Have you had your energy audit yet?

I just dropped off a quote for a new solar energy system for a couple that uses about 700kWh a month, pretty average. This person had me quote a 3 panel system mounted on the roof, no problem. This system will generate about 72 kWh a month or 1/10 of this persons power, with perfect sunny conditions. But here is the thing the guy was surprised that it was not going to produce more power then that. I told him that this would be considered a starter system, if someone doesn't have a lot of money but wanted to start somewhere so this is what you would do. Because the system is capable of being added on to in the future. This is what I have decided to do at my home. I will be installing just 2 panels and adding on from there.

Before I decided to do this I got an energy audit from Empowerment Energy Analysts first. Well I have received my report and now I am in the process of doing some of the recommendations. This weekend I started building boxes to go over the top of the recessed can lights that are in the house and I sprayed foam on the regular light fixture boxes to block any heat from escaping through the holes. So that is where I started to try and reduce our energy costs. I am looking to reduce our energy cost even further. We currently use about 500 -600 kWh a month. I need it to be around 400 -450 kWh a month which is going to be hard because we have an electric dryer and stove. But I was informed that I need to put up a clothes line in the backyard and in the Summer we won't have to run the dryer as much. So that alone will help us cut down on energy usage.
The problem is that most people are not willing to give up their luxuries or gadgets that use electricity to achieve this .

So lets take the guy that I dropped the quote off to and use his energy usage as the example. To take the same 220watt panels to get the 700kwh that he uses, you would have to install 29 panels on the roof. Now the average cost to install a system of this size is around $45000.00 roughly. Now if he were able to reduce the amount of power that he uses down to 500 kwh a month. He would need 18 panels at 220 watts. The cost to install that would be about $25000.00 roughly. As you can see by dropping just 200 kwh a month the solar system drops in price by almost 1/2. So this is why it so important to get your energy usage under control. You end up saving thousand of dollars by doing so on a renewable system.

So the moral of the story is get an energy audit, get your power usage down to a more manageable amount and then buy renewables from me. Then you will have a win, win situation every time.

Here are three companies that I know that can help you with your energy audits. (You maybe able to get yours for free or at a reduced rate from your utility company)

Empowerment Energy Analysts (231) 218-3521
Paradigm Energy Services (231) 237-9293
Northern Auditor, LLC (231) 492-5136

Grand Traverse Green 2010

If you have nothing to do Friday and Saturday. Please stop to the Hagerty Center and check out the displays there of companies that maybe able to help you with your endeavor to go green at home or business.

The doors open Friday at 5:00pm to 9:00pm and Saturday at 8:00am to 4:30pm. Cost is only $5 to get in.

My display will be setup at booth #4. I will have my windmill display setup there to view. I will have some Smart Strips there for sale for just $25, normally $28.99 on my online store. Also I will have something new that will also be available for purchase and order, is the Power Predictor, which is a do-ityourself solar and wind study test that you can purchase to see if your site right for wind or solar. Saving you hundreds or even thousands of dollars on expensive tests or installing a system and finding out that it does not work. The cost of the Power Predictor is $330 for the show and it is normally $350.00 on my online store.

So stop by and say hello, I saw you on your blog. I look forward to seeing you all there.

Solar in Winter.

Today is a good example why solar is a bad idea on the roof. The panels I installed over in Glen Lake are not working. Why you ask? It is because of the white stuff that falls from the sky, SNOW. Because we got a little snow over night it has covered the panels and now they are not going to work until that snow is removed. But since this system is so low to the ground it is easy to take a brush and just pull the snow off the panels. But even so I am standing on a snow bank to reach these panels. Just goes to show you how big this system is. The bottom of the panels are above my head when I am standing on the ground. If they were on the roof you would have to climb up there and risk the chance of falling off the roof. I have fallen of a roof before and it is no fun trust me. When these panels are exposed even when it is cloudy like today they can produce a significant amount of power for the day. Link to the solar data website.

Glen Lake Solar Project

 

The Glen Lake solar project is complete. Here is a picture of the solar panels in the up right position. You can access the solar panels data by clicking this link. The information on this link is in 5 min. uploads. But you can go back and see the history of the solar production. Enjoy!

Solar anyone?

 
 


This is my solar project that I am currently doing out in the Glen Lake area. We are not done yet, we have a couple of more days before it is in full operation. We still have to install the mechanism that makes the tracker move back and forth following the sun. I also have to connect the wires in the panel and then it will be ready to go.

Energy Audit

Back a few weeks ago I wrote a blog posting on how I was going to get a home energy audit done on our house. Well we just finished our energy audit yesterday. As soon as I receive the official report I will share it on my blog. But while we were doing the audit I produced a video to show how TJ Ewing did a home energy audit. It was quit interesting to see where the cold spots are in the house. The areas where we thought would be the problem were not there at all but in other areas of the house. If this something that you would like done for your house then you can find TJ Ewing on the web at Empowerment Energy Analysts or call (231) 218-3521. Also if you buy a renewable energy system from me, you will receive a home energy audit after the system is installed showing you how you can maximize that new investment in your home.

Hybrid Renewable Energy

This is my hybrid system that I have at home. So I do have a wind turbine and solar already here at my house. This small system has been working really well for me. I have been really surprised how well it keeps the two batteries charged up. Now I have not let this system run for a long period of time to see how long it would last before the batteries ran out. But I will try this, this Summer and get back with you on well it did. Hope you enjoy my small video and if this something of interest to you feel free to give me a call. (231) 715-1170