Renewable Energy at the Kanawha Valley Sustainability Fair

If ever there was a balm for the weary souls touting renewable energy in a coal state, the Kanawha Valley Sustainability Fair was it!  An incredible gathering of interested, enthused, and active Mountaineers was held over the weekend (May 30^th) at the Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore in Charleston. 

This was a top-notch event incredibly well staffed, great location, and fantastic exhibits – even those of us who spent all day there felt like we could have spent another day looking around at everyone else’s great information.  PIMBY Energy’s hat is off to all the folks that made the event possible and to all the folks who were interested enough in sustainability to stop by.  

As a follow-up to this event, we thought that we’d post some of the most frequently asked questions from the fair and their answers. 

1. What do those of us do who would love to have a solar PV system but don’t have $15K sitting around do?  Can we install just one panel at a time?

Financing renewable energy projects is one of the most frustrating parts of this line of work.  Systems are expensive and are an initial large investment that pays off over time… which is contrary to how most folks pay for things! 

First, this really underscores the need for good renewable energy incentives (ie...federal and state tax credits) and for a leveling of the playing-field with regard to fossil fuels.  Huge subsidies exist for
traditional energy producers and West Virginia’s 7 cents a kWh hardly reflects the true cost of the energy produced in the Mountain State. Let’s remind our legislators how important we know renewable energy is in West Virginia.

Second, there are ways to integrate renewable energy into your existing mortgage through refinancing, or, more ideally, through the initial construction or mortgage loan.   Make renewables part of the plan from the start.

Third, you can’t start a PV system one panel at a time short of storing panels in your basement as you buy them…but the sad fact is that for an inverter to work – covert your sunlight-generated DC current to your home’s AC current – there is a minimum input that the inverter must have fed to it.  That requirement can necessitate a minimum of 8 panels (for a grid-tied PV system) which takes you to the base price of $15,000. 

2. If I can’t afford a renewable energy system, what can I do?

While waiting for all that change you’re collecting from the sofa cushions to add up, there are LOTS of things you can do to get ready for your renewable energy system.  First off, learn how much electricity you use in a month and year.  The average home uses ~12,000 kWh.  Matt and I live happily (and not very frugally) on 3,000 kWh. Look at your use and start to drill down. 

TED, the energy detective, is a great device to help you start this process.  This monitor connects in your breaker box and displays, anywhere in the house, your real-time energy usage.  TED is a great investment that really raises awareness of your use, your home’s use, and the potential for using less. 

A home energy audit will help you properly air seal and insulate your home which is a huge help from an overall environmental and economical perspective.  Don't get hung up on windows!  Windows are, by their nature, simply holes in the thermal envelope of your home.  So instead of replacing them first, you may want to start sealing all the other holes and getting that attic well insulated.  Sealing holes and adding insulation is a smaller investment than new windows and it will really decrease your energy use.  Savings from smaller bills can add to your growing change collection which might add up to enough money for your new PV system!

3. How much does it cost to get off-the-grid?

Off-the-grid is the goal that many of us have.  It means that you do not have a connection to the electric utility at all.  To do so you need to have a battery bank to capture and store the electricity that you’ve generated.  You also need to be a real watt miser.  Off-grid systems can cost between $18,000 and up for a full-time home.  Smaller weekend cabin-style off-grid systems may cost $5,000 and up.

When most folks speak of off the grid, they really mean that they want to be more energy independent.  You don't need to go off-grid to decrease your dependency on the utility.  Simply practicing commonsense conservation goes a long way toward limiting your dependence.  In addition, a grid-tied renewable energy system allows you to create energy and either use it or push it back to the grid (spinning your meter backwards in the process) for a credit.  This not only decreases your dependence on utility power, it also increases your awareness of energy and how you use it.  The biggest downside to being grid-tied is that when the grid goes down, your system also goes down simply because you can’t be safely pushing electricity back to a grid that isn’t operational.  There are combo systems – grid-tied systems with battery backup – these systems have a much quicker transfer time to backup power than the typical home standby generator

4. How much electricity does one panel make?

The PV panel that we had at the fair was a 175-watt SolarWorld panel. Remember 100-watt light bulbs? Yup, one panel can power one 100-watt light bulb and one 75-watt light bulb. Thank goodness for compact fluorescents and LED lighting! You can see why reducing the overall energy usage of a home really is the first step in becoming more energy independent. 

Some folks asked about solar shingles and other thin film products. Thin film produces about half as much power as a traditional framed PV module -that’s why it costs less. Thin film has great promise, but framed crystalline modules are the way to go if you want to make the most power with the space available.   

5. Need more info?  Have more questions?  Ready for a site assessment?

Give Matt a holler.  Phone, email, it all works.  We had a great time at the fair and can’t wait to talk to you soon!

-Sarah