FROM THE EDITOR
Solar Power
There are a lot of nods to the future of solar energy for residential home building in this issue. Technology continues to change, prices are dropping, new ways of integrating panels on rooftops proliferate, and, of course, the rebates and fi nancial incentives just can’t be beat.
Both our founders talk about the
potential upsides of solar in their respective columns, but from two distinct viewpoints. Ron Jones slams the coal industry, particularly the way it uses the vague promise of clean coal as a big stick to keep alternative energy as a back burner solution to our country’s energy needs. (See “From the Tailgate,” page 48.) The myth of “all or nothing” when it comes to renewables is alive and well. In her “Publisher’s Notes,” on page
10, Sara Gutterman looks at the global economy and illustrates how countries like China are leading the charge—and potentially calling the shots—when it comes to fi nancial investment in alternative energies, including solar, wind, and electric cars. It’s a good idea to keep an eye on the
macro story line—the United States has everything to lose by standing on the sidelines while other countries take a lead
8 GreenBuilder October 2010
“No one should be installing a $40,000 PV system on a leaky, poorly insulated home, even if there are compelling financial incentives for doing so.”
role—but perhaps more important to you as a builder is how solar will impact your business and your home buyers. Our story on high-end solar projects (page 22) is a good news story, but it is also a cautionary tale. While many higher end customers are willing to shell out the money for solar in anticipation of the tax rebates, it won’t make any diff erence if the houses they are installing them on are not properly sited, insulated, and air sealed. It all comes back to basic quality,
durable building practices, and use of energy saving products like Energy Star- qualifi ed appliances and LED lighting. We need to reduce our energy loads fi rst and foremost. Plus—and we’ve covered the role of the consumer many times on our pages—too many homeowners leave doors open when the air-conditioning is running, leave lights on in unattended rooms, and keep chargers and little-used appliances plugged in 24 hours a day, to name just a few energy-wasting habits. The diff erence between a 7 kW PV system and a 2 kW system is big. If houses could get to a 20–30 HERS rating and then get a goose from, say, a 2 kW PV system, it would be more aff ordable (at least until the incentives and rebates expire). In our November issue, we’ve
redesigned and reprinted The Green Builder Green Building Pyramid. Use it to refresh yourself on where solar falls in the priority for energy effi ciency. No one should be installing a $40,000 PV system on a leaky, poorly insulated home, even if there are compelling fi nancial incentives for doing so. If you want to see a picture worth a thousand words, check out the 36 kW solar array on page 29. We can do better than this. GB
Cati O’Keefe Editor-in-Chief 513-407-5611
cati@greenbuildermag.com
www.greenbuildermag.com
Christopher Cone Photography
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