Developing Your Solar Project: Research, Permits & Market Opportunities Chris Lord and Keith Cronin discuss property records, attractive solar markets and permitting processes on the Solar Executive MBA Training discussion board. Takeaways: It’s often helpful to work with a county clerk when determining which property records you’ll need Solar market… Continue reading “Developing Your Solar Project: Research, Permits & Market Opportunities”
Solar + Storage Battery Considerations: Chemistry, Design & Charge Expert instructor Wes Kennedy answers 3 battery consideration questions in his Advanced Solar + Storage course discussion board… Student 1: One of the biggest hurdles we deal with on the commercial side of storage is the Authority Having Jurisdiction, or AHJ.… Continue reading “Solar + Storage Battery Considerations: Chemistry, Design & Charge”
Megawatt Systems: 3 Design Considerations On the Megawatt Design discussion board, Ryan Mayfield answers student questions about designing systems. He discusses surge protection, tilted arrays, and “levelized cost of energy.” Student 1: Do any of you specify surge or lightning-protective devices for your systems? Either on the… Continue reading “Megawatt Systems: 3 Design Considerations”
Access the Tools, Network & Knowledge You Need to Advance Your Solar Career Here are the powerhouse solar courses you don’t want to miss: Megawatt Design – Master large-scale solar project design, learn how to get your projects permitted and installed faster and cheaper. Access valuable tools and resources, while advancing your career and the… Continue reading “Access the Tools, Network & Knowledge You Need to Advance Your Solar Career”
Installers: Put the Solar Breaker on the Opposite Side of the Main Breaker – Here’s Why In this discussion board thread, Sean White explains why installers need to put the solar breaker on the opposite side of the main breaker. Please share your experience in the comments section below. Student: Could you please explain the reasoning… Continue reading “Installers: Put the Solar Breaker on the Opposite Side of the Main Breaker – Here’s Why”
Fill in Your Knowledge Gaps – October HVAC Trainings Sharpen and grow your skillset via a technical, online course about heating, ventilation, cooling and air conditioning systems: Integrated HVAC Engineering – Master the complex interaction of room air temperature, humidity, mean radiant temperature, ventilation rate, lighting, sound, and even odors… Continue reading “Fill in Your Knowledge Gaps – October HVAC Trainings”
Building & Powering an Award-Winning Net Zero Energy Home Can a home be beautiful, powered entirely by solar energy, use sustainable heating and cooling systems and save it’s owners roughly $3,500 a year? Why, yes it can. Just ask Joanne Coons, who built her award winning, single-family, Net Zero Energy… Continue reading “Building & Powering an Award-Winning Net Zero Energy Home”
PPA Deal with 3 Investors: Questions to Ask to Model and Structure the PPA When you’re working on a PPA deal with multiple investors you need to know each investor’s end goal and then structure the PPA accordingly. Do you need to consider a Partnership Flip or the Unstructured model returns? Here’s a discussion from our… Continue reading “PPA Deal with 3 Investors: Questions to Ask to Model and Structure the PPA”
The Best Way to Sell Solar, According to a Nobel Prize Winning Economist “So Myron, have you installed solar panels on your house?” I asked. The answer was no: “I have these magnificent redwood trees, so that gives me trouble”… THIS ARTICLE ORIGINALLY APPEARED ON BLOG.AURORASOLAR.COM ON 9/3/2016 …Indeed, we performed a shading analysis… Continue reading “The Best Way to Sell Solar, According to a Nobel Prize Winning Economist”
Meet NABCEP! By now, all solar professionals have heard of the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP) certifications. But, what does it mean to be NABCEP certified, and how can you get certified? How is the new Associate Program different from… Continue reading “Meet NABCEP!”
The SunEdison Collapse & Today’s Solar Market It’s ugly out there. The folding of SunEdison has been a disaster for the industry. With the recent SolarCity announcement of Elon and the Rive Brothers using their cashed-in stock options to create a short term bond, what does this mean for an… Continue reading “The SunEdison Collapse & Today’s Solar Market”
Understanding Residential and Commercial Energy Storage Renewable Energy Systems show strong Returns on Investment (ROI) and energy storage appears to add to the benefits at the bottom line. Learn the elements of energy storage for residential and commercial clients with this introductory overview of the field,… Continue reading “Understanding Residential and Commercial Energy Storage”
Crafting Your Solar Marketing Program — New, FREE Trainings! At HeatSpring, we’re no strangers to the amazing work of Glenna Wiseman at Identity3 and the Energy Trust of Oregon. That’s why we’ve decided to share the Build it Bright! Crafting Your Solar Marketing Program with our audience. This training series, facilitated… Continue reading “Crafting Your Solar Marketing Program — New, FREE Trainings!”
The ASES 2016 National Solar Tour From Maine to California, and almost everywhere in between, ASES’ 2016 National Solar Tour allows visitors to view over 35 solar energy sites across the United States The ASES National Solar Tour is the largest grassroots solar event in the nation,… Continue reading “The ASES 2016 National Solar Tour”
UW Greek Community Perpetuating College Sustainability Movement Officially launched in November 2015, the Green Greek Representative Program (GGRP) is a student-run program at the University of Washington working to make the Greek Community a more sustainable place. Working through UW EcoReps and supported by the UW Sustainability office,… Continue reading “UW Greek Community Perpetuating College Sustainability Movement”
Resilient Community Microgrids: An Introduction Learn about the potential of community microgrids in this new short course. Microgrid Institute Director Michael Burr provides a comprehensive introduction to how community microgrids work, what problems they can solve, and how market trends are driving microgrid development, in… Continue reading “Resilient Community Microgrids: An Introduction”
NEW Corporate Renewable Energy Purchasing Training Many U.S. companies are seeking to purchase renewable energy… Major potential benefits include securing long term energy supplies; substantial cost savings; reduced price volatility; compliance with government regulations and reporting requirements; achieving corporate sustainability goals; and general brand enhancement. These… Continue reading “NEW Corporate Renewable Energy Purchasing Training”
GRID Alternatives’ International Program Expands to Nepal In July, HeatSpring published a Sustainable Women Series article featuring the Founder and CEO of GRID Alternatives, a national non-profit that facilitates affordable solar power projects, oftentimes in low-income communities. In this follow-up article, I spoke with Jenean Smith, the… Continue reading “GRID Alternatives’ International Program Expands to Nepal”
Meet Solar Research Pro Paula Mints What do Australia, Indian Lands, and women’s shelters have in common…? While it may sound like the start of a bad joke, there’s actually a great – and lucrative – answer: solar power potential and solar market opportunities abound in… Continue reading “Meet Solar Research Pro Paula Mints”
Driving Down Solar Costs: A 70% Reduction in 5 Years Launched by the Department of Energy in February 2011, the SunShot Initiative was designed to make solar energy cost-competitive by 2020. In 2010, the cost of one solar watt was $3.80. The SunShot project was attempting to reduce solar costs to $1 per… Continue reading “Driving Down Solar Costs: A 70% Reduction in 5 Years”