Toasting Solar in Sonoma

Harvey Hoefer and Lisa Carr have harnessed sun power to help irrigate their organic cabernet vineyard as well as power their rural northern California home.

When you ask clinical psychologist Harvey Hoefer why he and his physician wife, Lisa Carr, decided to install a solar system, his answer is, essentially, why not? In this day and age, “Why does anyone not go solar?” he asks.

An Inconvenient Truth Inspires Couple to Solarize

Mike Elwell, a freelance TV photographer who lives in Richmond, California, got so inspired by doing a video documentary on Al Gore before the movie came out that he told his wife, Susan, "We ought to go solar.

Conveniently, Mike soon met Real Goods Solar Technician Michele McGeoy at Solar Richmond, a local nonprofit whose mission is to encourage installation of more solar power on Richmond residences and businesses. The organization is chaired by Michele and was inspired by the city's mayor, Gayle McLaughlin, one of the only Green Party mayors in the country. Mike and Susan were impressed with Michele's expertise and hired Real Goods to install solar on their 2,500-sq.-ft. home.

Calistoga Residence Calls for Unique Solar Array

The unique architecture of this Calistoga, CA residence called for a solar array aesthetic that complemented it’s style. Our customer wanted a low profile ground array that couldn’t be seen from the ground level of the house. He also wanted a streamlined and monolithic look. The unique architecture of this Calistoga, CA residence called for a solar array aesthetic that complemented it’s style. Our customer wanted a low profile ground array that couldn’t be seen from the ground level of the house. He also wanted a streamlined and monolithic look. The steep drop-off around the perimeter of the house gave us the perfect terrain for making this happen.

Gaiam Just Became Greener

Gaiam, Inc., known for its wellness lifestyle culture, took a step closer toward the health of the planet with the addition of 100 kilowatts of solar photovoltaic modules on the roof of its new headquarters in Louisville, Colorado. The Gaiam solar system is comprised of 462 Sharp Solar PV modules, 12 SMA 7,000 watt inverters, and a SunLink self-ballasted, non-penetrating roof mount. This design will generate 125,304 kilowatt hours per year.

Nature-Inspired Art Education Site Finds Added Beauty with Solar

article__Ilan_Lael At Ilan-Lael, beauty, nature, and imagination unite in an environment that celebrates hopeful possibilities of change for humankind. And now the unique art education site located in Santa Ysabel, CA is home to a beautiful new solar array installed by Real Goods Solar, a testament to how beauty and energy efficiency can go hand-in-hand.

The Ilan-Lael property consists of eight buildings that serve as a single residence and artist studio designed by internationally-acclaimed artist, James Hubbell. Hubbell’s organic, nature-inspired forms attract hundreds of visitors each year, who come to experience the power of the built environment to help them see the world in a new way.

Contra Costa Mosquito and Vector Control District

As a public health agency, the Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control District goes beyond their mission of keeping the public healthy by preventing the transmission of diseases and improving the quality of life. They are known for taking a leadership role in conservation and restoration efforts with wetland management in the Bay Area, for the protection of endangered and/or threatened species, and for promoting environmentally compatible methods of control.

Jarvis Winery Toasts Clean Energy

Jarvis climbs on the solar bandwagon with new solar electric systems totaling 107,000 peak watts of solar power. Real Goods Solar of San Rafael, California was selected to perform all facets of the project, including design, engineering and installation. The 107 kW system is comprised of 520 SunPower SPR-205 panels, one Xantrex GT100 inverter, and balance of system components including disconnects and mounting hardware for a ground mount on the winery premises.

Frey Vineyards

Certain wines are known for having good years.
And that means 2006 is a very good vintage for Frey organic and biodynamic wine. It was April 2006 that the Redwood Valley, CA winery installed a 17.3kW grid-tied photovoltaic system consisting of 91 panels. Now, in addition to watching their 61 acres of vines ripen, they’re watching their electric bills wither on the vine.

The Galloway Family

As utilities across the United States consider expanding their power supply with new coal-fired power plants, Mike Galloway recently made a key decision regarding his own family’s energy supply. The Crawford, Colorado resident installed a 1.8kW solar system from Real Goods.

“Our primary motivation for switching to solar energy was to be part of the solution regarding CO2 generation, rather than part of the problem,” Galloway says.

The Ark School

In June of 2003, the installation team from Independent Energy Systems volunteered their time and resources to install a small grid-tied solar electric system on the rooftop of The Ark School in Westside Santa Cruz. Students from Cabrillo College's Renewable Energy course also volunteered to participate in this interactive educational demonstration on solar power. This project is another example of how IES supports our Santa Cruz/Monterey Bay community.

The Ark School

Conquering New Terrain with Solar

Real Goods Solar powers up The San Francisco Museum of Craft + Design’s “Solar Terrain.” It's no surprise that Real Goods might be involved in the greening of a garden, but this project in particular was quite unique even for us. Located in San Francisco’s Union Square district, the San Francisco Museum of Craft + Design asked us to partner in their upcoming exhibition, “New West Coast Design,” by solarizing a shaded electric garden called the Solar Terrain.

