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Coherent Solar Information Review

Sat, 19 Jul 2008 13:20:27 -0800-08:00

Coherent Inc. was founded in 1966 and is a world leader in providing laser based solutions to the commercial and scientific research markets. They recently announced a laser system called the Talisker which can be fit into existing systems and runs in the green and UV range frequencies thus making solar cell production and research more efficient and practical.

Coherent Solar's head of marketing spoke at the 2008 Solar Summit in San Diego and the company can be reached for questions via Finlay Colville who is the director of marketing at +44 (0) 7802 238 775 or finlay (dot) colville (at) coherent.com. For more information about Coherent's role in the solar industry, visit their website at www.Coherent.com/Solar and skim through their latest news below to get up to date:

BP Solar Information Review

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 11:03:57 -0800-08:00

BP, formerly British Petrol, has undergone a transformation in recent years in favor of environmental sustainability. It has even changed it's name (in 2000) to simply BP which stands for Beyond Petroleum and is being used as a slogan. Along with the renaming the logo has changed to a green and yellow sunburst. As the worlds third largest energy company (and one of the largest private oil companies) this name change signifies a transition to more sustainable methods of energy production. The most recent example of this is BP partnering with the Home Depot to sell solar panels for residential use.

In 1980 BP purchased Lucas Energy Systems along with Amoco (and Solarex) in 2000 which makes it one of the the worlds leading producer at nearly 20% market share. These acquisitions have allowed BP to begin placing panels on top of some of their gas station canopies as well as enter into the Home Depot partnership mentioned above.

In many ways BP has been a beacon of hope for sustainability in energy production but we feel that it is also important to draw attention to some of the misshapes that BP has had over the years as well. While it's solar program is a welcome step in the right direction many have accused BP of "greenwashing" when it changed it's name and purchased Amoco in 2000. These accusations are based in part on it's being named one of the ten worst corporations in 2001 and 2005 based on both human rights and environmental practices. Furthermore, in 1991 BP was labeled as the number one poluting company in the US based on data from the Environmental Protection Agency.

We here at Solar Power Authority are optimistic about the future of BP. It isn't easy to move a company this size in a completely new direction - there are bound to be some snags. Even if there is some greenwashing going on it still signifies that the company recognizes consumer preferences and is acknowledging those opportunities.

Home Depot Solar Review

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 16:12:43 -0800-08:00

Most people have heard by now that the Home Depot has partnered with BP (British Petrol... Beyond Petroleum) along with local solar installers across the country to make going solar even easier for home owners. We wanted to take a closer look at how the program has evolved since it started in 2006 and what it really consists of.

We were pleasantly surprised to find that not only does the Home Depot coordinate panel purchases from BP and installations with local installers, it also helps customers sort through the paperwork required to get discounts and tax incentives from the government! The program really reminded us of the services offered by a company called SunPower that are very similar in nature. We found that in general, the Home Depot program hasn't changed much since it launched - it just has more "home depot authorized" partners around the nation that it's working with which means the program is growing.

For anyone reading this who has tried either service (the Home Depot or SunPower), please share your comments below. The primary difference we have seen thus far between the two programs is that SunPower offers all black panels that might be more aesthetically pleasing to home owners and because they are not a third party like the Home Depot (SunPower actually makes panels instead of buying them from BP) they tend to be a bit cheaper. That said... The Home Depot offers physical outlets where anyone can walk in and speak directly to a sales rep, which is nice. Both programs offer a toll free number and web support. In the case of the Home Depot that number is 1-800-HOMEDEPOT

Solar Power Authority visited several Home Depot's in the San Francisco Bay Area and interviewed employees and reps about how the program works. We even spoke with one employee who had had a solar electric system installed on his house through the Home Depot program and we will post an article on that at a future date. It sounded like employees fall under a different plan and might even receive a discount. In the mean time, enjoy the short video overview posted below. For more information on the sustainable products and services offered by Home Depot visit HomeDepot.com/ecooptions

You must download Flash to watch this video.

Home Depot Solar Video Review

SunPower Solar Information Review

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 15:58:32 -0800-08:00

SunPower Solar is a public (SPWR) solar manufacturing company headquartered in San Jose California with manufacturing operations being handled in the Philippines. In recent news SunPower has announced product development on a new panel system with 23.4% efficiency! That's way above the industry average of between 12% and 20% at the highest end. Unfortunately for home owners this high efficiency panel is only available for businesses at the moment.

Efficiency aside, SunPower is known for having some of the most aesthetically pleasing solar panels on the market that feature an "all black" look that blends nicely with most dark shingles. In contrast, many solar panels have a grid of silver lacing and diamond shapes running through the panel layout as shown in the comparison below. In addition to the two looks offered by SunPower, there are three levels of technology ranging from lower efficiency (and more affordable) to high efficiency panels that cost more but save space, weight, and installation costs. The models are called 205, 210, and 215 with more details available at the Sun Power website here.

SunPower is known for delivering professional results at an affordable price nation wide and they partner with local installers in nearly every US state to provide a free site evaluation so it's definitely worth checking out and their number is toll free 1-800-SUNPOWER (786-7693). Their stock price has been bouncing around a little bit recently but as one of the big players in the space we are confident in their continued success and have seen several SunPower installations go in right near downtown Mountain View, CA where Solar Power Authority is based.

Mile Hi Solar Information Review

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 10:08:15 -0800-08:00

Mile Hi Solar LLC is a unique company in many ways. Compared to some of the other solar manufacturers and outlets we have reviewed it's relatively small and privately owned but it's special in the sense that it offers affordable solutions to a small town, it's solar technology trickling down to the average Joe in Colorado. At the time of this review it was also Northern Colorado's only solar showroom. That means you can go there and actually see and touch solar panels and other hardware.

While members of the Solar Power Authority team were in the shop visiting, we noticed several camper trailers being retrofitted with panels. This seems to be a very popular trend in the small town of Loveland Colorado where the shop is located. Along with campers Mile Hi Solar will do golf carts, boats, gate openers, ground mounted sun trackers, solar thermal, remote lighting, electric fences (for all of those Colorado cows, sustainable farming anyone??). Loveland is something of a retirement community with a high population of spry adults ready for golfing, boating, and camping at the foot of the Rockies. Loveland actually has five golf courses that we know of and with a slim population of only ~60,000 getting a tee time isn't a problem.

Many of the technicians that Mile Hi Solar employs have experience working in Southern California where the solar market has been thriving for the past 15 years. At the time of this article the team had installed over 1,000 kW of photovoltaic and wind generators and over 1,000 solar water heating systems! Mile Hi Solar is NABCEP Certified, COSEIA Certified, has an ICC HV Class A License, and serves the surrounding area of Loveland, Fort Collins, Greeley, Estes Park, Boulder and others. For more information visit their online yellowpage here.

Car charge station map

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 13:11:46 -0800-08:00

As solar energy moves our dependence on oil over to a dependence on electricity and more and more cars are produced that run on electric, hydrogen, ethanol, hybrid, and solar power people will need to know where they can plug in their electric cars! Where can I plug in my electric car? Whether it's a hybrid with a chargeable battery that relies on energy from a solar tree during your work hours or Tesla Roadster with built in solar panels, charging stations will surely be necessary.

To help people effectively find solar charging stations for their cars Solar Power Authority is actively creating a dynamic Google Map shown below. This map allows you to search by zip code and locate charging stations near your residence. However, we realize that the map will always need updating and we ask that you simply leave a comment on this page with the location of new electric car charge stations as you find them, that way we can add them to the map on an ongoing basis! Also, if you are a home owner who is willing to share your resources with fellow electric car aficionados we will list you here as well. View the full size maps with more features Electric Car Map, Hydrogen Car Map, Biodiesel & E85 Car Map

View Larger Map

View Larger Map

View Larger Map

Some of the great resources we've found on the web that map out this type of thing in a similar way include the following, our goal here is to make one comprehensive map that is easy to navigate and use. Direct collaboration is also welcome and we will happily invite you to add to this public google map if you simply leave a comment here (we will use the email address you use to comment with, it must be a Google ID).

e85 stations: http://www.e85vehicles.com/e85-stations.htm
electric car stations: http://www.cleancarmaps.com/

Ausra Information Review

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 18:02:59 -0800-08:00

Ausra Solar plans to make solar power boring... They want to kill the excitement of home systems and portable solar devices by making mass solar production as affordable and convenient as coal and nuclear power are today. With any luck, this site Solar Power Authority will be out of business within three years because the opportunity for sustainable clean electric power in the US, and around the world, will have been realized!

