Monthly Archives: January 2012

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January 23, 2012

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Solar Innovation

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Solar Football Stadiums. NFL meets PV.

As we all start ramping up for the Patriots Giants Super Bowl in a few weeks I thought it would be a good time to look at a slightly different defensive play.  A play designed to block the offensive line of fossil fuels.  A play called, “Let’s install as much solar as we can at NFL stadiums!”

 

I did a Google spelunk of all the NFL stadiums with solar and here is what I learned:

 


 The Redskins are far and away the winners in the solar stadium game, with 8,000 panels and 2 MW of generating capacity.   Their array, the largest in the league, generates 20% of the team’s energy needs on game days and all of their energy needs on every other day of the year.  The modules cover 841 parking spaces and the stadium has 10 EV charging stations and one enormous Solar Man statue.

 

 

While the Jets/Giants are currently in a distant second place with 0.69 MW of solar, they are looking to give the Redskins a run for their sunny.  Errr…money. MetLife Stadium will be adding 1,500 modules to their existing 3,000 and the new panels will form a “solar ring” around the top of their stadium.  The ring lights up AND changes color according to which team is playing.

 

The Patriots also have sunny days ahead of them.  They will be jumping from 525 kW to 1.6 MW just in time for the 2012-2013 season.  They’re also adding in a wind turbine.  Speaking of which, if you count the wind and biofuel that the Philadelphia Eagles use to power Lincoln Financial Field then you’re looking at a grand total of 8.6 MW of green energy.  They are actually selling power back to the grid and profiting from it!  Estimated savings?  $60 million.

 

 

While the Cardinals don’t have any solar modules up, they DO completely offset their energy use on 8 regular season game days and 2 pre-season home games thanks to SRP’s EarthWise energy program.  Collectively that offset is equivalent to the power needed to run 60 homes for an entire year!

 

For a time-lapse video of what the installation at FedEx Field looked like check out this YouTube video:

 

 

One more thing.  If you’re solar advocate AND a Giants fan you might want to consider getting ready for Game Day with a New York Giants solar powered garden gnome.  That’s right.  I said solar powered garden gnome.  What better way to put the sun in your sunflowers?  The day in your day lilies?  The light in your bulbs?  [Yeah, I know that last one was a bit of a stretch].

 

May the best team win!

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January 23, 2012

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Home Solar

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Solar Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

Getting a new solar system is exciting, but even more exciting perhaps is the moment of interconnection: when the meter finally gets to spin backwards.  J.A. Savage (she goes by “Ja”) is a customer of ours who is a journalist by trade.  More specifically, she writes about energy policy for California Current.  Ja decided to celebrate her big moment with an “energizing” ribbon cutting ceremony.

 

With a bold red ribbon taped from one side of her AC point of connection to the conduit going back to the meter, Ja was ready for action.   Just before flipping the back-feeding breaker, she swung her scissors out with a flourish and sliced apart the ribbon (in full OSHA compliant fashion). It was a beautiful moment.  Tears of joy were shed by all in attendance and in the faint distance one could almost hear her appliances breathe sighs of relief over their new cleaner, greener power source.

If you’re anything like me, right about now you’re thinking, “What ceremony is complete without tasty treats?”  Rest assured, there were tasty treats a-plenty.  Ja served up  homemade organic banana-walnut bread to commemorate the moment and it was DELICIOUS.  To be fair, I wasn’t present to verify the degree of deliciousness, but our Field Manager Benjamin M. says it was by far the best banana bread he’s ever had, and Benjamin is a trustworthy type of guy.

 

You can file this post under: This is why we love our customers.  If you don’t have any additional room in the T section of your file box then go ahead and file it under We have the best customers in the world.

 

It’s not just Ja that we love —  we love all of our customers.  Let us know if you’re having an energizing ceremony that you’d like us to attend.  If we can make it there then the banana-walnut bread is on us :-)

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January 4, 2012

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12 Easy Tips to Go Green in 2012

New year.  New green resolutions.  Here are 12 easy ways to go green in 2012:

 

1. Save a tree - avoid using paper towels.  And while you’re at it, why not plant a tree?  Or two? Or a whole yard full of them?

2. Use space heaters to warm up individual rooms.  Just don’t flop down in front of a searing hot parabolic disc heater with your MacBook in hand.  Trust me on this one.  Some things look better curved, but a laptop is not one of those things :-(

3. Shop at your local green market, buy produce that is in season, and pack it all into your reusable shopping bags.

4. Stop buying bottled water.  A water filter can eliminate up to 300 bottles, saving over $300.

5. Take your wire hangers back to the dry cleaners. Mommy Dearest has our back on this one!

 

6. If you’re a Sungevity customer, refer a friend!  If you’re not a customer yet then find out how much you would save by going solar.  By the way, did you know that in 2013 unsubsidized solar in San Diego will be at cost parity with power from the grid?

7. Check your tires’ air pressure to save on gas

8. Use biodegradable doggie bags

9. Pass the elevator and take the stairs.  If you’re feeling spritely you can even take them two at a time!

10. Wash your laundry in cold water.  90% of the energy for doing laundry goes into heating the water.  Your clothes will turn out just as clean, and you can buy detergents specially formulated for cold water.

11. Recycle your old sneakers into a new playground at any Nike or Converse store.

12. Drop off packing peanuts at your local UPS, FedEx, or independent packing/shipping store for reuse.

 

Do you have any tips about going green?  Share them with us right here, on Twitter, or on our Facebook page!