PORT TOWNSEND — It may be expensive to retrofit a house for solar power, but there is no excuse for not at least considering the technology in new construction, the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce was told Monday.
“If you are considering building a home, you should ask your architect and builder about passive solar,” said Andy Cochrane, president of Power Trip Energy Corp. of Port Townsend.
“If they don’t know more about solar than you do, you should get a new architect and a new builder.”
Cochrane, who founded Power Trip in 2003, grew up in Port Townsend and moved to Southern California after high school.
In his keynote talk to at the chamber’s weekly membership luncheon, he questioned his own judgment, saying: “I moved from California to Port Townsend to start a solar company.”
It ended up being a good decision, he said, and the so-called rainy local weather does not decrease the wisdom of solar.
“Every building where the sun hits the roof that uses electricity should have solar panels on it,” he said.
This “commercial” statement is usually the basis of his standard presentation, but Monday’s was different, he said.
“This is a report from one business owner in the community to the rest of the community about how things are going for us and how things are going in our little industry,” he said.
Cochrane gave a “Solar 101” primer, talking about passive solar systems that heat up water to more active options.
“If you incorporate passive solar into new construction, you can install significant energy savings without increasing the cost of the building from the outset,” he said.
Cochrane suggested that consumers use grid-tied systems in which the surplus electricity generated by an individual’s solar array is sold back to the grid and used as an energy credit.
“In these cases, the electricity is generated in the summer months and used to power the house in the winter,” he said.
A dime an hour
A kilowatt hour generated is worth about a dime, he said, and the electric company pays for power at the same rate that it sells to the consumer.
Cochrane said installing a solar system is only part of saving energy; homeowners should get “energy audits” for their houses that will determine their efficiency.
“You can beef up your insulation and make sure that your appliances are running efficiently,” he said.
“All of those things make more sense than installing solar panels to create electricity that is used inefficiently.”
Cochrane also suggested that people buy “green power” from Puget Sound Energy, which can cost an additional $4 a month.
“That has an important effect on the economics of green power” if people show their support, he told the chamber audience.
Cochrane said solar systems can be costly, but much of the costs are balanced by tax credits that will end in 2020.
“A lot of people think of this as having nine years left, but I describe it as eight more summers,” he said.
Cochrane recommended that prospective solar customers go on a “house tour” where the technology is on view.
“These tours give people the opportunity to talk to the home owners who have lived with the system,” he said.
“We have started adding music so there is more of a party atmosphere.”
The tours take place in June.
After taking the summer off, Power Trip is sponsoring monthly energy meetings to present and discuss new technologies.
The next scheduled event is at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 9, at the Northwest Maritime Center, 431 Water St., and will feature Orcas Power and Light general manager Randy Cornelius.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.