Cohousing-L Mailing List: Going Solar?

[Evan Hunt (evanh]

> Does anyone have experience they'd be willing to share on using solar 
> power in coho?

No personal experience, but I've been interested in the subject for
a long time.  My first recommendation is Home Power magazine (available
online at www.homepower.com).  Second, there are lots of good books at
the library on solar design.  Third, find out about California laws
regarding net-metering and PG&E regulations... if I recall correctly,
California only allows residential or commercial energy generation to
run the meter backwards if the system generates less than a certain
amount of electricity (10 kW, maybe?  15?  something like that), and it's
limited to a certain small percentage of homes, like half of one percent,
and there's always a waiting list--and PG&E doesn't like meters that run
backwards one bit, so they have a reputation for always trying to weasel
out of cooperating.  I wouldn't even be mentioning this if you were putting
a small solar power system on each unit, but one big system for the whole
complex might cause you regulatory headaches.

On the other hand, PG&E is no longer in much of a position to make
demands, and several lawmakers are working to overturn those regulations,
so there soon might not be any more limits on the number of homes that can
generate their own power, *and* the state now has a rebate program that
might pay for as much as half of the cost of your system.  (The very best
thing about this energy "crisis" is the way politicians have suddenly
started paying attention to renewable power again.)

There are contractors who specialize in this sort of thing and can give you
detailed advice.  (There are some down here in Santa Cruz I could refer you
to, if you aren't able to find any in Oakland--but I'm sure you'll be able
to.)

Good luck!

                                        eh

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