While oil continues to gush into the Gulf of Mexico, in Maine levels of sunshine have hit epic proportions. We observe reactions by local residents of the phenomenon, and explore ways this solar spill could be put towards good use!
As more and more homeowners discover the benefits of harvesting solar energy, there are growing numbers of solar electric and solar hot water kits appearing on the market.
Most of these are billed towards the adventurous homeowner – those who might think that a project that spans a couple of weekends is worth saving some money over hiring a professional.
While we very much respect the DIY attitude of solar energy enthusiasts (indeed, the whole industry has its roots in the tinkerers who have been building their own systems since the 70s), there is a lot more to consider when installing a solar energy system than the DIY system literature would have you believe.
Bottom line: it may cost you much more than you expect to do it yourself.
The major assumption with going the DIY route is that by eliminating professional labor rates, you’ll drastically reduce the cost of a solar energy system. After all, professionals will charge you $20+/hr, while your own labor is free, right?
Well, it’s not quite so easy.
Equipment costs account for roughly 80% of the cost of a solar energy job, and professional solar companies get considerably better prices on parts. Quite frankly, we’re shocked at some of the prices being asked for the DIY kits.
We found one solar hot water kit, for example, fetching $6,500 (prior to incentives). Compared to a professional installation with better performing parts, the difference is less than $2,000.
We find similar premium prices on solar electric modules. While we can purchase and install solar electricity for roughly $5.25/watt right now, we’ve seen solar panels advertised for $5.5/watt.
Yes, the actual parts – without wiring, inverter, mounting equipment, or labor – are being sold retail for more than the installed cost from us!
Professional labor rates are anything but price gouging – on every system we install, you benefit from the cumulative expertise of engineers from MIT, Dartmouth, and UNH, and practical experience on 2,500 systems. Our installers in the field are professionally licensed plumbers and electricians, and we invest heavily in training so that our standards of excellence are hard to match.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a group that can install a system as efficiently and professionally as our gang!
Something that is not usually advertised with off-the-shelf solar kits is that in order to qualify for federal and state rebates, you need a professional plumber or electrician to sign off on the installation.
Wait, what – after saving some money by doing the installation yourself, you’re still expected to have a professional on board?
While it may seem unfair, the federal government and states require a professional sign-off as a safety measure for you.
Poor performing and hacked-together systems were a real problem in the 70s and today’s requirements aim to ante up professionalism in the industry by requiring standards such as SRCC ratings on equipment and credentials (such as NABCEP) from installers.
In some states, such as New Hampshire, the rebate application requires even more paperwork and verification – including panoramic shots the southern exposure, a solar pathfinder photo, and robust parts specifications.
If the amount of labor and expertise it takes to install a solar kit doesn’t scare you off, the paperwork just might!
And without access to state rebates, the cost/benefit of DIY vs. professional solar tilts even further to the side of a professional installation.
The fact that solar installations should last 20+ years is a big part of the equation of up-front cost vs. return on investment equation.
With a professional installation, you are guaranteed a code-compliant, rebate-ready system. At ReVision, we also back all of our systems with 24/7 service. While nearly all our systems run trouble-free, in the rare occasion you do encounter a problem, you can rely on us to fix it promptly.
If you read the fine print with DIY solar kits, you find a remarkably different approach to service. Not only is there no emergency service to be found, but you may need a professional installation just to get the manufacturer to honor their warranty.
Yes, to repeat – we found one DIY kit that says that unless certain parts of the system are professionally installed, the system is ineligible for warranty coverage.
Contrast this with reputable manufacturers of professional-grade solar equipment, who warranty their products for 25 years (in the case of photovoltaics) or 10-20 years (in the case of most solar hot water equipment).
Even the manufacturers of the DIY systems themselves acknowledge the importance of professional installation!
If you’re a homeowner who has enough projects on the weekend already (or would rather just enjoy your time off!) it’s really hard to justify putting yourself through a DIY solar installation.
