In an effort to promote education — and reduce their energy consumption — Don and Wendy Graves are harnessing the power of the sun.
Don said they believe they are the first to be “on the grid” with Northstar Electric Coop and return energy to the system through 10 solar panels installed on the roof of the pole barn at their Ray home.
“Electricity is one of those silent, deadly things,” said Wendy, who the couple both admit was the instigator of the project. “It all seems so clean when we plug something in the home.”
She said the couple is worried about their level of carbon emissions and pollution, which are created in coal-generated electricity.
“We’re very sensitive to that and want to make sure we are not contributing,” she said.
Don teaches biology at Hibbing Community College, where he became acquainted with Jesse Dahl, instuctor in the school’s photovoltaic (PV, converting solar energy into electricity) program. The Graves decided to have the class use their home as a project site where HCC students got field experience doing what Don called a large-scale install.
The 10-panel system, including supports and the necessary conversion technology to bring the energy into the Northstar Electric system, was installed at the Graves house last week by Dahl and three of his HCC students who were looking for real-world experience on an install.
Wendy, a math instructor at Lake Superior College, agreed that the benefits of having the system were important — as was the learning experience for the students involved in the three-day install process.
“There is no substitution for the real thing,” he said. “They’ve got a lot of good experience here.”
There is a practice facility at HCC, Dahl said, but noted that the students had to do more problem solving and discovery at the home to which the teachers and students were unaccustomed. They received general information in the classroom, but had to stretch their knowledge to fit the particulars of the Graves’ south-facing roof and building.
With successful completion of the PV program, students can become certified in the entry level of the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP), the “gold standard” for PV and solar thermal installation certification.
Solar makes sense
Dahl said solar technology is actually positively affected by the winter’s cold in northern Minnesota. Cold helps increase the voltage that is created by the solar panel system. He said that northern Minnesota annually sees the same peak sun hours as the Florida panhandle and northern California.
“Cold is good,” Don said, in relation to the electric output produced by the system. “Solar is very doable in northern Minnesota.”
Wendy said the average Minnesota Power customer uses about 850 kilowatt hours per month where they use only about 120 kilowatt hours per month. The Graves recommend others looking at solar as an alternative to using traditional energy also reduce their overall electricity usage.
Their solar installation should generate about twice as much energy as they use each month. They will be able to sell the superfluous energy back to the coop to help reduce their overall bill.
And while they said they will likely never see a check for their power production, the Graves said it will take them several years to recooperate the costs of the system based on the reduction in their electricity bills. The cost of solar has gone down significantly in the last five years, Dahl said, but still comes with a price tag many families, especially those with high usage, wouldn’t find financially beneficial.
One of the reasons the Graves will produce more than they use is that their consumption is so low. They said adding solar to a home that is not energy efficient will do little to offset costs. They have made several adjustments around the home to be more energy efficient, including using compact flourescent and LED light bulbs. These use significantly less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs, the Graves said.
The solar panels should be good for more than 25 years and require little to no maintenance, except the potential for snow removal in the winter.
They said they hope to be a model for other members in the community to see how solar energy can work, even in the Icebox of the Nation. They invite those who are interested to contact them to view the project.
“We’re doing this to show that solar can work in northern Minnesota,” Don said.
