Concept Renewables finalized the installation its first "eMonitor" Energy Management system at one its member schools, as well as integrated this into their website. This system tracks both the energy being produced by the solar arrays and wind turbines, and the energy usage by the circuit. These monitors are available for homes, schools, businesses, etc. Literally, 100% of all the entities who use this system, reduce their electric bills.

Heights Prep is an Uplift Charter School which opened in West Dallas on August 12, 2010. Heights currently serves Kindergarten, 6th, 7th and 8th grade and will be adding 1st grade in 2012-2013.

Heights Prep is focused on nurturing strong relationships between teachers, scholars and parents while maintaining rigorous academic standards. The school provides a curriculum with the both the breadth and the depth to truly prepare scholars for college. To foster a professional learning environment, teachers and scholars are given time and tools to achieve academic and professional growth.

With the school mission “Shine through Life," Heights educators instill in the students an attitude to view college as one step in their journey to be productive, responsible leaders in the community. Heights Preparatory's leaders have the freedom to build their school’s culture, hire and remove their staff and manage their operating budget while being held accountable for their school’s results

For more information contact:

Todd Nelson
Chief Operating Officer
http://www.ConceptRenewable.com

Solar to charge your electric car

If being responsible by investing in a green technology vehicle wasn’t enough, now you can be even greener when you charge it! By placing a solar charge port in your home you accomplish 2 smart objectives. A SavWatt Eco-Port makes your green car even greener and saves you money at home. SavWatt Eco-Ports are simple low cost/high return solar power stations. They are quick to install, and work with all major vehicle models right out of the box.

A SavWatt Eco-Port is more than just a vehicle charge station

Solar provides the energy you need to tool around town. Don’t drive that eco car too much? That extra energy not being used by your solar charge station can be used by your home or as a backup energy source in the event of power outages. Use the excess power just like you would any standard utility outlet. Use the outdoor outlets on your charge port to plug in lights, outdoor tools when in use, area lighting, your garage doors during power outages, and even lights during the holidays.

How easy can it be?

The station framing installs in minutes and mounts to any flat surface or can be cemented in place for permanent installation.

Solar panels along the top of the assembly, that also provides outdoor shade for your new shiny green machine power the charge station ports.

You simply plug your car when not in use. A standard electric vehicle will get a full charge in approximately 6 hours of sunlight.

That excess power when not in use can be plugged directly into your home with a small grid tie inverter. Power not used by your car will be absorbed into your home, power not used by your car or home will be used to credit your utility bill where service is available.

Excess power can also be stored in batteries with a simple controller add on module for use on demand when needed.

That’s Smart Power!

Not only is a SavWatt Eco-Port smart there are incentives that make it even smarter. By utilizing the excess solar power into your home you qualify for federal and state incentives. This makes being greener an even smarter decision!

How much does a smart SavWatt Eco-Port cost?

SavWatt Eco-Ports cost between $6,000 and $22,000 for residential installation based on solar power objectives and the configuration of your new Solar system. 

Variables 

· 1.3kW to 3kW Solar (4 hours of sunlight)

· House utility Grid tie or Off Grid with batteries

· Outdoor use outlets and lighting

· Brushed Aluminum or powder coated

· Ballasted down or cemented in place

The history on Solar Today

The Energy Crisis! (OPEC oil embargo). A bit of solar energy history we are all familiar with. Suddenly it became important to find an alternative form of energy as we realized just how reliant we really are on non-renewable, finite resources like coal, oil and gas for our existence. Solar energy history was made as the price of solar cells dropped dramatically to about $20 per watt.1980 - 1991 A Los Angeles based company called Luz Co. produced 95% of the world's solar-based electricity. They were forced to shut their doors after investors withdrew from the project as the price of non-renewable fossil fuels declined and the future of state and federal incentives were not likely.

The chairman of the board said it best: "The failure of the world's largest solar electric company was not due to technological or business judgment failures but rather to failures of government regulatory bodies to recognize the economic and environmental benefits of solar thermal generating plants."

Solar energy history played a big part in the way society evolved and will continue to do so –

Today there is a renewed focus as more and more people see the advantages of solar energy and as it becomes more and more affordable. Governments across the world offer financial assistance. Solar electric systems are now used to power many homes, businesses, holiday cottages, even villages in Africa.