Petaluma Architect Grid Connects His Chicken Coops

When Don Hutchins decided to rebuild his chicken houses at his historic Petaluma, CA homestead and former chicken ranch, one of the requirements from his wife Miriam was to consider incorporating solar power. An environmental activist, Miriam convinced Don of the virtues and good sense of going solar. Working with the restrictive codes of the historic California property, Don developed a plan that renovated his old dilapidated chicken coops into a 6 kilowatt solar power plant.

Solar Power: Beautiful and Functional for Colorado Family's Home

When it came time for Suzie and Richard Halle to consider a solar system that fit the design of their new home in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado, their criteria was multifaceted. A former House Beautiful magazine employee and eco-conscious mother of three, Suzie has a design sensibility, and it was important to her that their solar system met her standards for beauty, purpose and function.

Rather than looking at solar as an all-or-nothing proposition, the Halles considered options that dovetailed with their “Not So Big House” design, their eye for aesthetics, and their commitment to low-impact living.

'Full - Tilth' Family Goes Solar

Almost immediately after buying their home, Park and Kristan Guthrie took advantage of the solar tax incentive program in California — not only as a smart environmental and energy-saving decision, but also as a way to live in tune with their values.

Park works at the Life Learning Academy, a charter high school where he teaches sustainable gardening to at-risk kids. He is also launching Urban Tilth, a nonprofit dedicated to teaching people how to improve their environment by using organic gardening techniques. The Guthries are a quintessential nature family, making their home on a rural plot of land within the city limits of San Pablo, California. Climbers and surfers, they are parents of two children with a third on the way.

Branciforte Small Schools Campus

During the summer of 2005, IES volunteered their time to install a solar PV system at the Branciforte Small Schools Campus in Santa Cruz. This is an adjustable pole mount solar electric system, and its angle can be changed throughout the year so that the students can document how different orientations affect the output of the solar panels. Total Array Power: 960 Watts; Solar Inverter Type: SMA Sunny Boy 1800 Watt; Solar Module Type: 12 Kyocera KC80, 80-watt solar module, Multi-Crystalline

Branciforte Small Schools Campus

The Halpin Family: From Solfest to Solar Install

Living in Sebastopol, California, a town that has a pioneering municipal solar program, Joe and Julie Halpin were surrounded by solar. But it wasn’t until they traveled up to Hopland, CA to attend SolFest at the Solar Living Center that they decided to solarize their own home.

Celebrated Environmental Activist Goes Solar

Boulder’s own Roy Young and his wife Rosa Venezia recently added to their list of environmental good works by converting their home to run entirely on photovoltaics (PV). This was the first of more than 40 solar installations by Real Goods Colorado Residential Solar Division, opened in 2006 with Paul Melamed as director in response to the passage of Colorado’s Amendment 37.

Local Fire Departments Soak up the Sun

The sun almost always shines in the San Lorenzo Valley. The local fire departments in the Santa Cruz Mountains for Felton, Zayante, and BoulderCreek are enjoying their energy independence thanks to their new solar energy systems. Commercial solar systems are an ideal way for businesses to cut down on energy bills and reflect a companies or organization's ongoing commitment to renewable energy and environmental stewardship.

Local Fire Departments Soak up the Sun

Boys & Girls Club, Valley of the Moon, Goes Solar!

This summer, Real Goods Solar will be installing a 71-kilowatt (kW) AC solar electric system at the Boys & Girls Club Valley of the Moon (BGCVOM), located in Sonoma, California. The solar system is designed to offset approximately 80% of the facility’s energy costs. This savings will be used to further support the services that help secure the safe and supportive after-school learning program.

IES Equips Sunset’s 2008 Monterey Bay Idea House with Solar Energy

Sunset Magazine's newest Idea House in Monterey showcases the latest in sustainable construction, solar energy, reclaimed lumber, a tankless hot water system and a 20,000 gallon-capacity water reclamation system into the overall eco-design. Independent Energy Systems was selected to provide solar energy solutions for this landmark design project – a 12.6 kilowatt solar electric system, as well as a solar thermal system designed to heat the domestic hot water and radiant flooring.

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Retired Couple Goes Solar

(and retires big utility bills as well.)

As Richard and Jackie Holmes head into their golden years, they’re getting a little help from golden energy. The 5.9 kilowatt Real Goods solar electric system they installed at their home in Occidental, CA, in 2003, has substantially lowered their monthly utility bills.

“It has turned out to be quite wonderful,” Jackie says. “Our bill this month was $5.60 [you read that right: five dollars and sixty cents]. Before solar, it was $324.”

The Mount Madonna Center & School Go Solar!

We are excited to have completed one of our largest commercial solar installations to date at the highly regarded Mount Madonna Center & School in the Santa Cruz Mountains after over a year of planning, research, and funding hurdles. Five different solar arrays cover approximately 9,598 square feet. The combined 158 kW solar electric systems will generate roughly 223,000 kilowatt hours of energy per year, supplying enough clean, renewable, solar energy to power about 80% of the School, and more than 50% of the Center.

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