Ausra Solar is a privately held, extremely well supported, solar electricity company located in Palo Alto near the famed Nanosolar headquarters. Having been founded in 2006 it has since received funding from Khosla Ventures (one of our favorite VC firms in the SF Bay Area) and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (the guys who funded Amazon.com, Electronic Arts, Genentech, Macromedia, Sun Microsystems, and Google to name a few).

So what's so great about this company? It's simple, they have created a way to use mirrors and water, much like the Solar One power station in Nevada, to efficiently create electricity from the sun. Sunlight heats the panels and is focused onto water which boils and creates steam power, just like an old fashioned locomotive train or a Stanley Steamer. Ausra builds solar power plants that use time tested conventional steam turbine generators to generate power at a price comparable to that of conventional fossil fuel power.

The name Ausra may remind you of Australia, and that isn't surprising. The technology in use at Ausra power plants was conceived and designed in the early 90's at Sydney University in Sydney Australia. The technology is now being used worldwide and it's comforting (unless you work in the solar industry) to know that the entire United States of America could be powered by an Ausra installation of less than 100 square miles (92 by 92 to be exact) and that type of installation could deliver energy at a nearly permanent rate! Just a simple dust off every once in a while, plug a leak in the steam pipes maybe... This kind of solution would reduce greenhouse gasses by nearly one half in the US! When partnered with electric cars like the Tesla using solar trees it could take that down to nearly 70 or 80%. Keep your eye out for this awesome company - Ausra Solar

Solar Events Calendar

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 17:17:23 -0800-08:00

Solar events, solar conferences, solar meetings, and other solar activities may be posted to our free solar events calendar below. New events will also be added to our Solar Events Listing widget on the left side of Solar Power Authority Pages.

Use the form below the calendar to add your solar power event! Please note that each entry needs to be approved and may not be posted immediately.

Open Full Page Calendar Subscribe to Solar Events Calendar Feed

Please Note: by submitting a question or comment to Solar Power Authority you forfeit any right of ownership to your question and agree that we may rephrase, modify, correct, update or repurpose it at any time without constraint or limitation.

Some of the events on this calendar may reference outside sources including but not limited to www.envirovents.com and www.solarelectricpower.org and http://www.svlg.net. You may contact us to have an event removed.

Sunflower Solar

Sun, 13 Apr 2008 18:07:36 -0800-08:00

Not to be confused with Energy Innovations' Sunflower Solar Panel device, Denver's Sunflower Solar is a PV and wind power solutions provider that targets residential users. Their management and technical team is quite extensive boasting over 48 years of experience in renewable energy. Anyone who lives from Fort Collins, Estes Park, Boulder, or Fort Morgan, all the way up to Castle Rock is within their "preferred area" and you can get your house, cabin, bungalow, or shed tricked out within a few short weeks!

While it looks like Sunflower Solar has done some commercial installations in the Denver metro area, their focus is on homeowners and their offerings are all "proven technology" delivered in "packages" to achieve economies of scale no doubt which keep prices low. They have a great products page that really breaks their offering down and demonstrates the product savings of the Colorado solar tax credit. In general, Sunflower Solar has created an excellent, user friend resource of solar information and products on their site including a wonderful Solar FAQ page.

Sunflower Solar is dedicated corporate stewardship and uses it's expertise in solar installation to help the Arizona Navajo Indians as well as participating in the Engineers Without Borders program in West Africa. Get the details from their solar stewardship page. We solute you Sunflower!

Mercury Solar Systems

Tue, 12 Feb 2008 10:38:29 -0800-08:00

Mercury Solar Systems is a solar solutions provider that caters to the New York and Connecticut geographic area. The company has partnerships with leading PV producers including Sanyo and Sharp (the world's leading producer of PV panels) and offers both electric and thermal solutions that are being made available to both residential and business entities. Beyond their product offering, Mercury Solar is touting a fairly advanced flash based website that could get almost anyone excited to go solar.

Having recently installed a solar energy system on the i.park complex in New York (a 150 year old structure that used to be the headquarters for the Otis Elevator Company in Yonkers, New York) to make it LEED Certified, Mercury Solar is poised to dominate in the NY, CT area and has already accomplished several custom residential jobs that can be viewed in their solar photo gallery. The i.park solar installation is unique in that it has become a sort of mall or office park that now houses several small businesses, all of which benefit from the sustainable design that Mercury Solar has helped to create.

Solar panels go up on the ipark center in Yonkers, NY on January 31, 2008. Photo courtesy of the Wilton Bulletin (http://www.acorn-online.com/news/publish/wilton/28045.shtml)

RSI Silicon Information Overview

Sun, 03 Feb 2008 18:48:34 -0800-08:00

RSI Silicon, which stands for Reaction Sciences Incorporated, is a solar production company based out of Westborough Massachusetts (headquarters recently relocated to Northampton County, Pennsylvania) that has pioneered a way to cut costs and limit the amount of silicon that is used in creating solar panels and PV cells. While there are several ways to harness solar energy, photovoltaic cells are the industry standard for transforming solar radiation into electricity, but they have long been too expensive to compete with traditional electricity generated from coal.

Silicon has long been a bottleneck in the production of PV cells and RSISilicon has pioneered what it calls an "ultra-dissruptive" proccess for manufacturing solar panels. The company has announced that it can manufacture solar grade silicon that is less pure than is needed for semiconductors but is still adequate for solar panels. Furthermore, they can do it at 33% of the standard market production cost! This also means that they can build a new plant for one tenth of the cost that their competitors would be paying and that they can do it in half the time. What's more interesting, while many silicon manufacturing plants split their products between the semiconductor industry and solar, RSI Silicon is dedicated solely to solar production which is what gives it a competitive advantage in this rapidly growing field.

Having recently won a "People's Choice" award in an MIT business plan competition called "Ignite Clean Energy" which provided $200K in funding, RSI Solar is poised to take on a new model for solar panel distribution. Similar to a business model that a company called Citizenre initially proposed, RSI Silicon is in negotiation with an unnamed company that wants to buy 10,000 tons of silicon for their own production plant and then rent solar panels to the masses of home owners in the United States. This process will will speed the deployment of solar technology and reduce strain on the electrical grid. Below we have included an interview with James Dunn, V.P. Of Operations and Business Development for RSI Silicon which gives an overview of this initiative.

You must download Flash to watch this video.

James Dunn, RSI Solar video interview

Unfortunately, as James mentions in the video interview, RSI Solar is sold out for the next five years. As homeowners continue to search for opportunities to contribute to clean tech solutions we will continue to track the news of solar renting opportunities. As RSI Silicon builds new plants in China and Europe in 2008 the hope is that within two years their product will help reach grid parity to traditional dirty electricity production methods which will be the key ingredient to move away from fossil fuels long term.

AVA Solar Information Review

Mon, 04 Feb 2008 15:23:06 -0800-08:00

A solar energy startup company in Fort Collins, CO has been getting lots of attention since announcing plans to build a factory and hire as many as 500 people in the next two years. The name of the company is AVA Solar (which stands for Air Vacuum Air) and they have developed a process for making inexpensive solar cells by depositing thin films on architectural plate glass. The process was developed by several researchers from Colorado State University led by W.S. Sampath. The researchers started AVA Solar specifically to go into business manufacturing solar panels based on this new process.