We see solar cells powering anything from household appliances to cars. Solar Energy in the future as the number of people longing for a cleaner environment grows, so does the solar industry.

Solar cells are becoming increasingly cost-effective as more distributors enter the market and new technologies continue to offer more choice and new products. We might even see the end of the combustion age in our lifetime. Cars might soon be powered by new fuel cells that create electricity through chemical reaction.

Screen-printed solar cells are expected to drive prices down even more. Roofing shingles are capturing the sun's rays and turning them into electricity! Solar panels are being mounted to the sides of houses when roof space is not an option. Pools are being heated with solar energy for a fraction of the price of conventional heaters.

Solar Energy History has indeed come a long way and has a very positive future ahead.

What's Solar Lease
Now you can afford to go solar without the high initial cost of installing a system? Instead of buying the equipment, you simply lease it. Leasing is the most popular residential solar option in the country! Save on Electricity Costs from Day One with a Lease, you pay as you go, instead of all at once. The combination of your low monthly lease payment and smaller electricity bill is typically less than what you pay the utility company today. So you can start saving money from the very first day.Your savings can grow over time as utility rates continue to increase. Historically, utility rates have increased over 5% every year. With Solar Lease, you can lock in lower electricity rates for the term of your lease.

For a typical 3-bedroom home with a current electricity bill of $200 per month, U might need a medium sized 4 kW solar system.

Your new solar system will generate enough electricity to offset what you are currently paying to the utility company from $200 down to $60 per month.

Your Solar Lease payment would be $0 down and $110 per month. So you could actually save $30 per month from day one.

Smart Financial Investment

A Solar Lease can be a better investment than purchasing your system with cash because you do not have a big upfront payment and can save your money for other opportunities. You save money every month on electricity bills.

State and Local Rebate Programs
Many states and utility companies have created programs to encourage homeowners to lower their energy usage and switch to solar power. The amount of the rebate subsidy varies by program, but some are generous enough to cover up to 30% of your solar system cost. However, these programs are designed to reward early adopters of solar power and energy efficiency, so the rebate amount per home continues to drop as the allotted funds are consumed.

Federal Tax Credits
The federal government allows you to deduct 30% of your solar system costs off your federal taxes through an investment tax credit (ITC). If you do not expect to owe taxes this year, you can roll over your credit to the following year.

SDG&E proposes to raise Electricity rates by 200% for Solar users
http://www.change.org/petitions/the-gov ... producers#

Jeremy Matlock
Eco-Rep SavWatt
jmatlock@savwatt.com

I get a lot of requests about solar backup power for emergency use.
Though at first it might appear to be a great solution with all the portable solar products out on the market the reality of solar to actually run small electronics is very discouraging.

However, there are reasonable solutions. Power Storage!

Solar panels have limitations and efficiency issues when it comes to direct power consumption but when combined with a good power storage solution you have solved a majority of the barriers in making solar an effective tool. Though I’m referencing solar as used in portable applications this even applies well to standard home solar applications.

Batteries can play a significant role in making your portable power solution useful or just dead weight to lug around. Too little storage means dismal performance if performance at all and too much storage means it weights so much it’s no longer portable or practical to maintain.

Power (your power demand) + amount (power draw over time) + source (solar/battery) + environment (charging conditions) = performance
Portable power can get pretty complex when applied to these factors and all of them add in equipment compatibility and maintenance barriers. This also tends to make portable solar power systems expensive and often too difficult to determine if they will work or not.

Knowing how much power you need is the best starting point. After that we will try to do the rest when it comes to the setup and configuration of your ideal system.

How to you know how much power and storage you need?

I’ve created a simple tool to get you started! Portable Power Calculator. It’s a rough first version tool to calculate your consumption needs based on some simple variables (solar & storage). We are working on a line of portable products but each is simple to customize to specific needs and uses. Once you decide your power consumption needs you can then customize the amount of backup power time you need and adjust the charge rate based on the amount of solar and the conditions such as daytime use, night or mixed.

Additional costs to consider (not in the application yet) is the type of enclosure you will need for your customized Eco-Power system, for example a portable backup solution for your home doesn’t need to be in a $1,000 outdoor safe enclose, it will fit nicely in your garage so this demands a customizable solution.

Here’s the link: http://www.dyocore.com/PPC/PPC.htm



Comments or suggestions to make it better? dave@dyocore.com