Tag Archives: solar array

REAP 25% Renewable Energy Grants Deadline Approaching

Do you own a small business in Montana (outside the city limits of Missoula)? The USDA Rural Development, REAP (Rural Energy for America Program) offers up to 25% grants for total eligible project costs, as well as loan guarantees.  Partnered with the 30% federal tax credit your savings really add up.

This program helps increase American energy independence by increasing the private sector supply of renewable energy and decreasing the demand for energy through energy efficiency improvements. Over time, these investments can also help lower the cost of energy costs for small businesses and agricultural producers.

Application Deadline: 

  • Grants of $20,000 or less: October 31, 2018 and March 31, 2019;
  • Unrestricted Grants (up to $500,000): March 31, 2019;
  • Loan Guarantees are competed continuously throughout the year.

Don’t miss this unique opportunity to invest in the long term health of your business with an investment in solar energy and energy savings.

Call Dan for a free solar consultation today 406-541-8410.

Solar Energy Grants for Non Profit Organizations

Does your Non Profit qualify for a solar electric grant?

This is an awesome investment in the long term sustainability of your organization.

If your non-profit is interested in assistance with the grant application call Dan today. 406-541-8410.

Proposal information is included in the Anywhere Library Example and the application requirements. 

Grants are awarded twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall.  Next Deadline November 1, 2018.

The 5 criteria used  to rank proposals are as follows:

  1. Non Profit
  2. Geographic Location
  3. Participant Match ( at least 10%)
  4. Educational Value
  5. System Maintenance

 

Solar Panels on a cloudy day in Western Montana

Solar Works in Montana on Cloudy Overcast Days

Solar Panels on a cloudy day in Western MontanaSolar electric modules will produce energy even on cloudy days. Although it might seem counter-intuitive, consider that solar panels on a rooftop in foggy San Francisco produce nearly the same as the ones in nearby sunny Sacramento. Consider too that Germany (with a climate not that different from Vancouver Canada) leads the world in residential solar right now, and it is generally an overcast climate.

While the amount of sunlight your panels receive is important, a more accurate representation of the amount of energy your panels can produce is referred to as peak sun-hours or equivalent full sun. It is important, first of all, to note that “peak sun-hours” are not the same as “hours of daylight.” Peak sun-hours refers specifically to how much solar energy is available in an area during a typical day. As a comparison Phoenix Arizona has equivalent full sun value of 6.5, in Western Montana we use the equivalent full sun value of 4.5.  The same equivalent sun hour value as a good part of the continental United States.

Small Business Owners Invest in Energy Independence with REAP Grants

Bitterroot Brewery solar electric systemDo you own a small business in Montana (outside the city limits of Missoula)? The USDA Rural Development, REAP (Rural Energy for America Program) offers up to 25% grants for total eligible project costs, as well as loan guarantees.  Partnered with the 30% federal tax credit your savings really add up.

This program helps increase American energy independence by increasing the private sector supply of renewable energy and decreasing the demand for energy through energy efficiency improvements. Over time, these investments can also help lower the cost of energy costs for small businesses and agricultural producers.

Application Deadline: 

  • Grants of $20,000 or less: October 31, 2017 and March 31, 2018;
  • Unrestricted Grants (up to $500,000): March 31, 2017;
  • Loan Guarantees are competed continuously throughout the year.

Don’t miss this unique opportunity to invest in the long term health of your business with an investment in solar energy and energy savings.

Call Dan for a free solar consultation today 406-541-8410.

Fact: Solar panels work with light, not heat so it doesn’t matter how cold it gets outside.

Solar panels don’t work well in cold climates. Solar Myth #11 – Busted

Fact: Solar panels work with light, not heat so it doesn’t matter how cold it gets outside.

Fact: Solar panels work with light, not heat so it doesn’t matter how cold it gets outside.

Solar Myth # 11 Myth: Solar panels don’t work well in cold climates.

