Maine solar energy (and other renewable sources)
Last weekend, October 3-4, solar energy tours took place across the U.S. We blogged about several of them in Central Oregon, California, and Ohio. And now, its time to talk about other tours post-event.
The Maine solar energy tour was a success by this review!
On Saturday and Sunday, the skies were a little bit overcast and a storm even passed through, but that didn’t stop a huge crowd of people coming out to witness the power of the sun. The first weekend of October, many homeowners and small businesses in Maine participated in the Maine Solar Energy Tour.
Along the way, tourists got to see Cindy Carusi’s home. She lives in Orono, and uses a solar water tank to help provide inexpensive hot water in her home. Ms. Carusi was thrilled with the effectiveness of her new solar panel system.
“They can look at my installations, they can ask about tax credits, how it was done, what company did it, any type of questions they have while they’re considering doing it in their own homes. A lot of people don’t even know it’s out there. I really didn’t until I started looking into it.”
Maine Solar Home owned by Bill and Debbie Lord
Another featured house on the Maine Solar Energy Tour was the home of Bill and Debbie Lord. As noted on their solarhome website, the couple has been relying on solar energy to provide electricity for the past 15 years. The Lords were very excited to show off their solar powered home during the tour:
“This was a chance for visitors to see a home that has been harvesting the sun for 15 years – offsetting CO2 and other toxic gases. We were pummeled with heavy rain and thick clouds, but an intrepid group showed up from as far away as New Jersey and Connecticut. I spent some time explaining our battery backup system, not realizing that later in the evening a T-storm would knock out grid power. As of this writing, we are the only house for miles with electricity. Hail to our stored solar power!”
It sounds like the Maine Solar Energy Tour was a success in 2009. If you missed it this year and want to get on board next time, just mark down the first weekend in October. That’s when the annual solar energy tours take place.
For those that live in Maine and want more information about solar energy, check out the Maine Solar Energy Association and the Maine Solar House.
Tags: maine solar energy association, maine solar energy tour, maine solar house, national solar energy tour
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