The material AVA Solar uses in their thin film process is made with cadmium and telluride. These materials are used by others in the solar industry, but the method to produce cells is unique. In fact, the manufacturing method has been awarded several patents. The process is intended to be highly automated and scalable which should allow AVA Solar to eventually achieve a $1 per watt installed cost or about 1/8th of today’s average installed cost. This price is considered a sort of tipping point in the industry where the payback period of solar panels make them less expensive than traditional methods of generating electricity. Once this price point is achieved, it may open up a trillion dollar market according to Deutsche Bank Securities, Inc.

The company was recently profiled in Episode 10 of Invention Nation on the Discovery Science channel. Included below is a short video segment from that episode.

You must download Flash to watch this video.

AVA Solar Video - Thin Panel Solar Construction Video

Also in the race to deliver cost breakthroughs in solar panel manufacturing are Nanosolar and First Solar who use thin films with different materials or processes, yet they also have significant cost advantages over the primary method of traditional silicon-based solar panels.

Colorado Solar Energy Resources

Sun, 20 Jan 2008 14:32:17 -0800-08:00

Incentives and Rebates

Statewide
In 2004, Colorado voters passed new renewable energy requirements under Amendment 37. The amendment requires electric utilities with more than 40,000 customers to generate or purchase 10 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2015. It also requires utilities to offer a $2 per watt rebate, up to 100 kilowatts, and establishes a statewide net metering system.

In April 2007, the Colorado legislature passed a law that enables city and county governments to offer property and sales tax rebates or credits for both residential and commercial renewable energy system installations.

The Governor’s Energy Office (GEO), whose mission statement is “to Lead Colorado to a New Energy Economy”, was created in April 2007. The “GEO will work with communities, utilities, private and public organizations, and individuals to promote renewable energy such as wind, solar, and geothermal, and energy efficiency technologies in commercial and residential buildings.” The GEO expects the Colorado Carbon Fund to be operational in late spring 2008. This program features a voluntary carbon offset program. The GEO is also looking for partners to help fund a Residential Solar Rebate Program.

Aquila
Aquila offers a rebate program for photovoltaic system installation. Eligible systems can be up to 100 kilowatts. All systems up to 100 kilowatts are eligible for a rebate of $2 per watt. Systems larger than 10 kilowatts and up to 100 kilowatts will receive an annual Renewable Energy Credit (REC) payment of $115 per megawatt hour, while systems up to 10 kilowatts may be eligible for a one-time REC payment. The REC is based on the amount of solar electricity generated by the system.

Xcel Energy
Xcel Energy offers a rebate through its Solar*Rewards program. They offer a $2 per watt rebate with a cap of $200,000. Smaller systems, 10 kilowatts or fewer, qualify for a $2.50 per watt Renewable Energy Credit. Larger systems can earn a monthly payment of $115 per megawatt hour of energy produced.

Aspen
The Aspen area offers several good incentives for purchasing photovoltaic systems. CORE offers a $2 per watt rebate for any PV system installed by a certified installer and tied into the electrical grid. The maximum rebate is $6000. Rebates are also offered for solar hot water systems. The rebates are funded through the Renewable Energy Mitigation Program. CORE also offers no-interest financing for purchasing and installing PV systems.
Holy Cross Energy offers a $2 per watt rebate on installed PV systems. The system must be connected to the electrical grid and the rebate cannot exceed 50% of the installed cost.

Boulder
The City of Boulder offers a sales and use tax rebate for solar thermal and PV system installations. The 35% rebate applies to both commercial and residential systems. The other 65% of tax revenue is put into a fund used to rehabilitate existing solar systems. Residents can apply for the rebate online.

Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs Utility has joined with Ent Federal Credit Union to provide low interest rate financing for pre-approved energy and water efficiency home improvement projects, including solar PV system installation. Loans are available from $1,000 to $50,000.

Colorado Springs Utility also offers a Renewable Energy Rebate Program for grid-connected PV’s. Business and residential customers are eligible for a $3.75 per AC watt rebate for new installations.

Durango
LaPlata Electric Association offers a rebate to its residential customers who install a grid-connected renewable energy system. The rebate is $2 per watt and cannot exceed the cost of the system.

Fort Collins
The City of Fort Collins offers its residents the ZILCH loan program, a no interest loan that can be used to pay for home improvement projects that increase energy efficiency, including solar space heating or water heating, reduce water usage, or improve air quality. The maximum loan is $2,300 and cannot finance more than 80% of project costs.

Gunnison County
Gunnison County Electric Association provides loans for grid-connected or off grid solar PV and wind systems of 10 kilowatts or less. Residents can use the low interest loans to finance up to $25,000 over 10 years. For more information, contact the GCEA.

Longmont
Longmont Power and Communication offers a Commercial Energy Efficiency Rebate Program, in conjunction with Platte River Power Authority, to businesses that invest in energy efficient improvements. Businesses can receive up to $500 per kilowatt. Contact them directly to determine if installation of solar technologies are approved.

Loveland
Loveland Water and Power has also partnered with Platte River Power Authority to offer a Commercial Energy Efficiency Rebate Program. Interested parties should contact the utility directly.

Net Metering
When a solar PV system generates more electricity than can be used while the sun is shining, the excess electricity can be pushed back into the electrical grid through the customer’s electric meter. At the end of the month, the net utility bill is calculated by subtracting the energy generated by the PV system from the total energy consumption. Although there is no state requirement, the following utilities in Colorado offer net metering to their consumers. Details on individual programs can be found by visiting the utilities’ website or by calling them directly.

Projects and Events

Aspen
In 2000, Aspen and Pitkin County launched the Renewable Energy Mitigation Program (REMP). REMP’s goal is to reduce overall carbon output by offsetting the greenhouse gas emissions caused by equipment used for exterior snowmelt, pools and spas and the extra energy requirements of large homes. In basic terms, REMP is an energy tax. REMP charges fees of up to $5,000 to new homeowners and remodelers if their home exceeds 5,000 square feet. If the home exceeds 10,000 square feet, the fee increases to $10,000. REMP allows users of snowmelt equipment, pools and spas to either pay a fee or to offset the use by installing a two kilowatt PV system or its equivalent.

Boulder
At Boulder Solar Week 2007, participants could take a tour of 14 green and solar powered homes and participate in evening workshops.

Solar Power for At Risk Communities (SPARC) is a project that aims to link the long-term cost savings of solar energy with those most in need of controlling utility expenses. They have already installed a PV system at the Boulder Shelter for the Homeless and solar hot water systems in several low-income neighborhoods.

During 2005 and 2006, the Orphan Solar Program aimed to refurbish older solar thermal systems. They assessed 99 systems and repaired 52 systems.

The University of Colorado Solar Decathlon team placed 7th in this year’s Solar Decathlon in Washington, D.C. In September 2007, 20 teams from Canada, the United States and Europe were invited to construct a solar village on the National Mall. The team won the competition in 2002 and 2005. Solar Decathalon.

You must download Flash to watch this video.

University of Colorado Solar Decathlon Video (at 2:30 minutes in)

Gunnison County
In September 2007, the Gunnison High School PV Project installed a 1.44 kilowatt PV system funded by a grant from the Gunnison County Electric Association and a scrap metal drive. Solar Energy International is offering workshops for the students and training teachers in the use of the data monitoring system.

Business
Many companies in Colorado sell and install solar systems. We have included links to several below. Other online business directories include ColoradoEnergy, the Boulder Green Building Guild, and CoSEIA’s list of CoSEIA certified businesses.

Alternative Power Enterprises, Ridgway, CO
Atlasta Solar Center, Grand Junction, CO
Aspen Solar, Aspen, CO
Authentic Energy, Gunnison, CO
Automatic Solar, Boulder, CO
Bella Energy, Lafayette, CO
Building for Health Materials Center, Carbondale, CO
Colorado Solar Electric, New Castle, CO
Ecofutures Building, Inc, Boulder, CO
Grounded Renewable Energy, Carbondale, CO
High Noon Solar, Grand Junction, CO
Lighthouse Solar, Boulder, CO
Mountain Power Company, Ridgway, CO, (970) 626-9777
Namaste Solar Electric, Boulder, CO
Powers Electric, Gunnison, CO, (970) 641-1914
Rec Solar, Denver, CO
Resource Engineering Group, Crested Butte, CO
Simple Solar Electric Systems, Boulder, CO
Simplicity Solar, Grand Junction, CO
SoL Energy LLC,
Sol Source, Denver, CO
Solar Design, Crestone, CO, (719) 580-9002 email
Sundance Solar Designs, Olathe, CO
Sunsense, Inc., Carbondale, CO
Time For Solar, Montrose, CO

Education
The Crestone Solar School in Crestone, CO offers residential workshops during the summer months for those interested in learning more about solar energy.

