Solar tour of seven Broome County homes

Solar tour of seven Broome County homes

The Woodnorth family showcases their solar panels on both southeast and southwest portions of their roof.

The solar panels on Terry Woodnorth’s West Endicott house generated 2600-kilowatt hours since he and his wife, Lor, had them installed just seven months ago. The Woodnorth’s were one of seven families sharing their solar experience with visitors during the May 9 Broome Solar Tour sponsored by Southern Tier Solar Works (STSW).

“Now is the best time to go solar due to the tax credits”, Terry said. “I wouldn’t have done it without the credits, even though I know it is the right thing to do.”

Ed Osiecki and his wife, Mary, built their log home in Vestal back in 2001. They installed a 7.2 kilowatt array of solar panels just six months ago and their electric bill dropped by two-thirds, even though this period included winter when production is lowest.

Solar tour of seven Broome County homes

The Woodnorths access their April 2015 solar data on their computer screen -585 kilowatt-hours of energy generated and 926 lbs of CO2 emissions avoided.

“I think everyone should be producing solar energy,” says Ed. “The panels have no moving parts, don’t make a sound, yet have given us 3,200 kilowatt-hours of free renewable energy in just six months.”

Steve Nichols and his wife, Mary Ann, cut their electricity use in half simply by conservation of energy, changing their lighting to LEDs and converting to Energy Star appliances, so with just a 4.5 kilowatt system, the Nichols are able to totally meet their electricity needs, which includes powering their Nissan Leaf. Steve enjoys keeping track of his family’s electricity use and solar generation and was able to show people charts and tables with daily, monthly, and annual figures.

Solar tour of seven Broome County homes

Mary and Ed Osiecki are delighted with their solar panel arrays on two levels of their south-facing roof that face their back yard.

Heading to the east, in Binghamton, the homes of John Patterson and Cecily O’Neil and Scott Lauffer were part of the tour, as well as the homes of Doug and Kathi Lukaski in Town of Chenango and Chris Burger in Whitney Point.

Southern Tier Solar Works, a project of not-for-profit Binghamton Regional Sustainability Coalition (BRSC), is midway through its ten-week “Solarize Southern Tier East” campaign, aimed at offering residents and small business owners additional savings plus contacts with a selection of solar installers who are present at educational solar events throughout the five-county campaign area. This year’s program includes Broome, Tioga, Delaware, Otsego, and Chenango Counties.

Solar tour of seven Broome County homes

One of two inverters (one for each of the two panel arrays) that convert solar DC to AC.

To learn more, go to STSW’s website, www.southerntiersolarworks.org or call (607) 873-9220.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Solar tour of seven Broome County homes

The Nichols family’s south-facing solar array.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Solar tour of seven Broome County homes

Steve Nichols tracks his solar panels’ average daily production by month.