Sweet Solar Panel Building in Brooklyn Found!

Hey!

SuperForester Jackson posted about this building he passed in Brooklyn covered in solar panels, but couldn't find any more info on it.

Well, I just happen to come across it on a blog called NY Eco Spaces:

 

"Located at 439 Metropolitan Avenue, this LEED-Gold building designed contains two duplex condos that have been designed and built to be healthy for the environment and for its occupants.

Green features include:

-Photo-Voltaic (PV) Arrays capture solar energy. Your electricity meter will actually run backwards when you generate more electricity than you use!
-Passive Heating and Cooling System: Large, south-facing windows naturally warm your apartment on sunny winter days. High-mass walls and floors help regulate temperature fluctuations in all seasons.
-Radiant-Floor Heating, along with an energy-recovering ventilation system, helps reduce energy bills and increase indoor comfort.
-Air filtration ensures the air you breathe is near HEPA standards and is some of the cleanest in NYC
-Green Roof
-Sustainably harvested bamboo floors
-Double-Glazed, laminated Low-E Glass Windows
-Energy Star Appliances
-Water-saving fixtures, including dual-flush toilets
-Built-in Recycling Receptacles
-Motion Detector-Controlled Light and Ventilation
-Low- and no-VOC finishes and materials

In addition, this development is located near three subway lines (L, G, and JMZ) and a block away from a Zipcar station, so you can easily decrease your transportation carbon footprint. And for all your organic dining needs, there's a 24-hour organic food store only a couple blocks away. So if you've ever considered buying a home in Williamsburg, but wanted to make sure you made the green choice, check out Metropolitan Green."

Nice. Go Brooklyn!

Niki 

Sweet Solar Panel Building in Williamsburgh!

I was walking around Williamsburgh last weekend and came across this brand new building on Metropolitain.

It appears that some delightfully clever architect has clad the southern face of the building in a gorgeous set of solar panels! How clever.

I wish I knew more. (If anyone lives near there, would you be so kind as to snap a pic and send it in?)

I think it looks great, and I'm very curious how much power it will generate.

Must investigate further!

In the meantime, I checked on Google maps and found that we can do a tasty little before-and-after.

Before.

After!

Double-sweet. If you are near, why not go check this place out? Please tell us who the builder and architect are.

Here is map, go find.

Build: Treehugger Presents DIY Solar Panels!

Good Morning!

Treehugger has a very cool post up about how to build your own solar panels out of the surplus cells you can buy in bulk from ebay.

It's all a matter of connecting them together and mounting them in a frame. Easy!

Here's treehugger's story.



And here's an instructable on the same.

Solar Awnings = Smart!

(pic via environmentalhealthclinic)

An idea so simple and effective it boggles the mind that it's not in wide-spread use.

Ready?

Solar panel + window = solar awning.

Like all good ideas, the solar awning works on multiple levels.

Say you have a window that faces South. Throughout the day, the sunlight will come through that window, heating the interior of your home. That's fine and good for Winter months, but hot Summer sun can lead to overuse of AC and many kilowatts down the drain.

Enter the solar awning.
Positioned above your window, the solar awning not only collects sunlight and turns it into usable power, it also reduces the amount of direct light entering your living space.

Translation: You stay cooler and use less power while still getting nice light.

Blinds, curtains and shades all share one big drawback: they are inside the window. Meaning that they get hit by the sun and get hot, radiating that heat into your situation. The idea is to stop the direct light before it enters your room. Which is why you always see shutters on old houses.

Passive cooling y'all!

Shade makes such a difference.

Smart!

Smart!

Smart!

Use your noggin, put up some solar awnings this very day.

Love,

Team SuperForest

The DOE's New Solar Array!

Here are the pictures of the solar array the DOE put on roof of their DC headquarters.

