely to be encountered, SMCC had ReVision install two solar hot water systems, one with evacuated tubes and the other with flat plate collectors, as well as a modest photovoltaic (solar electric) array. All of the “guts” of the system – pipe run, tank, wiring, etc. – is on display and labeled so students can understand how it works and observe it in practice. The systems also feature robust web-based data monitoring options that will be viewable by both students and the public.

ReVision has had the pleasure of working with an SMCC Electric Engineering student, Melanie Janarelli, as an intern this summer, who helped install the system. Director John Brautigam is featured in one of our upcoming Solar Road Tour episodes, so stay tuned!

More Photos:

Thanks to an Efficiency Maine Grant, the new learning center at the Bryan Pond 4-H camp will provide nearly all of its power from the sun!

Thanks to a grant from Efficiency Maine, the new year-round lodge at UMaine’s 4-H Learning Center will generate virtually all of its electricity by harnessing sunshine.

For over 50 years the University of Maine 4-H Camp & Learning Center at Bryant Pond (formerly the Maine Conservation School) has strengthened children’s relationship to the natural world with a combination of inspired outdoor fun, practical woods-wise skills, and “hands-on” conservation education. So when a grant became available to fund solar projects for the purposes of demonstrating PV technology to the public, the location seemed like a perfect fit.

The new 10.3kw grid-tied system will generate about 14,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, offsetting about 18,200 pounds of CO2 emissions from regional fossil fuel power plants. Equally important, it will be used as a learning tool for students who will use the facility year-round. Soon the solar array will feature web-based performance monitoring, interpretive signs, and a lobby computer display showing how much electricity the panels are generating at any given time (Maine Community Foundation has helped with the latter).

The project was showcased in the Lewiston Sun Journal:

The center will have a dining hall and a commercial-style kitchen and will hold 36 people… The lodge, which is still under construction, will incorporate as many “green” features as possible, including the solar panels and recycled-newspaper insulation throughout the building, said program Director Ryder Scott.

“Whenever possible, we’ve used local materials for construction of the entire building, within reason,” he said.

Eighty percent of the project cost is being funded through a $50,000 renewable resource grant from the Maine Public Utilities Commission. The remainder of the money was acquired through fundraising. The PUC grant, which is administered through Efficiency Maine, supports projects that use renewable energy technologies, specifically photovoltaic. The grants are funded by ratepayers who opt to support the program.

It’s a real honor to work on projects like these that help bring solar to the attention of the next generation. We look forward to being part of decades of learning!

Roughly 2/3 of the electricity used in the new Black Dinah Chocolatiers commercial kitchen will come from the sun!

“When you live on an island, it shapes your thinking,” says Steve Shaffer, one of the proprietors of Isle au Haut based Black Dinah Chocolatiers, “You learn that everything you carry in you must carry out. You have the think things through. And this characteristic has shaped everything about our business.”

It was quite a journey for he and his wife Kate from a co-op in California to a rugged island off the coast of Maine, where they now specialize in delectable chocolates made from fair-trade, organic, and local ingredients. While their business started with a great idea operated out of their home kitchen, the popularity of their creative chocolates soon outgrew their home-based set-up and it was time for the business to expand.

“We were eager to grow though we were also concerned about the long-term costs of running the new facility,” says Steve, “Our business’ single biggest liability was energy costs. On the island, electricity costs roughly twice what it does on the mainland, so offsetting our use with solar electricity made a lot of sense. Likewise, solar hot water would help keep our propane use under control.”

ReVision Energy helped Steve and Kate navigate the various incentives and rebates available for businesses as they designed their new commercial kitchen, including work on an ARRA grant that helped make the project more feasible. The new facility featured all new appliances – commercial dishwater, chest freezers, and convection oven – which, while as efficient as they get, still require lots of energy to work. We designed a 3.29 kw grid-tied solar electric system to provide about 2/3 of their electricity, and a 60-tube solar hot water collector array to preheat an on-demand propane water heater.

A Little Bit of Independence

“Our goal was not to get to net-zero, but to keep our energy bills around the same as when we were running the business out of our home,” Steve says. “So far, we seem to be on track. The solar electric production has exceeded our expectations and we’ve hardly needed to run the propane water heater.”

The solar energy systems give Steve confidence that his business is protected from rising costs of energy. It also plays right into the mission of their organization.

“When you spend so much time with food you develop a relationship with it. We love knowing the Peruvian co-op where we get our chocolate. We also love using local cream, herbs, flowers, fruits, and spices in our chocolates. So it only makes sense that we’d use local energy, too.”

About 70% of Black Dinah’s business is web-based, and you can shop their delights at www.blackdinahchocolatiers.com. Also stay tuned to their Facebook page which features news from their summertime cafe, events, photos, and more.

And… we couldn’t help it – below is a photo of their delicious local Farm Market chocolate collection (all with ingredients grown on an Hancock or Knox County farm):

More Photos from Our Commercial Solar Photo Gallery:

For more installations, see our Solar Projects Map

Tom Southworth’s BEYOND net zero home will sell power to the grid each year!

Tom Southworth’s commitment to sustainability runs deep. Since 1974 he’s owned and operated a water-powered sawmill in Lancaster, New Hampshire, around which he built the successful Garland Mill Timberframes business. Tom imparted his passion to his son Ben, whose work includes turning a 1970s ranch house into a LEED Platinum, Net Zero showcase. So when it came time to build a home to retire in, Tom set his sights high: he wanted a house that would not only generate all of the electricity it uses each year, but also produce a surplus to sell to the grid.

New Hampshire Ups the Ante

“What got me started in this direction is when New Hampshire went beyond net billing and offered to write me a check if I produce more power than I use,” Tom says. “I took a hard look at my energy usage and determined that 8,000 kWh/year would allow us to meet all our needs and be a net exporter of electricity.”

Most impressive is that Tom both exports power to the grid and heats his home with electricity. While conventional wisdom is that electric heat is expensive, 21st century building standards challenge that assumption completely.

“While it’s not official yet, we built this house to meet German passivhaus standards,” Tom says. “This means an extremely well-insulated building envelope consisting of 12″ exterior side walls packed with cellulose sheathed with 2″ foam, and 40″ of cellullose packed into the truss system. We moved in on April 1st and so far have not used any heating whatsoever.”

Tracking Results

Tom Southworth’s solar thermal storage tank is tied into its own electric meter to track run time of the backup electric element

To keep track of his goals, Tom uses a decidedly analog but very effective method of monitoring his systems – an extra electric meter dedicated to tracking photovoltaic production, and a second dedicated to his hot water tank. In addition to the photovoltaic system, Tom had us install a solar hot water system tied into an existing 120 gallon storage tank with electric backup.

“Since we don’t really know much electricity our backup tank will use in the winter, we added the second meter so we could really understand it,” Tom says, “We expect to use only solar-heated water from May through September and will be closely watching how much the electric element is needed in the other months.”

Power While the Sun Shines

Now that everything is up and running, Tom says the system is so far “on target” for photovoltaic production.

“I’m 100% pleased with the system,” Tom says, “I look forward to enjoying my years of retirement knowing my energy comes from the sun.”