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Alicia Robinson
In an effort to keep rising energy costs at bay, two local business
owners looked to the sun.
Architect Edward Morse and mechanical engineer Robert Scott are
enjoying savings on their electric bills from a solar-power system
recently installed in the Newport Boulevard building where they work.
Morse, of Morse-Boudreaux Architects, and Scott, of United
Mechanical Consultants, own the building along with Mike Boudreaux,
Dan Splitter and Bill Thomas. In addition to their offices, the
building houses work spaces that are leased to design professionals,
such as construction managers, electrical engineers and interior
designers.
The modern-looking, high-ceilinged space, with glass-walled
cubicles and air circulation pipes made of fabric, was once an
Oriental rug store. Morse and Scott moved into the building in April
2003 and had a solar power collection system installed earlier this
year.
“We started talking about it and decided that, No. 1, it would be
a good hedge on increasing utility rates,” Morse said. “It takes care
of about three-fourths of our electrical energy needs at full
capacity.”
That reduced the building’s electric bills from $1,300 a month to about $400 a month, Morse said. Even on overcast days, the solar
panels can collect enough energy to meet at least one-fourth of the
building’s demand.
A San Clemente company called New Vision installed the system,
which is designed to offer benefits beyond electric cost savings.
Rather than installing solar panels on the building’s roof, the
designers created a free-standing steel canopy right next to it at a
21-degree angle. The canopy holds 243 solar panels that each collect
160 watts of power, and its angle helps shade the side of the
building from the heat of the day as well as providing cover for a
row of parking spaces.
The power is collected and sent to a box in the back of the
building, where it is converted from raw power into a usable form,
and a meter inside the building tells people how much power is being
generated and how much is being used.
Morse and Scott were considering the long-term cost savings and
the environmental benefits of going solar, but the deal was sweetened
by federal and state tax credits and incentives offered by Southern
California Edison.
The power company has been inundated with requests to get into its
solar power incentive program, said Howard Green, director of the
self-generating incentive program for Southern California Edison.
Edison pays $4.50 per watt and discounts customers’ electric bills
when their solar systems generate more power than their buildings
use.
From 50 applicants when the program began in 2001, it has grown to
167 applicants so far this year, Green said.
The Newport Boulevard building is one of several in Costa Mesa
with the system, but its design is unique, he said.
“I thought it was a very interesting project,” Green said. “They
tried to make it look as if it was part of the building.”
Morse and Scott said they’re pleased with the results, and they
look for ways to incorporate solar power or other energy-saving
systems into their design projects, but not every client is
receptive.
“Even though it’s been used for years, it’s still kind of a new
thing for developers,” Scott said.
Scott noted that because the electricity that powers most of
Southern California comes from Montana, Utah and elsewhere, it is
delivered through a frustratingly inefficient system. He added that
his solar power system is more than 90% efficient.
“It seems to me a great shame to have such a marvelous resource --
sunlight -- and not use it,” said Scott, who also had his home
equipped to collect solar power. “It’s a small positive impact, but
it is a positive impact.”
For information on Southern California Edison’s self-generation
incentive program, visit https://www.sce.com or call (800) 736-4777.
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