"SunPower Corporation (Nasdaq: SPWR), a Silicon Valley-based manufacturer of high-efficiency, solar cells, solar panels, and solar systems, today announced that the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has installed a 205-kilowatt SunPower solar-electric system atop the roof of the Forrestal Building in Washington, D.C. U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman dedicated the system at a ceremony being held at the facility today.

"The significance of this solar array is both practical and symbolic -- it improves the way the Department consumes energy and it is a symbol of America's commitment to using the best available new technologies to confront the energy challenges we face today and will face tomorrow," said U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman."

"We are proud that the Department of Energy, which is investing research and development funding into a wide spectrum of solar technologies, chose SunPower's high-efficiency solar panels to help power its headquarters," said Tom Werner, chief executive officer of SunPower. "This installation is a testament to the growing adoption of solar energy on commercial and public buildings. Solar power systems help to minimize a customer's exposure to electric rate volatility for decades into the future."

SunPower PowerGuard(R) was chosen for the DOE's rooftop because it integrated well into the existing roofline. PowerGuard is a patented, non-penetrating lightweight photovoltaic roofing system that delivers clean solar electricity to the building while protecting the roof from damaging effects of weather and UV radiation, as well as insulating the building to reduce heating and cooling costs. SunPower's high-efficiency 230 solar panels were used in the DOE's solar system and will generate approximately 222,000 kilowatt hours of electricity annually"

Nicely done SunPower Systems!

Vote Solar Party for Peace!

Good Morning All!

Jackson here.
Last week I was lucky enough to go down to Washington DC to cover a Peace party that Vote Solar threw.

Vote Solar is an incredible organization whose mission is to get better and more comprehensive solar-supporting legislation on the books.

All those delicious tax incentives for putting solar panels on your roof? Vote Solar played a big part of getting those incentives in place.

Last week the Department of Energy did something wonderful (and little publicized.) They put a big honking solar array on their roof to minimize their grid use!

Sweet.

Vote Solar organized a group of people, journalists, solar company owners, solar contractors, empathisers, to meet up in DC and (get this) congratulate the DOE on a job well done.

No chanting, no anger, no outrage. We were only there to support.

It was wonderful! Smiles everywhere. People meeting, exchanging information, putting faces to names. The main point of the gathering was to attract a bit of the run-off press from the rooftop press conference, but what ended up happening was more interesting.

What happened was a real group was formed. A group of like-minded, positive, enthusiastic people, all of whom are passionate about free energy from the sun.

In my humble opinion, the creation of this group was the big win that day. Now all of these contractors have fellow contractors they can call on in times of need. The journalists all met fellow sustainability-loving newsfolk who they can infotrade with.

It was a wonderful thing to be a part of. I shot some video as well, but I'm going to save it for a later post.

In the meantime, check out the photo set above.

Check out Vote Solar, they do wonderful non-partisan work.

Free, clean, sustainable energy from Big Yellow. Who doesn't like that?

A huge congratulations to Vote Solar for cleverly harnessing the power of positivity, and to the U.S. Department of Energy for their foresight and smart use of the sun.

Love to All,

Jackson

Solar Trees

Switching off the lights as you leave a room helps. It helps your bank account balance as well as the environment.
But what about those lights that illuminate the streets all night long? The good old street lights? They suck energy from the grid for days on a yearly basis and thus contribute to pollution.

Not good, not good. As thought designer Ross Lovegrove when he had the Solar Tree in mind. It's a redesign of the casual streetlight. But as it power source it has got an battery which is charged by some photovoltaic cells. (You know, solar panels). And it looks a bit like a tree, that's all.

Yes the design is certainly awesome. When I thought about the fact that it was inspired upon a tree it occurred to me that 'regular' trees convert light energy into chemical energy (which we digest), and this solar tree converts the light into chemical energy, to convert it back to light again at a later time.

Probably the best part of it all is that the Solar Tree is reality, it tours the world and I hope a city will soon replace the normal street lanterns with the Solar Tree.