Fact: Solar panels work with light, not heat so it doesn’t matter how cold it gets outside. In fact, solar panels perform better in cooler temperatures than very hot temperatures.  Solar panels are built to withstand varying temperatures, and they can produce electricity from indirect light.

Solar Myth #5 – Busted

Solar Myth #5  When the utility grid goes down I will have back up power.

Fact:  When the power goes out, grid-tied systems go out too. That’s because it’s not safe to be pushing electricity back out onto the utility wires while workers may be trying to fix the problem. Your inverter (the big box near your meter that converts DC electricity created by the panels into usable AC current) recognizes that the grid is out and shuts your system off.  A possible solution is to add batteries into your solar electric system for short term back up

Solar Myth #4 – Busted

Solar Electric Mounting Structure,Montana solar, solar Montana, Missoula Solar, Missoula renewable energy, solar, photovoltaics, solar installations, energy consultation, solar power, energy, energy electric contractor, energy generation, grid-tie

Solar Electric Mounting Structure

Solar Myth #4  Solar panels will cause my roof to leak, deteriorate, or collapse

Fact: Most solar panels are not attached directly to the roof itself, but rather to a mounted railing system. Solar engineers add sealants to fill in any gaps and often the mounts are surrounded by metal coverings that act as an extra barrier from the elements.

solar installation, solar electric system

ABC Acres 27 kW solar array – Sustainable Farm Bitterroot Valley Montana

ABC Acres is a permaculture farm in the Bitterroot Valley of Western Montana. Sustainable food production, healthy living systems, and ecological design is what they are all about.  

Their Solar PV system utilizes two banks of sealed batteries  of 48 volts and 2,400 amp hour rating. Resulting in total capacity of 4,800 amp hours. This equates to 230,400 watt hours of storage.  The main solar array of  the ABC  Acres farm is comprised of 60 each, 250 watt modules for a 15,000 watt array. Another 30 modules are located on the processing building to the West. The arrays are wired through six controllers and all feed the central battery bank.  

On Thursday (December 8 2016) morning the modules were covered in snow.  But with a little sunshine, by the end of the day the snow had sloughed off.

You can check out their wide variety of organic meats at ABC Acres.  They even offer Farm Stays.

2016 Solarize Missoula

Solarize Missoula: sponsored by The city of Missoula, Missoula Federal Credit Union and Montana Department of Environmental Quality are co-sponsors with MREA and Climate Smart for the Missoula program.

“We’re trying to make it simple for the homeowner to participate,” said Bryan von Lossberg, a Missoula City Council member who’s helping coordinate the campaign. “It’s modeled after the Solarize program that started in Portland (Oregon) five or six years ago. Now there are Solarize programs running all across the country.”

Here are some fun installations from Solarize Missoula Participants.  Join Them!!.

Solar Electric System Missoula Montana

Solar Electric (Photovoltaic) Modules and Snow in Montana

It is December in Montana.  We received our first snowfall that stayed with us.  Temperatures have dipped.  We received a call:  “Help.  It is a beautiful day outside and my inverter is in nighttime mode.”  We asked if there was snow on the modules.  Sure enough, they were covered and the modules were shut down.

Not to worry.  In Western Montana, grid-tie, net-metered homes make a majority of their solar power in the summer months.  Winter power generation is a bonus, rather than a necessity.  The days are shorter, the sun is lower and the sky is often overcast.  This does not mean that we don’t generate any power, it just means that we generate significantly less in the months around solstice. Our sizing programs illustrate this well.  December sunlight is summarized as 1.7 equivalent average sun hours while July data shows 7.5 average hours.  So relax.  Modules are generally set at an angle that enough snow will begin to shed, temperatures permitting.  The cells are of dark colors that increases melting and with enough consecutive sunny days your modules will be generating power once again.

Fun Facts:  Net-metered homes in Montana, energy production and usage are reset annually April 1st.  So your solar electric photovoltaic system generates power in July (running your meter backwards) and you can use that generated credit now when your modules and you are snowed in.