Although we have encouraged sustainability in our projects, photovoltaics have been design engineered out of many of our projects due to historically high installation costs. Over the last few years, however, solar panels and installation costs have dropped considerably, and governmental incentive programs make installations more affordable, with briefer payback periods.
So Larry installed the Johnson Partnership’s first solar installation on his cabin project on the North Fork of the Stillaguamish river between Oso and Darrington. It is a 10-panel array, and since LED lighting is used throughout the cabin, it is sending excess electrical power back to the grid even on cloudy days. Larry is anxiously waiting an on-site internet connection so that he can remotely monitor the installation. Solterra Systems of Seattle designed and installed the system.
The inverter and meter on the northeastern corner of the cabin.
Construction at Stillidale is slowly progressing and the 10 new south facing photovoltaic panels can be seen from the river.