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Harvesting Energy:
In 2008 we installed 84 photovoltaic solar panels to create
a 14.2 KW array. Our system was activated in December 2008.
Our goal is to provide up to half of our total energy needs
from the sun. We have been surprised to see how much
electricity is generated by our system, even on cloudy
winter days. This summer we hope to generate far more than
we use and bank the extra generation to use as a credit
towards next winter’s electrical needs. Our system is a
grid-tied system meaning that excess energy that we produce
is sent back to the electric grid offsetting the need for
our supplier, Portland General Electric, to produce and
transmit as much electricity as they did before our system
was installed.
We are now beginning to explore the
advantages of wind power and hope to have a small windmill
up and running by 2010.
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