Professional installation will save you money in the short-term, and provide you peace of mind in the long-term – and who can put a price on that?
Interested in learning more? Start today with a free site evaluation.
A little over a month ago, WABI (CBS affiliate in Bangor, Maine) featured a story on The Weatherbee School in Hampden, Maine, where a group of students dubbed the “Green Team” helped win the grant from the Earth Day Network to install a 2.3kw solar electric system on the roof of the school.
Here’s WABI’s coverage of the student green group:
Installation of the system was completed just last week, and the system has enjoyed beautiful sunshine since!
This solar electric array will offset an estimate 2,1000 lbs of C02 emissions each year. The system offers data monitoring so that Weatherbee School’s Green Team can observe how weather affects performance.
It’s now been a month since the catastrophic drilling accident that lead to the loss of 11 lives and the spewing of at least 5,000 barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico each day (some scientists say that number may be much higher).
We won’t spend time here elaborating on the unprecedented environmental disaster save to say that all conscientious people are taking a hard look at their lifestyle and evaluating how we can get this nasty black stuff out of our lives.
Many of us feel powerless about our reliance on oil – we need basic transportation, we need homes that are comfortable to live in, and power to do our jobs and run our households. How can we reduce the role of oil in our lives?
What you may not know is that a shocking amount of oil in New England goes into heating our homes. The US Energy Information Administration says of Maine “About three-quarters of Maine’s households – the highest share in the Nation – use fuel oil for home heating.” That amounts to roughly 17 million barrels of oil used each year (Source:
http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/state/state_energy_profiles.cfm?sid=ME).
This leads to a number of problems for us. Not only is it dangerous to use a product that is environmentally destructive, but we expose ourselves to the risk of a fluctuating market.
Maine has no fossil fuel reserves and no refining capacity – the crude oil that is imported into Portland Harbor is then shipped to refineries in Quebec or Ontario, Canada (again, US Energy Information Administration). We are vulnerable not only to ecological ramifications, but also to market forces.
Our dependence on oil emerged when fossil fuel was cheap, and weatherization poorly understood and not a priority. As a result, we see time and again inefficient mechanical systems installed on homes, causing expensive oil heat to pour, literally, out the window.
Electricity has an equally scary genesis. Maine does have a mandate for minimum 30% renewable electric sources, provided mostly by hydro. Clean, solar electric, which is proven in Maine, doesn’t yet register on the radar as a major energy source:
Instead, natural gas and oil, both fossil fuels, dominate our electricity consumption. The basic reality is that adoption of renewable energy is still very slow, though the need is more urgent than ever.
Walk more, drive less. Eat local. And consider carefully how your home consumes energy.
In many houses, switching to a solar hot water system will conserve 300 gallons of oil a year, a savings of roughly 5,500 lbs of C02 emissions each year. An average home solar electric system (sized at 3kw) will save around 2,778 lbs of C02 emissions each year (mostly from coal-fired power plants).
Contact us to talk more. Or leave your suggestions for an oil-free planet below.
Cecilia Pinto Lord, proprietor of Santa Maria Alpacas, a small alpaca farm in Madbury, New Hampshire, contacted ReVision Energy’s New Hampshire office asking how she could use solar to stabilize her long term energy costs.
Lord said she thought that there was phenomenal solar gain in an open field that the Alpacas inhabit, which we confirmed after a site evaluation.
We then designed a system that would provide renewable solar electricity for the entire property – a 4.2 kilowatt grid-tied Sunpower photovoltaic system we installed right on the sunniest of the Alpaca’s sheds.
This grid-tied solar electric system has no maintenance requirements, and produces around 5,600 kWh each year, offsetting about 7,500 pounds of CO2 emission that would have otherwise been purchased from the utility.
Cecilia recently called us and said: “I got my electric bill for April the other day, and it was zero!”
For more installations, see our Solar Projects Map
Flat plate solar hot water collectors installed on a home in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire.
