Photovoltaic Installation

Three cheers for the solar panels we thought we couldn’t afford! Our rooftop solar photovoltaic system has been installed and is looking good. (Thank you, Solar Wind Electric!) Check out the photos below of the installation process.






We have a 2.76 kilowatt PV system, which consists of 12 230-watt Sharp ND-U230c1 panels. Our photovoltaics are made of Polycrystalline silicon, which will convert solar radiation into direct current electricity. We’re still connected to the grid, so we’ll have an inverter to convert DC to AC. The company, Sharp, claims that the ND-U230c1 panels use an advanced surface texturing process to increase light absorption which will, in turn, improve efficiency.

By taking advantage of daylighting techniques, conserving energy and using only Energy Star-rated appliances, we hope our PV system will offset our electricity needs in the warmer months and take a chunk out of our electricity bill in colder, darker months.

And finally, I leave you with a YouTube clip about solar energy. Sounds boring, but it’s not. How's this for an endorsement—one person comments:

Man this 2 minute commercial was far superior in many ways than Transformers 2 and 2012!

It’s important. It’s dramatic. It’s short. Watch it. Please. :)

Active Solar Energy

Well, we originally thought we’d need to wire for photovoltaics now and add the panels in the future due to our budget constraints. Not so! We are thrilled to report that that we can afford 12 Sharp 230-Watt photovoltaic (PV) panels right from the start to help power our home.

PV systems are a pollution-free energy source that reduces our dependence on fossil fuel-based energy production. And after federal and state rebates, our system will cost us approximately $7,500. Certainly not a drop in the bucket, but after saving a significant amount of money elsewhere in our home and setting aside some funds, we can afford to install it now.

Our 2.7 kilowatt system will aid in providing electricity for lights, appliances, radiant heat and anything we plug into an outlet. Our PV system will be grid-connected—meaning it will use light from the sun to provide power to our home when possible, and will use utility-generated power at night or on cloudy days. Any energy that’s generated by our PV panels, but not used by us can be sold back to our local utility provider through net metering.

Solar Wind Electric in Bradford, VT, will be providing and installing the system for us. In total, they will install:

• 12 - Sharp 230-Watt panels (2,760 Total STC Watts;


• 1 - Solectria 3000 Inverter;


• 1 - Unirac Solarmount Flush Racking System (to mount panels to south-facing roof);


• 1 - DC disconnect & AC disconnect; and


• 1 - Production meter.

Our south-facing roof, showing the 12-panel PV system and two hot water solar collectors.

Based on the size of our system and our average monthly electric bill, we expect to be repaid in less than ten years.