-jdh

Los Angeles Gets Solar Powered Parking Meters

And they take credit cards.

You as smart as you is lovely, City of Angels.

Sent in by the unstoppable SuperForester Alex.

Seen anything else get solar-paneled recently? Snap a pic and email it to superforestnyc@gmail.com. Yes, please do!

Solar Having a Really Good Year!

Peak Oil! Doom and Gloom! Petro Sadness! War of the Wells!

So much noise.

Meanwhile, in a quiet antechamber off away from the main stage, the solar power movement has grown massively in scale, all the while increasing in efficiency and decreasing in price.

It seems that everywhere one turns these days, there's great and encouraging news about solar power. Solar power breakthroughs and milestones are had and overcome with such regularity, that keeping on top of it has become a bit daunting.

And what a wonderful predicament to be in!

So much good news it's hard to keep track of it all!

Look at all of this wonderfulness:

Treehugger: Solar Industry Growth Prediction: US Largest Market by 2011

CNN: Unique business aims to spread solar power

MarketWatch: SolarCity Offers San Francisco Residents Solar Power for Less than Their Electricity Bills

Wall Street Journal: GT Solar a Bellwether for 'Green' IPOs

Seattle Times: Local schools shining light on solar panels

Reuters: Solar panels get aesthetic designs

Energy Exec: Record growth in renewable energy systems

And here's the crazy thing, all of these news items are six hours old or less.

Every single day brings a tidal wave of encouraging news just like this.

It's simply impossible not to be excited and optimistic.

Love to all,

Team SuperForest

Ecogeek: Cost of Solar Panels Expected to Plummet

Just stumbled upon this very interesting article about a report from the Prometheus Institute which posits that a number of factors will converge in the coming years, and the end result is cheap solar power for all who want it.

"Based on their research, Travis Bradford, president of the Institute, says that prices for traditional silicon-based panels should fall from $3.66 per watt (2007 figures) to $2.14 per watt in 2010, and more impressively, thin-film PV should go to $1.81 per watt from $2.96. When coal, currently the least expensive source of power, is around $2.10 per watt to generate, the expected drop in price for solar will make it far more competitive."

Sweet.

Here's the ecogeek article.
And here's the Prometheus Institute's site.

Bloomberg Wants Solar Panels For NY Buildings!

Hey All,

Our boy Mayor Mikey B. wants him some solar panels on all state owned buildings in Manhattan!

Parse this!:

“New York City is moving ahead vigorously on our PlaNYC agenda, especially in the all-important area of reducing our reliance on the carbon-based fuels that contribute to global warming,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “We’ve set a target of shrinking our carbon footprint by 30% by the year 2030. Increasing the use of renewable energy, like solar power, is a key strategy in that effort. Using solar power decreases demand for electricity from the power grid, which is typically generated by burning the fossil fuels that contribute to climate change.”
-Mikey B.

Ooooh snap!
Thems some sweet words. A 30 percent reduction in carbon output by 2030?
Minty green.

All this greening going on, we'd better be careful or it'll be Utopia before we know it.

Here is the original story from NYC.gov: Bloomy Wants Solar!

We All Get To Live Green!

As anyone who has recently sat near an open window can tell you, New York city is abuzz with construction. Everywhere you look cranes are hoisting materials and cement mixers are laying foundations.

Aside from the noise, this is a very good thing.

Because "green" is so hot right now, builders and designers are really outdoing themselves trying to create healthy and sustainable living space. Everywhere you look, it seems a new LEED certified condo or office building is shooting up.

This is a good thing because the trickle down effect means that soon we'll all get to live green.

Celebrities and tastemakers now demand to live green, that means that their former digs will empty out, and new groups of people will be able to live in the non-green luxury spaces. Those people will have vacated their own nice spaces which leaves room for a wave of owners and renters that otherwise would have been unable to afford such fine living, because if a space isn't sustainable, it will be cheaper.

