Maine Solar Power
Want to protect yourself from future electricity price increases?
Grid-tied PV (photovoltaic) solar power systems are a great way to lock in a fixed electricity rate and, by producing your own clean, renewable electricity, you'll be reducing consumption from coal-fired power plants and reducing CO2 emissions.
Solar electric systems, without any moving parts anywhere in the system, are generally maintenance-free year after year. Once installed, your utility will send a technician to the house, test the system, and install a double meter on your existing meter, free of charge. One meter will track electricity drawn from the grid when you cannot produce enough solar electricity to meet your demand while the other meter tracks electricity exported to the grid when you are producing more than you need. The utility reconciles the two meters and either issues a monthly credit or invoice, accordingly.
What does Grid-Tied mean?
Several years ago a new product entered the market which transformed solar electricity forever: the grid-tied inverter. In essence, this system uses Maine's electrical grid as our 'storage battery.'
Now, instead of connecting solar electric panels to batteries, the system is connected to an inverter, which converts Direct Current electricity generated by the solar electric panels into Alternating Current electricity. The inverter allows your solar electric system to feed surplus power to the grid, or draw electricity from the grid when there is not enough sun. Whenever you are producing more electricity than you need, the extra flows out to the grid and you get a credit from the utility.
In 2007, ReVision Energy partnered with Yarmouth High School to win a Maine-state grant to fund the school's first renewable energy system.
View Real-Time Output of this System Online
ReVision Energy LLC provides licensed and professional design and installation of Grid-tied PV systems.
Why go Grid-Tied?
- Each Kilowatt of installed grid-tied solar power will produce roughly 1300 kilowatt hours of clean, renewable electricity per year in Maine.
- Each Kilowatt of installed grid tied PV will reduce carbon emissions by 1,700 pounds of CO2 per year, while also removing 2.6 pounds of sulfur dioxide and 1.4 pounds of nitrous oxide emissions.
- The technology is long lived: solar electric panels are warranteed for 25 years and inverters should also last 25 years.
- If everyone produced some solar power, collectively we would reduce and diversify our power consumption.
Who can go Grid-Tied?
Anyone with a south-facing roof, utility electric service and the will to invest in their energy future is a perfect candidate for solar electricity.
How Much Does it Cost?
Roughly $9,000 per installed kilowatt. Price varies with the complexity of the work. Contact us for a site evaluation based on your specific location in Maine.
Other Frequently Asked Questions (Solar FAQ)
- Why should I install a Grid-Tied solar electric system on my house?
Grid-tied solar electricity offers a way to fix your electricity rate for as long as 50 years. The maintenance-free panels come with a 25-year warranty and the expected useful lifespan is double that. A grid-tied pv system can protect you from electricity price increases for decades. That's a feeling of energy security that is hard to duplicate. Many of our clients feel better knowing that they are producing their own electricity without any environmental harm - that they are part of the energy solution and no longer part of the problem. - How long will an installation take?
Our typical residential solar power job takes us about 40 hours of installation time on the roof, and about 10 hours inside the house. We typically send two technicians, so the job is usually completed in 2-3 days. - Will it pay for itself?
Grid-tied PV systems, with financial incentive programs, often have an economic payback period of less than 20 years at current electricity prices. As grid power becomes more expensive over time, the economic return on PV improves dramatically. On most offshore islands, where purchased power is $.25 per kilowatt-hour or more, the payback period is already down to less than 15 years. - What are the incentives?
The federal government provides a Tax Credit of $2000 per code-compliant system installation (ReVision Energy carries the necessary licenses and certifications to ensure a code-compliant installation). - Does my roof need to face directly south?
In Maine, the optimal roof orientation is 196 degrees on the compass (known as 'solar south'), but the acceptable range is between 155 and 245 degrees. Within this range, power output stays within seven or eight percent of maximum. More important, however, is shading - we don't want to see any shading on a solar roof from 9 am to 3 pm, year-round. Even hardwood branches shading a portion of the panels in the winter will degrade the overall performance of the array. - Will the solar array put holes in my roof, or be too heavy?
We mount solar panels on a purpose-built aluminum rail system that is fastened about every six feet by penetrations into roof rafters. On a standing seam metal roof, these attachments are made directly to the standing seams, with no roof penetrations. On asphalt roofs, each mount is sealed with 50-year silicone sealant to prevent any leaks. We have not heard of a single leak as a result of PV mountings. As for the weight of the array, it is less than 5 pounds per square foot, so a typically framed roof is more than adequate to carry the weight. - How much roof space will I need?
Every kilowatt of solar array takes about 110 square feet. So a typical 2KW array will take a roof area about 8' high and 25' long. - What if my roof is not adequate?
We can also pole-mount photovoltaic panels, or ground-mount panels on a concrete base. - How will I know if the system is working?
All grid-tied systems include an inverter with a digital display of system performance. - Will the system be noisy?
No, all modern power inverters are essentially silent. - Will I see a difference in my lights or in how appliances run, like on a generator?
Solar electricity is identical to grid power, so you will never notice that the house is running on solar power. What you will see, of course, is a smaller electric bill! - How much power will I be able to produce?
Each 1000 watts of grid tied solar produces approximately 1300 kwhrs/year on a good solar site in Maine. - What happens when power goes out?
When the grid power goes down, the grid-tied solar electric system goes down. There are hybrid grid-tied/battery backup solar electric systems that provide critical load backup for roughly 3 days. Battery systems add $12,000 to the overall system cost, and are less efficient than grid-tie only systems in putting electricity back on the power line. - What panels do you recommend?
SunPower manufactures the most efficient photovoltaic modules on the market, which results in maximum 'power density' per solar panel. This means you can get more solar electricity out of a smaller array footprint than you can from competing brands. SunPower is also the only manufacturer offering an 'all black' frame and panel design to mute the aesthetic impact of panels on asphalt roofs. The company provides a rock solid 25-year warranty on panels. - What inverter do you recommend?
We recommend either SunPower inverters or Sunnyboy series inverters. They both have operating efficiencies at the top of the chart. There are many high quality inverters on the market today, but we have found these two brands to be robust and reliable, which is what our clients want. Both companies offer a 10-year inverter warranty.