R. passes on an email from Pepco:
“Hello,
This is an important message about your Pepco account.
Due to a miscalculation of the DC Administrative Credit on your February bill, your account received a larger credit than intended. To correct this, you will see a debit adjustment applied to your next bill.
You do not need to take any action at this time.”
Anyone else get that? Time to go solar?
From the office of Councilmember Charles Allen: (more…)
photo by angela n.
From the DC Office of the Attorney General (OAG):
“Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today issued a Consumer Alert to help inform District residents about predatory practices in the home solar system sales and loan industry.
Because federal tax credits for residential solar systems are ending at the end of 2025, residents may see an uptick in high-pressure sales tactics by salespeople for the home solar system industry. (more…)
photo by Fritz Myer
“Dear PoPville,
We have solar power and produce more than we use. There is some meter glitch with Pepco and they started sending backdated bills for estimated usage (pre-solar!) a couple of weeks ago in excess of $500. Can your readers help advise?”
“Dear PoPville,
Occasionally I see reps from a variety of companies looking to install solar panels allegedly for free and wanted to know anyone’s experiences with various companies, free vs. buying, impact on utility bills, etc.”
For those uninterested please enjoy some MC Solaar until our next post: (more…)
From WMATA:
“Solar panels capable of powering 1,500 homes will soon be installed at four Metro-owned facilities. In a request for proposals (RFP) issued today, Metro is offering a 15-year solar ground lease to develop and operate solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems on surface and rooftop parking lots at Anacostia, Cheverly, Naylor Road and Southern Avenue stations. (more…)
The following guest post was written by Amber Wason from Green DC Realty.
Mount Pleasant Solar Coop is born…
In September of 2006, Mount Pleasant resident, Jeff Morley, was dragged to see An Inconvenient Truth by his (then) 12 year-old son, Diego. Impacted by the documentary, the boy and his friend carried the discussion home, and what began as a dinner table discussion resulted in a promise to do something about it.
In response, neighbors, Jeff Morley and Anya Schoolman, and their teenage sons, Walter Lynn and Diego Arene-Morley, founded the Mount Pleasant Solar Coop. It is their answer to addressing the sense of urgency to do something to reduce their impact on global warming.
They were led to the coop model for two reasons: first, they figured if they were going to go through the work of figuring out how to install solar technology, they should include more people and have a bigger impact. Second, they needed a way to bring down the cost, and hoped through bulk purchasing they could share expenses and expertise with neighbors.
They began with ambitious goals and thought it was feasible to have something up and running within a year. While sounding reasonable, the early contributors learned that they would face many obstacles; a steep learning curve around this topic of solar. They resiliently unbundled the prohibiting factors solar presents to homeowners, addressing each one individually and holistically. Their persistent efforts paid off as the group celebrated completing 47 solar installations in the fall of 2009.
The remarkable efforts of this group serve to be an example for other groups in DC, and late in 2008, we saw a second coop model emerge in the Capitol Hill neighborhood.
Then came the Capitol Hill Energy Cooperative…
In 2008, homeowners, businesses, and churches in the Capitol Hill neighborhood decided they too wanted to do something to address climate change and lower energy bills. Your browser may not support display of this image.
Continues after the jump. (more…)
Recently I’ve read a lot about solar panels on the roof of homes. But I thought it was pretty cool that this porch light was also powered by a small solar panel. I wonder how long it’s going to take before something like this doesn’t seem out of the ordinary?
These condos are located at 1337 Harvard St. and the first open house will be this Sunday. Prices range from $499k to $650k. So what do you think about Solar Powered Condos? Are we going to see many more of these? Would you buy this condo over one nearby because of the Solar Power?
Petworth uses solar power to alert people that Grant Circle is only 550 feet away. Nice.