Located in Carbondale, CO, Solar Energy International offers workshops and online training in solar, wind, and water power and natural building technologies.

Groups

First Solar Information Review

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 00:52:21 -0800-08:00

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) is one of the hottest solar stocks on the market today. Founded in 1999, First Solar manufactures thin film solar photovoltaic panels. At the company’s IPO in November 2006, stock prices were $20 per share. Current prices are around $167 per share. Michael Horowitz, a stock analyst with Pacific Growth Equities, recently upgraded the stock from “Neutral” to “Buy” citing "its scale, its well articulated and achievable cost cutting strategy, a tight polysilicon market, and its recent acquisition of DT Solar." First Solar acquired Turner Renewable Energy, formerly DT Solar in November 2007. It will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary, First Solar Electric, LLC.

First Solar’s FS Series PV Modules are intended for large-scale commercial installations. The company works with a variety of businesses that sell and install their PV modules.

Turner Renewable Energy has designed and deployed commercial solar projects for utilities and Fortune 500 companies in the U.S. since 2004. The vertical integration achieved by this acquisition will only benefit shareholders in the end.

The FS Series PV modules are made with CdTe (cadmium telluride), a polycrystalline compound formed from cadmium and tellurium. The use of CdTe has helped First Solar achieve the lowest manufacturing cost per watt in the industry in several ways. CdTe is cheaper than silicon, which is used in the majority of PV’s. Cadmium and tellurium, byproducts of zinc mining and copper refining, are transformed into a stable, inert semiconductor. Both are readily available in the U.S. CdTe also permits a simple device structure and process, resulting in lower manufacturing costs. The production process First Solar developed does not require a cleanroom environment or other expensive specialty equipment.

CdTe has also helped First Solar produce more efficient PV’s. In September 2007, their average module conversion efficiency was 10.5%. “The conversion efficiency of a PV cell is the proportion of sunlight energy that the cell converts to electrical energy. This is very important when discussing PV devices, because improving this efficiency is vital to making PV energy competitive with more traditional sources of energy (e.g., fossil fuels). Naturally, if one efficient solar panel can provide as much energy as two less-efficient panels, then the cost of that energy (not to mention the space required) will be reduced. For comparison, the earliest PV devices converted about 1%-2% of sunlight energy into electric energy. Today's PV devices convert 7%-17% of light energy into electric energy. “ Solar panels generally are less efficient as the temperature increases, but CdTe is less susceptible to temperature increases than silicon. It also absorbs low and diffuse light more efficiently, making it more useful in a real world environment.

First Solar is well prepared for growth. They have contracts in place for more than 3.4 gigawatts through 2012. They also have plans to increase their total manufacturing capacity from the current level of 277 megawatts to 910 megawatts by 2009. They have manufacturing facilities in the U.S., Europe, and Asia.

The company also offers an innovative pre-funded PV recycling program, the first of its kind in the industry. Read more about it here

HP Working to Advance Thin Film Solar

Sat, 04 Oct 2008 17:01:36 -0800

It's common knowledge in the solar industry that thin film solar is on it's way and will revolutionize the way solar panels are produced and used. No longer will PV solar panels require the clean-room style processes and expensive silicon parts that microchips popularized in previous generations. It's the expensive silicon wafers and heavy shipping weight that really bump up the cost of "going solar" in today's marketplace.

The current generation of solar panels already use much thinner glass and plastic mounting (which reduces weight) and only 1-2% of the silicon per megawatt of energy produced as the older panels. This is because of the way they are produced; a thin layer of silicon is sprayed onto a mounting surface such as etched glass or plastic. This type of solar panel is faster to produce and uses fewer resources but is more susceptible to errors in manufacturing and thus, is usually less efficient.

Looking forward to the next generation of solar panels we see thin-film technology taking hold. Thin film solar panels are created by using special printers to "print" nano particles of silicon and other special chemicals onto rolls of very thin plastic and aluminum. Hewlett Packard has long been considered the leader and innovator in ink jet printing, and here again we see them taking a lead. Recently HP announced a partnership with PowerFilm to deliver the next generation of solar panel creation tools. HP's chief of printing, Vyomesh Joshi has commented on the application saying that "we develop a pump that [can] accurately deliver nanoliters [of ink or solar materials]" referring to the millions of printers that HP sells annually.

With this kind of scale and precision HP is poised to become a leading partner in next gen solar power for the masses. Already companies like Nanosolar have proven the benefits of thin film solar and completely sold out of their first rounds of production.

$40 Million Raised in First US Carbon Credit Auction Fueling Investments in Solar Energy

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 16:50:21 -0800

The United States just had it's first cap-and-trade greenhouse-gas auction which raised nearly $40 Million dollars. This money in turn will be used to fund reduction or avoidance of CO2 in end-use energy efficiency in the building sector using solar (among other technologies).

Auctions like this one have been scheduled to occur quarterly and are being fed by the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) which requires all fossil fuel-burning power plants in a 10-state Northeaster US region to buy credits to offset the carbon they emit. This first auction is part of a series that is being used to model a national program which is still under development. Participating states include: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Programs like this foster innovation in solar technology as solar panels in new and existing buildings would provide energy, long term cost savings, reduced greenhouse gases, as well as carbon credit which is earned in the auction. This additional source of fiat value created by the carbon credit system trickles back down to R&D being done as solar technologies expand into building technologies.

The value demonstrated in this first cap-and-trade auction was $3.07 per alloted ton of emissions. This market driven price is up from the minimum set price of $1.86. Most of the bidders in this premier auction were power generating companies who burn coal or natural gas to generate electricity.

SunPower Tracker solar tracking technology released

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 09:32:47 -0800

SunPower has released a new line of single-axis tracking systems for large-scale solar electric projects and power plants. SunPower already offers the highest efficiency photovoltaic solar panels commercially available for residential use, and it will be interesting to see if they make solar tracking technology available for residential use as well.

The SunPower Tracker system has been in use for a while now, and has been proven to deliver more energy per land area than competing systems. The SunPower Tracker also has unique backtracking algorithms that allow the panels to tilt out of alignment with the sun at low sun angles to ensure that the no panel is shaded by another, increasing total power output.

The SunPower T20 Tracker is the next generation in SunPower solar tracking technology. SunPower has improved upon their original Tracker by tilting individual arrays up to 25 degrees towards the sun, which then rotate on a single axis with higher effective insolation that generates up to 30% more energy than traditional fixed-tilt systems. SunPower ships the systems complete, designed to be installed with no ground penetration to reduce cost and increase speed of deployment. With panels that generate up to 50% more power than the competition, and a modular single axis tracking system that requires half the land area per MW of power, the new SunPower T20 Tracker will be an attractive system for large and small solar installations alike.

Connecting Different Watt Solar Panels

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 09:57:30 -0800

We recently received the following question from one of our users: Is it ok to connect a 100 watt and a 45 watt solar panel together ??? and what is the best way to do this to charge a battery bank the quickest?

In order to answer the question properly we reached out to a few of our engineering friends around the country and came up with the following: The answer is maybe...

If you just connect a solar panel to a battery, when there is light, the battery charges. But at night the solar panel looks like a resistor and will slightly discharge the battery. Completely discharging it over time.

So they usually put a diode between the panel and the battery. This diode does lose about 5 percent of the power (.5 volt drop, so more with a 6 volt system, less in a 24 volt) .5/6 about 15 percent 5/24 about 2 percent.

If the panels are the same voltage, and they both contain a diode to prevent reverse current, then yes you can.