Solar hot water systems now qualify for an average $1,500 rebate from the state of New Hampshire.
As of Earth Day 2010, New Hampshire now offers a state solar hot water rebate program, which averages $1,500 for a typical residential solar hot water system.
This program is comparable to Maine’s existing $1,500 rebate – now it doesn’t matter which side of the mighty Piscataqua you’re on – renewable energy makes more sense than ever!
The rebate is on a sliding scale based on BTU output of the system under peak solar conditions. The average rebate of $1,500 is for a typical family of four – larger systems qualify for up to $1,650 towards a system.
A few piece of fine print – the rebate can only be used for a primary residence in New Hampshire and can only be used for retrofits (no new homes – however, solar hot water for a new home is still a great investment because of the incredible life of the energy efficiency upgrades).
This new state rebate is in addition to a 30% uncapped federal tax credit. The net system budget for a typical 4-person household looks like this:
$11,000 gross installed cost
-($3,300) fed tax credit
-($1,500) state rebate
$6,200 net investment
Here are estimated payback periods for a 4-person system at different prices for heating oil:
| Oil Price ($ Per Gallon) | System Payback (Years) | Return on Investment (ROI) |
|---|---|---|
| $2.50 | 10 | 10% |
| $3.25 | 7 | 13% |
| $4.50 | 5 | 18% |
Compared to electric water heating, a solar hot water system will save roughly 3,540 lbs of C02 from entering the atmosphere each year.
Curious whether solar hot water is a good match for your New Hampshire home? ReVision is happy to offer a free solar site evaluation is the first step towards securing the state rebate.
In addition to answering any of your questions about solar, we review your home and site and help determine where a solar energy system would fit in. Several pieces of site data are required to qualify for the state rebate and we’ll collect all of those while we’re at your home.
Contact us or call our New Hampshire office (603) 501-1822 for more information.
Come see the new super-efficient GO Home — at a Talk-and-Tour at the Belfast Free Library on Thursday, April 8, 2010 at 7 p.m.
On track to become the first Passive House certified home in Maine, The GO Home is the affordable and super-energy efficient model for the 36-home Belfast Cohousing and Ecovillage slated to begin construction in the Spring of 2010.
The GO Home is designed to solve the problems of energy consumption and greenhouse gases resulting from poorly built, drafty homes, which are increasingly more costly to heat and hazardous to the environment.
Among the energy efficient building elements of this remarkable home are triple glazed windows, doors with three air seals, foundation insulation and comprehensive air sealing – including sealing underneath the foundation and on the building envelope.
To offset what energy the GO Home does consume, GO Logic called in ReVision Energy to install solar electric and solar hot water systems. The solar electric system consists of 2.7KW of Canadian Solar panels, which will offset roughly 4,900 lbs. of CO2 emissions annually. The 60-tube Apricus solar hot water array is sized to meet the needs of a family of four, and will produce an estimated 14,200,000 BTUs of clean, renewable heat energy annually.
So far, we have received a report that in March the prototype has produced more energy than it has used. According to CMP we used 137KWH, and made 184KWH, with a surplus of 47KWH!
This Thursday’s event will feature an unveiling and discussion of The GO Home at the Belfast Free Library followed by a preview Tour at 83 Crocker Road, Belfast, on Saturday, April 10 at 11 a.m.
For more information, please contact Matt O’Malia or Alan Gibson at (207) 338-1566 or visit their website: www.gologichomes.com. To track construction and development on The GO Home, visit the prototype blog at: http://www.gologichomes.com/blog/category/prototype/.
Similar to the LEED program, a Passive House (also known as the German “Passivhaus”) meets very strict requirements for building efficiency and performance, specifically regarding insulation values and energy consumption requirements.
More details of these requirements on the Passive House website.
In today’s Bangor Daily News, an article titled
“Small-scale windmills generate mixed reviews” documents the unimpressive results that some Mainers have received from residential windmill installations.