This trickle-down/move-up effect will ripple through the NY housing market as celebrities flee their current apartments for greener pastures.

There's nothing wrong with living non-sustainably, as long as you're aware of the fact and seeking to change and improve it. We've lived non-sustainably for years, and will continue to live that way for a while.

In a few years, when material science has introduced entire new methods of construction using lighter and stronger materials than anything we've got today, everyone gets to "move-up" again.

If this years' Green Skyscraper is carbon neutral, has en-suite parking, passive solar heating and cooling, and central composting/recycling centers, then next years will be carbon-negative (producing power, not just using it up,) have composting toilets, living roofs and walls, combo piezo-electric/solar skin, and a personal helipad.

The sky's the limit.

But we all win.

Everyone gets to live sustainably.

Go New York!

(Solar) Power to the People.

Good Morning All!

The NY Times has a great article online about the ever-cheapening cost of solar panel installation. Seems the companies that install solar panels have figured out a novel way to cut down on the cost to the homeowners.

Read it here: NYtimes "Pay for the Panels, Not the Power"

Some of the highlights:

"Some 148 megawatts of solar capacity came online in 2007, up 46.5 percent from the 101 megawatts installed the previous year, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association, a Washington trade group." A nearly 50 percent increase! Great. We wonder what the numbers for 08 will be.

"California’s Million Solar Roofs program includes incentives that could translate into an $8,000 rebate for a typical home solar system. New Jersey’s solar incentive program has been so popular — the state went from six solar installations in 2001 to 2,712 at the end of 2007 — that it has run out of money. It is moving from cash rebates to rebates in the form of certificates that can be bought and sold to help companies meet required emission reduction levels."

Yay solar! From six installs in 01, to 2,712 in 07? We like those numbers.

Power, and where you get it, is one of the defining issues of our lives. Any steps towards decentralization are positive steps.


"Hierarchy"
Power plant goes down, no power for all.


"Democracy"
One power node goes down, the others take up the slack. Minty!


After all, there's only one person who should be controlling the power you use, and that person is you.

Power to the people, for the people, by the people.

Have a great day.

Love to all,

Team SuperForest

SuperForest Assignment 1

Okay peoples,

I gots an assignment for you.

You have to make a video.

If you do, and send it in, you will win a prize!

Here's what it is: An ad for a company that sells and installs solar panels.

Okay, this is very simple. The following four ideas must be communicated. (Failure to address each one is grounds for thorough haranguing)

THE FOUR POINTS

1.) A HOMEOWNER is upset over bills.

2.) HOMEOWNER calls SOLAR COMPANY X

3.) Friendly, clean, DELIVERY MEN (OR WOMEN) show up and install solar panels on the roof (backyard, garage, field, etc.)

4.) HOMEOWNER watches in amazement as the electric meter spins BACKWARDS!

That's it. You can fulfill this assignment in the media (medium) of your choice (stop-motion, music video, slide-show, etc.) but it must be committed to video. Aside from getting the four points across, you have total and ultimate freedom.

Post the video to Youtube, or the website of your choice and send me a link at: superforestnyc@gmail.com

I will put all of the videos up on the site and we will have a good, old fashioned video watch!

And everyone who participates gets a prize! A shiny and exciting prize!

Remember the FOUR POINTS:





And the bestest video gets an exceptionally shiny, wonderful prize!

This assignment ends on my birthday, February 28 2008. (Though you're welcome to continue making things and sending them in.)

I will be reposting this bi-monthly so as to remind.



Happy Creating!

-Jackson

Smarter Solar Panels

Nanosolar in Palo Alto, CA has invented a method of printing thin, flexible, solar panels!

Instead of thick, bulky panels, these panels are as thin as a supermodel, and produce far more electricity!

Check out this short!
kqed.org

nanosolar.com
Nanosolar, Inc.
5521 Hellyer Avenue
San Jose, CA 95138
Fax: 408.365.5965
Email: info@nanosolar.com