A diode allows current to flow in only one direction. Much like a hydraulic check valve, or those gates at 6 flags that let the people move in only one direction :)

In short, must be the same voltage. Matched voltage even better. Both panels within a few hundreds of a volt. Both must have a diode, or both not have a diode and some kind of external power control to protect the battery.

Properly done, yes you can parallel the panels for more current.

Solar Powered Camp Stove

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 08:59:34 -0800

Last week we reviewed the Woodgas-Stove by iENERGY over on Biomass Authority and came away very impressed with the product. This week we wanted to explore the solar power option for this stove and provide some tips for sustainable camping. While the woodgas stove is more of a biomass product than a solar one, it does rely on a small electric fan to achieve high burn temperatures and this fan can be powered either by traditional batteries or solar power. Guess which option we prefer?

In case you haven't read our review of the wood gas stove we'll catch you up here before we move on. The stove weighs under 2lbs and is built for portability; instead of using white gas or liquid fuel this stove simply uses twigs and other organic matter which can be found along the trail. The stove functions like a blast furnace directing air up and through the fire to help it burn hotter and more consistently, and it includes a metal range for resting a pot or pan on so you can grill up that morning feast or roast marsh mallows... your choice!

Since the real value of this product is convenience, not having to cary around fuel, the solar option is a no-brainer. We put this option through a series of tests in Yosemite National Park, California this past week and were very pleased with the results. The solar panel is an add-on third party device that is simply resold with the woodgas-stove and includes the correct dongle attachment. It comes with two rechargeable double A batteries and ideally those would be charging as you prepared the stove. You could almost think of it as using solar to charge batteries which in turn power the stove. Unfortunately, this concept is a bit of a letdown because it means batteries still have to be made and sold with this product vs. pure solar.

In our opinion some of the romance is lost when you think of the solar option as a battery charger instead of an energy source in itself. For this reason we chose to "forget" our rechargeable AA batteries at home which allowed us to test the solar option in survival mode, as if we had been in the woods for years trying to heat our food (and hands) even as the batteries came to the end of their life. Maybe we're on Gilligan's Island and the professor just used those rechargeable double-A's for his latest project? Maybe we're on Lost and fire is the only way to keep away the "Others". Would the stove still work without those batteries??

Amazingly, even without the batteries in tow the solar panel was able to power the little woodgas stove. Granted, It did take a few extra seconds to get the fan spinning, and it was a sunny day, but the fact that this little system could run indefinitely just using the sun and a few twigs is a very romantic concept indeed! With the stove costing just under $50 it's worth checking out and the solar option is a must have in our opinion!

What's Better, Solar Thermal or Solar PV?

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 10:45:00 -0800

There are two common ways to collect energy from the sun. One is to use a thermal solar collector to gather the sun's heat and the other is to use a photovoltaic (PV) array which converts the sun's energy to electricity. Which is better?

In the case of solar thermal, the conversion efficiency is much higher than PV. You can extract as much as 70% of the sun's energy with a solar collector, which is accomplished by circulating a fluid through a solar panel collector and capturing the heat rise that naturally occurs when the sun shines on the collector. On the other hand, a PV collector will only convert about 12% of the sunlight into electrical energy on average. A general rule of thumb is that the energy available from the sun is about 1kW per square meter. This translates to about 3400 BTU/hr per square meter. If you can get 70% of that heat using thermal solar collector, then you would only need about 42 square meters (450 sq. ft) to generate as much heat as a typical home's gas furnace (100,000 BTU/hr). Another advantage is that solar thermal panels only cost a small fraction (about 20%) of what PV panels cost per square meter. When you combine 6 times the efficiency with 5 times better pricing, you get something that is 30 times better, right? Well, not exactly.

A furnace is by far the largest energy user in a typical household in North America, consuming as much as 10 times the energy when it's running as an average house uses in electricity. In my own home in Colorado, by looking at my gas bill, I computed that during this past December my furnace ran about 30% of the time. So the average heating load was 33,000 BTU/hr. This is equivalent to 9.7 kW, or about 10 times my average electric usage during the same month. I should also mention that natural gas costs about 1/3 as much per BTU as electric resistance heating. So my gas bill wasn't 10 times as much, but closer to 3 times as much as my electric bill for that month.

If solar thermal is so much more efficient and less costly, and my heating needs require up to 10 times the amount of energy as my electrical needs, then why isn't solar thermal space heating generating as much interest as PV solar these days?

There are several reasons for it. One is that heat is very difficult to store and distribute. The only way to store heat is with a thermal mass. Passive solar homes, that is, those with solar systems that have no moving parts or liquids, generally use masonry to store and release heat to achieve a comfortable temperature equilibrium. This is done by constructing the home so that it has a large south-facing window and a large thermal mass such as thick masonry walls and floors to hold the heat. But a house generally must be designed with the passive solar collector from the start. It would be difficult to add a passive solar collector to an existing house. More commonly to retrofit an existing home with solar heat, one would use an active solar system with a fluid to extract, store, and then distribute the heat, and that requires a large insulated water storage tank in the house to hold the heat. If you wanted to store enough heat for an entire day's heating for my home during a cold winter day (33,000 BTU/hr x 24 hours), it would require a tank that held 2500 gallons of water (assuming a 40 degree temperature delta). By temperature delta, I mean how much temperature change could occur before the hot water was no longer effective at heating the house. My estimate is that the water would be raised to around 160 degrees in the tank and that once it got below 120 degrees, it would lose its effectiveness at radiating heat. As a side note, solar thermal could be used for radiant floor heating but you need lower water temperatures for that application, usually around 85-120F, and so you couldn't heat the water to a very high temperature and thus you'd need an even bigger tank to store equivalent energy. However, I can envision a system that employed radiators (which require water at 120-160F) and radiant floor heating that take advantage of the water once it got below 120F. If you could do that, then the deltaT could be expanded to 75 degrees, allowing for a smaller 1300 gallon storage tank. Needless to say, this would add considerable complexity to the system and would likely need to be designed into the house prior to construction because radiant floor heating is quite difficult to retrofit in an existing house.

In the scenario I mentioned previously where a solar collector would need to be around 450 square feet to match the size of a house furnace, I didn't take into consideration that the sun doesn't shine all the time. In Colorado in the winter time, the sun only averages about 4 hours of full intensity per day. That is about a 17% duty cycle and my house requires as much as 33% duty cycle from my gas furnace during the coldest months. So I'd need to double the size of the collector to 900 square feet to compensate for this shortfall.

Sometimes we get cloudy weather for several days in a row, so I'd need to have a backup system, likely a gas heater, to kick in when the water temperature fell below 120 degrees and could no longer heat the house. To help make all the decisions about when to circulate the fluid to the solar collector, pump the fluid to the various zones in the house, and turn on the gas heater when a backup is needed, it would require a computerized controller.

When you add up all the cost of the pumps, tank, controller, plumbing, radiators, and installation, the savings in fuel would take a long time to pay for the system. So that may be why, despite the significant advantage of solar collector panel cost and efficiency compared with PV systems, thermal solar space heating systems haven't taken off. In addition, the system would sit idle about 6 month out of the year when I don't need much heat. In several of those months, I need air conditioning and a solar thermal system wouldn't do me much good for that application. A PV system could generate usable energy year-round, and would generate 50% more in the longer summer days when I tend use more electricity anyway.

Using a solar thermal system to provide a home's hot water seems like it has the potential to make more economic sense. After space heating, hot water requires the most energy in a typical home. I will cover that in a future article.

Solar Ready Houses

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 10:08:02 -0800

In most situations over half the cost of installing a solar power system on a residential house is spent on inverters, brackets, structural support (reinforcing the roof, repairing the roof, patching holes, etc.), and retrofitting the homes electrical system. For example, in California a 5Kw system costs about $45,000 and is reduced to $35K after the rebate. Most people don't realize that nearly $15,000 of the total cost on a system like this would be spent on installation costs...

Having been inspired by a post we found on the Tesla Founders Blog (Tesla is a company that makes electric cars), we decided to break out the installation costs for installing solar power on a home and describe how money could be saved if homes were proactively built "solar ready".