In the article, as well as in the particularly lively comments section, there is a lot of discussion about site and design being key to a successful wind installation. We agree, and add this: very few areas have the potential to be a successful and economically viable site for wind.
A National Renewable Energy Lab map of solar resources (top) and wind resources (bottom) of the United States.
While most of the state of Maine is rated as a “poor” wind resource, all of Maine receives 4 or more kWhr/day of harvestable sunshine.
A glance at Maine’s 50-Meter Wind Resource Map shows that most of the state of Maine is a poor or marginal wind resource.
A US-DOE wind map confirms this, by showing most of the state of Maine being in “Zone 2″ for wind, meaning roughly 10mph wind speeds under ideal conditions at 33 feet – barely the minimum speed require to turn most wind turbines.
Even if your home sits in a windy spot, you need to account for trees, neighboring homes, hills, etc., not to mention the building code challenges and aesthetics of erecting a windmill.
Compare this to solar, which is basically ubiquitous. Provided you have a clear space that receives sunlight from 9AM – 3PM, you can enjoy the benefits of a solar electric or solar hot water system.
And unlike wind, if your site is initially too shady, you can add to your solar resource just by doing some tree work!
An average small-scale windmill costs about $15,000, prior to any rebates and incentives. This windmill, if we go by the optimistic specifications provided by the manufacturer, will produce 4,800 kWh a year.
For roughly the same cost, we could install a 3KW grid-tied solar installation. Using real-world data (the PVWATTS tool for Maine’s solar insolation), we estimate that the solar array will produce 3,840 kWh a year of electricity.
So, why not choose wind and get an extra 1000 kWh/year?
The reality is: very rarely will wind live up to its expectations.
From the Bangor Daily News article cited above:
While wind may be the fastest-growing electric energy source, home windmills aren’t for everyone, according to Richard Hill, professor emeritus of mechanical engineering at the University of Maine.
“If you have a great deal of money, and you hate the public utility and if you think you live in a windy place, you’ll be very disappointed when you put up a windmill,” Hill said recently. “You may, however, be justified because you’re interested in principle.”
… his windmill hasn’t delivered more than 100 kilowatt-hours a month, although it was advertised as capable of generating 400 kilowatts-hours a month. “I can tell you it doesn’t generate anywhere near that,” he said. Arnold has found that the wind must blow at least 8 mph to get his windmill going.
We also got this testimonial from some Shelter Institute graduates who installed their own wind system as well as solar power:
I think the main lesson we have learned (and would like to pass along to others) is that PV panels (solar panels) are much more cost effective as a means of autonomous energy production than wind, unless the wind site is very unique …
We did our own informal wind survey and felt fairly confident we’d get at least 1 kWh of production daily in the winter months (but only when the prevailing winds shifted to northerlies), and we’ve met that.
However, many people we’ve spoken to have mistakenly used turbine specs rather than an integrated formula for wind speed and time to calculate what they will generate, only to be disappointed in the small amount of energy they actually are able to produce.
The bottom line? Dollar-per-dollar, a solar system will outperform a wind system in nearly all real-world applications.
This solar electric system will displace roughly 250,000 lbs of C02 over its expected 50-year lifespan!
It’s also worth noting that the value of a long-term renewable energy is directly related to the reliability of that investment. Solar panels have no moving parts, are warranteed for 25 years, and are expected to last double that.
An average warranty for a wind power system, in contrast, is only five years.
The expected life of a wind mill, under the best of circumstances, is around 25 years, half that of a solar installation.
Over the life of the system, the solar array will generate roughly 200,000 kWh, nearly double that of the wind – should the wind system perform to optimistic specifications over an optimistic lifespan.
While ultimately we want to encourage everyone to find their personal path off of oil, we also have a duty to ensure that we recommend reliable, economically smart choices for our customers – which is why ReVision chooses to recommend and install grid-tied solar electric and solar hot water systems, and not wind.
With superior life expectancy, more reliable performance, better aesthetics, and better rebates, solar is the clear choice for clean, renewable electricity.
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