Bill Weber
HEATING FUEL SOURCE 93 MILLION MILES AWAY
Providing Us Heat For Over 21 Years
IT WAS MAY 8TH 1978-THE PLACE: OUR SOLAR 10 ACRES
Atop our newly build house were workman from Risinger Heating. Sparta and Research Products Madison installing eighteen 3'x8' double insulated solar panels on an A frame build especially for that purpose. The panels were positioned to face nearly straight south with an angle designed to collect the most heat during the winter heating period.
It was the year of the oil and gas crisis, prices were up to a $1.50 or more a gallon, people waited in line to get their gas ration. President Carter, recommended and got passed an alternative energy bill that included tax incentives to those who would install alternative heating units that did not depend on gas or fuel oil.
After considerable investigation of a number of solar heating units that were available at the time we decided on using the air system versus the water system, even though not quite as efficient as the water system it was less costly to maintain as there was a corrosion problem with a number of water systems.
Oakdale REC, our electrical supplier at the time, installed a monitoring system in order to see what percentage of the heat we used came from the solar and what percentage came from the use of our electric furnace. Test over a two year period showed that during the entire heating season from mid October to May 1st we saved between 30% to 40% of our electrical heating cost by the use of Solar heating.
In the twenty some years that we have had the system, the maintenance cost has been largely in the replacement of two motors in the Air Handler, which is the heart of the system. The motor is used to draw the heated air off the collectors and either put into the living quarter of the house or into the rock storage which consists of an enclosed insulated room about 350 cubic feet 8'x6'x8'. Besides furnishing heat for the living quarters it also heats the water in a 100 gallon tank for our domestic use.
So you ask, has it been cost effective? It depends how one figures cost effective. Dollar for dollar invested over this twenty one years one might say that we did not save a lot of money. The total cost of installing the system came to about $15,000 we received a alternative energy tax credit which was available during that period of $5,000 which left an out of pocket cost of about $10,000. Using REC figures of 30 to 40 percent saving on a 4,000 sq foot house we would have saved about $60.00 a month for 8 mo. or $480 a year. In 21 years that would have been a bit under $10,000 so with figuring in the cost of the two motors at about $100.00 each we are just about even with our investment as of today.
Would I do it again, yes from the fact that even though there was not a great saving dollar wise there was a real saving environmental wise in that we did not add any fossil gas or oil exhaust fumes to polluting the planets atmosphere.
With gas and oil prices back to a much lower level than they were when we constructed our solar house and with limited solar energy incentives. (see 1 million roofs) >http://www.eren.doe.gov/millionroofs/objectives.html#federal< there is not a lot of interest in building houses with solar heat collecting units on them except maybe those of us who believe there should be more effort put to protecting, our planet from air pollution by the use of fossil fuels for heating. We have a Video interview with Del Lonquist, former Tomah radio announcer and myself shortly after we installed the solar collectors. Copies will be available at the Wilton, Kendall, Tomah and Sparta Libraries for anyone to check out about 15th of May 1999.
Our system is working as well as it did when first installed 21 years ago. Anyone interested in viewing it are welcome. For an appointment Phone: 608-435-6790
Listed below are interesting links dealing with Solary Energy and its modern day use.
http://members.eb.com/bol/topic?eu=70337&sctn=1#s_top
http://info.nrel.gov/lab/20anniv.html
http://www.eren.doe.gov/RE/solar.html