$20 - Two additional slots on the electrical main panel of the house for a 240V breaker.
$20 - Creating a reserve location (probably on an outside wall of the house) for an inverter with standardized mounting points.
$20 - Creating a conduit from the main panel location to the inverter location.
$100 - Creating another conduit from the inverter location through the attic and onto the roof where the panels would be installed.
$100 - Reinforced roof rafter structure to support the weight of solar panels.
$100 - Electrical jacks through the roofing material with standardized connection and spacing.

As estimated by the example case above, the total cost of these minor additions to a standard house would be ~$360 which could be as low as 3% of the overall cost of the house (especially in California where homes are very expensive)! In contrast, if those same additions are made after the house has already been constructed it could cost up to $15K as we discussed earlier, so the end homeowner would be saving $12,000 and that would add value to the home, the neighborhood, and our environment.

Even if the new home owner didn't ever choose to install solar, the price of being "solar ready" would be very low. They might eventually move and the second owner would benefit from the solar options thus increasing the value of the house. If they did however decide to get panels at some point the process would only require connecting the panels to the roof and tying them into the pre-set electrical system as well as installing the breaker at the main panel. This would avoid most of the attic work to install wiring, cutting holes in home siding, customizing an old electrical panel or worse, having to upgrade, using foam or glue to plug holes from the roof electrical jacks, and installing struts in the attic to support rafters experiencing sag.

Imagine if home builders were regularly constructing solar ready houses. They would be in a prime position to up-sell the entire solar system through companies like the Home Depot.

If an update were made to the California Title 24 or to similar legislation in other states solar ready homes could become the norm. Not every house is positioned well for solar but just like other pieces of legislation there could be exemptions. It goes without saying that this type of legislation would have an enormous impact on the number of homes that would become solar powered thus increasing demand for solar technology, lowering prices and helping the environment.

Talisker - Solar Manufacturing Laser System

Sat, 19 Jul 2008 12:49:56 -0800

We just received this press release from Coherent Solar - a local company that we've written about before on Solar Power Authority when they were presenting at the Photovoltaics Summit 2008 in San Diego. This press release announces the details of a new laser system that they have developed to produce solar cells.

The Talisker system is a new ultra-short-pulse laser designed to produce high efficiency cell concepts. It is optimized for next-generation solar cell manufacturing and was designed as a drop-in turn-key solution to benefit both production line equipment suppliers and cell manufacturers.

Traditionally, laser scribers akin to the Talisker have been limited to short pulses of nanosecond duration and laser emission in the infra-red spectral region at 1064 nanometers. In order to optimize the scribing precision and minimize laser damage (or microcracking) within c-Si wafers however, an ultra-short pulse 'picosecond' duration would be required with ultra-short laser emission in the green or UV output level. The new Talisker laser brings these features to solar cell manufacturing for the first time ever!

The Talisker laser draws upon Coherent's established position as a leading supplier of short-pulse nanosecond AVIATM and PRISMATM lasers for existing c-Si and Thin-Film equipment tools (most of which run in 24 / 7 high-volume environments). The Talisker laser operates with similar output energies and speed (pulsing repetition-rate). But the key difference is the shorter pulse-width of the Talisker. This provides orders of magnitude higher peak intensities for precision scribing, and reduces vastly the thermal damage, sometimes seen with certain laser/material interaction.

The other strength of the Talisker laser is that it delivers different outputs in the infra-red, green, or UV spectral regions, by software control. UV and green wavelengths are essential for highly localized surface scribing on c-Si wafers, due to the very short penetration depths in the green and in particular UV at 355 nm. Combining ultra-short picosecond pulse operation with high-energy green / UV output wavelengths brings a new level of precision for many applications of lasers in high-efficiency c-Si cell manufacturing. One example is Selective Ablation of dielectric materials, where minimizing damage in the underlying bulk silicon is essential. Equally, within Thin-Film patterning, the ability to scribe layers with increasing precision is critical. An example here is laser scribing the P2 and P3 steps for CIGS.

The Talisker is a modular and scalable design based on fiber-laser technology. It operates off single-phase electricity and requires no external consumables. Complete with on-board diagnostics and remote Ethernet preventative-maintenance access, the Talisker can be easily integrated within inline turn-key tools. Benefiting from a hybrid fiber / free-space laser head design, the footprint measures less than 40 cm x 100 cm.

If you made it through that uber-technical press release congrats! It sounds like this tool will make solar cell research and manufacturing more efficient while keeping costs down with it's turnkey approach. Congrats Coherent! We'll be watching this company and posting updates as time goes on.

DIY Solar Pool Heater

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 08:56:10 -0800

This morning one of our readers sent us a little do it yourself tip for heating a swimming pool based on what one of her friends is doing. The full comment follows: "Not a question, but a little info: Knowing how hot the water gets in a garden hose, a friend with a swimming pool bought a bunch, I do not know how much, of black garden hose. She spread it out in big curls on top of a nearby flat roofed building. She then fixed up a small recirculating pump, ran the water to the swimming pool to warm the water. Worked great!"

While this comment doesn't come with too many details about how much hose was used, what kind of pump was used, or even where in the US this is being done... The fact that nearly anyone can harness solar energy to do something useful is very evident. This dog for example, found a great way to enjoy a black garden hose and harness a little solar energy to stay comfortable.

After receiving this comment we decided to figure out just how much something like this would cost to do so we sought out some pricing information online. First off we looked for a hot water recirculating pump and found out that there are several different types in the range of $200 to $300 all designed to connect to a hot water heater. Since water heaters connect using smaller pipes than a garden hose, you would probably need an adapter or two from the Home Depot or other similar store. Next up is black garden hose; we found a nice bundle measuring 100 feet long at $50 that would work pretty well but you might need even more length which would require an extender like this, you would also want to be sure that the system didn't leak because your motor could burn out that way. You can buy little rolls of sealant tape at most hardware stores to be used when screwing in one end of hose to another.

Here are a few more tips to keep in mind if you do try to setup a makeshift pool heater using solar energy.

Don't leave the system on overnight, that will just waste electricity and potentially even cool your pool down.
Realize that while solar heat energy is free the electricity needed to run a water circulator is not free - you might want to consider electric solar panels from Home Depot to power your solar water heater!
If water leaks out of your system (from any of the hoses attached to the pump running through the pool) the circulator could get ruined or burn out.
Do not use an extension chord to connect the hot water circulator, it needs to connect directly to a house outlet, always be careful when dealing with electricity and water (Solar Power Authority is not providing professional advice here, simply tips that a user has submitted to us) please consult an expert and be very careful with projects like this.

[UPDATE] We followed up with the person who sent us this tip requesting more details about how the system worked and where it was located and she had this to say: "Hmm... My location is Central Florida. I knew some people on the windy side of "The Big Island" Hawaii who did this too. Now I have no way of contacting either of these people, sorry. About the only thing I could do is contact pump sellers and ask. small recirculating pumps people use for decorative gardens would not have the power to get the water up to the top of a building. No doubt if the hose coils were level with the pool, it would be an energy ($) saving. I'm pretty sure the circulation was on daily after the sun was high enough to heat the water in the hose. Of course this varies according to time of year and latitude. . Does this work only in southern areas? Is it only good where the water needs 10-15 degrees of warming? I do not know the answers. Sorry I'm not more help"

Please share your success stories, better prices on garden hoses and circulators, and other comments below.

Solar Installer Training in Colorado

Sat, 12 Jul 2008 22:20:06 -0800

Question submitted to Solar Power Authority on July 10th: Where in Colorado can you get training for PV and solar hot water, other than the place in Carbondale? Thanks.

Question clarification to sender by Solar Power Authority: Thanks for your question! In order to help you find the best answer we wanted to clarify your question. It sounds like you are searching for places in Colorado where you can get training on how to install electric generating and water heating solar panels. Is that correct? Are you a do-it-yourselfer or are you actually looking to become a professional installer? Are there any more details you would like us to include in this question as we circulate it in our company and try to provide the best answer?

Clarification by asker: I am looking to become a professional solar installer not a DIY.

To answer this question we looked far and wide for resources detailing the different training options in Colorado but the best ones we came up with were already posted on our site under Colorado Solar Resources near the bottom under "Education". The facility referred to in the question in Carbondale Colorado is called Solar Energy International (SEI) and ufortunately that is the only training company that we know of. Other places to look for answers to this question or repost it include the Colorado Renewable Energy Society (CRES). They may know of something else out there, however, when we searched their site we couldn't see any other links or answers.

In any case, as solar options grow in popularity we will update this entry and we also encourage our readers to comment on any training spots that they know of!

Makeshift Solar Water Heating

Sat, 12 Jul 2008 21:51:04 -0800

Question received by Solar Power Authority on July 11th 2008: South Padre Island Texas area--winter temp 40-50-60 degrees--took a fast food carry out plastic container black bottom half clear top half filled with water put in sun 2 hrs later to hot for finger---outside temp. 90 degrees---clear cover covered with water drops still worked--any thing wrong with this concept--then took foam cooler painted black inside put 50 lb. water @ 80 degrees in cooler covered with clear plastic end of day picked up 36 degrees--averaged 1100 btu per sq foot collector area--will this concept work in winter?

While this question is a bit challenging to read we always do our best here at Solar Power Authority to answer questions as best we can! With that in mind we get the general idea and have put together our thoughts below. As always, we encourage the community to take a shot and add their own comments below. For anyone with your own question just go to our Ask Page.

First off, it's hard to know the intentions of this question but it sounds like this person wants to generate heated water using solar energy. We suggest using a commercial solar collector because it's not clear how one would get the heat from a fast food container, or even a larger plastic device into a living space without facing leaks and other challenges. That said, if this water is not being used to heat a living space then it might be a very affordable way to heat water - simply using a plastic container with a clear top and black bottom. In general though, be careful not to ingest paint or other chemicals used to color your solar heating container. Chemicals such as Bisphenol A (BPA) which may raise the risk of certain forms of cancer. Below is a picture of a professional solar water heater mounted on a roof:

Back to the question... Since the sun shines for fewer hours per day in the winter than in the summer and is lower in the sky (in the northern hemisphere) the home made solar water heater definitely won't work as well during those months. Also, there will be more thermal losses occurring in transport of the water (now referring to a professional solar water heater) due to conduction and convection of heat from the water to the atmosphere. This will occur when pumping the water through the plumbing to go from the solar collector to the living space in the winter because the outside temperature will be lower.

Organic Solar Concentrator Discovery at MIT

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 14:44:37 -0800

In the past mirrors and lenses have been used to focus and direct sunlight to increase efficiency in solar panels. One great example of this is the Sunflower by Energy Innovations. New research at MIT has created a way to focus light without using mirrors, lenses, or motors to position panels. Instead, this new technique separates wavelengths and disperses sunlight to the sides of glass just like an LED pipe or fiber optics would do in electronics.

Think about the affect that shining a colored light into a clear piece of plexiglass has. The top portion of the Plexiglases is clear but each of the sides lights up brightly. This type of thing is done on video game consoles and all types of electronics to produce a low energy way to create a neat look. Now imagine taking windows, skylights, or even solar panels and applying the same sort of light effect. You would end up with concentrated light at the sides and edges of the glass structure which could be collected much more efficiently and therefore cost effectively than by conventional means.

What the guys over at MIT have found is that not only can you direct light using organic compounds but you can actually separate wavelengths and then capture each one at optimal efficiency producing nearly four times the electricity generation as a normal panel might produce. The really good news is that this type of technology could be applied to current gen solar panels in three or four years (once it's out on the market) at a low price which means you don't have to hold off on current solar solutions to reap the benefits.

Solar Power at SF Giants Stadium - AT&T Park

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 13:38:30 -0800

Solar Power (and solar promotions) are popping up everywhere and just recently AT&T Park partnered with Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) and Sharp to bring solar power into the home of the San Francisco Giants. Along with other promotions around the city, PG&E is trying to create awareness that it generates over 50% of it's power from renewable energy sources including wind, solar, biomass, hydro, and nuclear.

At AT&T Park there are several billboard style ads in the stadium hallways advertising Sharp solar panels as the type being used around the stadium, and there is one large bright green billboard up near the scoreboard that actually has solar panels built into it as shown below.

In order to see any of the real solar panels that actually produce power for the stadium you will have to travel to the South Eastern side of the stadium (near the water fountains) and look over the railing. There you will find several awning style covers with built in solar panels. PG&E has said that nearly 600 panels have been installed and that the electricity from the panels is being sold to residents and businesses in the City. These panels from Sharp and PG&E are the first to ever be installed at a major league baseball stadium anywhere.

How to Convert a Home To Solar in Australia

Sun, 06 Jul 2008 16:09:53 -0800

Introduction

Household energy consumption is responsible for a significant amount of environmental impact. By increasing the number of households that run on renewable energy, this environmental impact can be greatly reduced. Australians want to go green but don't want to pay more for it ⁽¹⁾. If people are shown a viable and simple way to convert their homes to renewable energy, there is a high probability that they will do so.

The aim of this report is to answer the question: at the present time, is it viable to convert your home to run on solar photovoltaic (PV) energy? Furthermore, this report aims to outline a process that you can follow for converting your home to solar.

In order to achieve the above aims, this report considers factors including: household energy use, system costs, installation requirements, system providers, rebates, feed-in tariffs, energy saving practices and energy plans. The information has been arranged in a way that will allow you to decide if it is viable for you to convert your home to solar.

How Much Energy Do I Use?

By finding out how much energy you currently use, you will be able to choose a suitable PV system that caters to your needs. To find out how much energy you use, see the front page of your electricity bill for the last three months.

An energy-efficient home is defined as consuming 7.5 kWh per day or less ⁽²⁾. The national average is 16kWh per day and it would require a 3.5 kW system to provide 100% of this energy consumption ⁽³⁾. A grid connected PV system of this calibre costs between $27,000 and $30,000. For most people, this outlay is far beyond their financial capacity. Therefore, a more suitable option would be a 1kW system, which generates approx 5kWh per day and costs between $4000 and $7000 ⁽⁴⁾.

In light of the above, a viable plan may be to cover a portion of your energy needs with solar power and at the same time use energy saving practices to lower your energy consumption in the home. Such practices may include using energy efficient appliances, turning off appliances when not in use etc. There are many ways to save energy in the home and this information is easily obtained by performing an Internet search or exploring the Solar Power Authority site.

How Much Roof Space Do I Have?

Once you have decided on a PV system that suits your budget and energy needs, check that you have enough spare roof space for panel installation. Ideally, this roof space should have a North aspect. The size of the system may vary depending on the manufacturer and type of panel but as a general guide, each kW of standard solar panels requires approximately 8sqm of roof space ⁽³⁾.

Provide your findings, along with some site photos, to your provider when you contact them for a formal quote. If necessary, the provider may arrange a site inspection prior to installation. If you do not have suitable roof space, ask your provider if they can provide you with alternative options. Most providers are very willing and able to cater to each individual situation.

Finding Providers and Obtaining Quotes

There are a number of BCSE accredited solar system providers around Australia. They can be found online ⁽⁵⁾, in the Yellow Pages and increasingly in newspapers. Whilst shopping for the best price, be sure to find a provider that has good service. Do they explain things in a way that is easy to understand? Do they cater to your specific situation? What is their warranty? What maintenance contracts do they offer? Will they help you apply for government rebates? Will they match or beat the prices of other providers? All of these questions should be considered when choosing a provider.

Additional Costs

There is an additional charge by ETSA Utilities of between $350 and $421 for fitting of a new single phase PV import/export meter. This will be charged direct to you by ETSA Utilities ⁽⁶⁾. Also note that solar installation costs may vary due to installation requirements and your location.

Australian Government Rebates

All system costs mentioned thus far include the maximum Australian Government rebate of $8000, under the Solar Homes and Communities Plan (SHCP). Therefore, it is important to make sure you are eligible for this rebate. Some important requirements are listed below.

System installer must be BCSE accredited
System must be connected to a main grid or be very close to a main grid.
Maximum $8000 rebate is for a complete system of 1kW or larger.
System must be installed at the applicant's principle place of residence and there can be only one rebate per residence.
Must not have previously received a rebate for a photovoltaic system from the Australian Government
Applicant's household taxable income must be less than $100,000.

The above list is not complete. There are other requirements, some of which relate to technical design and installation. Full details of requirements can be found in the SHCP Guidelines ⁽⁷⁾. If you are going through an accredited company, they will ensure you meet the requirements and assist you with the application process. You will need to file an SHCP Residential Application for Pre-Approval ⁽⁸⁾.

Note that the SHCP rebate is capped at a 1kW system, so as the system size increases above 1kW the rebate does not increase above $8000. This is another reason for choosing a 1kW system, as it attracts the maximum rebate for minimum financial outlay. Smaller rebates can be obtained for systems of at least 450W.

The SHCP will conclude at the end of the 2009-2010 financial year ⁽⁹⁾. Therefore, if you wish to take advantage of this rebate, you should aim to do so as soon as possible. If you live in a remote area, you should apply for the Renewable Remote Power Generation Program (RRPGP) rebate instead of the SHCP rebate ⁽¹⁰⁾.

Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) Rebates

In addition to the HSCP rebate, you can also get Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) for the greenhouse gases you will be abating over a deeming period of 15 years. RECs have a monetary value but the price varies from day to day. Providers are often prepared to buy these from you in the form of an up-front discount, usually worth some hundreds of dollars ⁽¹¹⁾. RECs are currently around $500 per kW of solar panels installed ⁽⁴⁾.

Feed-In Tariffs

On the 1st of July 2008, new laws will come into effect in South Australia and Queensland, whereby households and small electricity consumers will be rewarded for generating more energy than they use and feeding the excess back to the grid. These new laws, set to be in place for at least 20 years, will guarantee a feed-in tariff of $0.44 per kWh fed back to the grid - around three times the current general domestic use tariff of $0.15 per kWh ⁽¹²⁾ ⁽¹³⁾. In 2009, Victoria will introduce a feed-in tariff of $0.60 and the scheme will run for 15 years. Other Australian states currently have limited schemes or are considering the implementation of a scheme ⁽¹⁴⁾. If you live in a state where there is no feed-in tariff, you can check with available electricity retailers as to whether they will buy back any electricity your system generates (and on what terms). If they do, then you will need to check for any fees and the price you will be paid ⁽¹¹⁾.

How it works: the output of the photovoltaic (PV) system is connected to the household loads which in turn are connected to the grid via a bi-directional or 'import/export meter'. When the output of the PV system exceeds the household loads, the excess electricity is fed into the grid via the 'export' register of the meter. The meter records the 'net export' rather than the 'gross production' of the PV system i.e. gross production - household load = net export ⁽¹⁵⁾.

Import/export calculations are instantaneous. Thus, even if your system does not produce more energy than you use for the day, you can still export energy at certain times. For example, if you were not home during the day and little energy was being consumed in your home during this time (e.g. fridge only), your PV system would be producing more energy than the household load. The excess would be fed back to the grid for $0.44 per kWh. If you then return home in the evening and your energy consumption increases (e.g. lights, TV, heating/cooling etc.) to an amount above that which your system generates, you would then be importing from the grid and not exporting. Regardless of how much you import, you will still get $0.44 for each kWh that you have exported at any given instant ⁽¹⁶⁾.

Switching Energy Plans

As well as installing solar panels and using energy efficient practices in the home, you may also be able to change to a cheaper energy plan to further reduce your energy costs. There is a website called "uSwitch" that allows you to compare the cost of available energy plans and see how green they are ⁽¹⁷⁾. Any savings could be put towards your solar energy system.

Is It Worth It?

With an average energy consumption of 16kWh per day and an energy cost of $0.15 per kWh, your annual energy bill would be $876. By investing approx $5000, you could install a 1kW system with an output of approx 5kWh per day and this would provide around one third of your energy needs, thus reducing your annual energy bill to $584. With this saving of $292 per annum, it would take approx 17 years to pay off the initial $5000 investment.

However, suppose you were to export 50% of the energy that your PV system generated. In this case, your system would provide around one sixth of your energy needs, thus initially reducing your annual energy bill to $730. You would also get $401.50 (2.5kWh X $0.44 X 365 days) for the energy you fed back to the grid, thus further reducing your annual energy bill to $328.50. With this saving of $547.50 per annum, it would take approx 9 years to pay off the initial $5000 investment. Depending on when you installed your system and the feed-in tariff duration, you could then save up to $6022.50 over the next 11 years.

Note that the above calculations do not take into account the implementation of any other energy saving practices, nor switching to a cheaper energy plan. This is because it could be argued that such savings could be made whether you installed a PV system or not.

Conclusion

With current government subsidies and feed-in schemes, solar is the most viable form of renewable energy for your household. However, solar power may be considered too expensive due to the upfront cost and payoff time. The viability of converting your home to solar will depend on your individual circumstances as per the key considerations outlined in this report. In particular, the more energy you can export back to the grid, the more viable it will be to convert your home to solar.

In order to make solar energy more viable for Australian households, changes must be made to current legislation. Every state should have a minimum feed-in tariff of at least $0.60 per kWh. As is the case in Germany and other countries, the tariff should be calculated on gross production as opposed to net export. As well, investments in the "clean coal" industry should be redirected to increase the maximum HSCP subsidy. Such changes would dramatically shorten the investment payoff time and encourage many more people to use solar energy in their home.

Finally, you may wish to write to your local state member of parliament and request that they take action to pass laws that will make it more viable for you to convert your home to solar and contribute to making Australia a sustainable country ⁽¹⁸⁾.

Reference List

1. The Daily Telegraph - Impose a green tax, study says
www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22471803-5001028,00.html?from=public_rss

2. BP Solar grid connect brochure www.bp.com/liveassets/bp_internet/solar/bp_solar_australia/STAGING/local_assets/downloads_pdfs/e/Energizerbrochure-Oct07.pdf

3. Personal communication from Energy Matters, 19th May 08

4. Energy Matters price list
www.energymatters.com.au/docs/GridSolarPrices.pdf

5. List of BCSE accredited designers and installers
www.bcse.org.au/docs/STA/Installers%20List/AccInstallers%20List%20-%20all%20-%20080528.pdf

6. Personal communication from Solaris, 19th May 08.

7. Australian Government - SHCP Guidelines for Residential Applicants
www.environment.gov.au/settlements/renewable/pv/pubs/shcp-residential-guidelines-21may2008.pdf

8. Australian Government - SHCP Residential Application for Pre-Approval
www.environment.gov.au/settlements/renewable/pv/pubs/shcp-application-residential-21may2008.pdf

9. Australian Government - SHCP Questions and Answers
www.environment.gov.au/settlements/renewable/pv/faqs.html

10. Australian Government - Renewable Remote Power Generation Program
www.environment.gov.au/settlements/renewable/rrpgp/index.html

11. Australian Business Council of Sustainable Energy - FAQ
www.bcse.org.au/default.asp?id=119

12. South Australian Government - Feed In Scheme
www.climatechange.sa.gov.au/news/news_\5.htm

13. Queensland Government - Solar Bonus Scheme
www.dme.qld.gov.au/Energy/solar_feed_in_tariff.cfm

14. Wikipedia - Feed In Tariffs in Australia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feed-in_tariffs_in_Australia

15. South Australian Government - Metering of PV Systems
www.climatechange.sa.gov.au/news/news_5_3.htm

16. Personal communication from the Sustainability & Climate Change Division
of the South Australian Government, 2nd June 08.

17. uSwitch - Compare Gas and Electricity Plans
www.uswitch.com.au/index.php?option=com_uswitchcalculator&Itemid=134

18. Australian Members of Parliament
www.aph.gov.au/House/members/mi-alpha.asp