triangle tour of solar homes - p2 infohousehome in asheville to twenty visitors. the solar boat in...

Volume 23 No. 4 November 2000Carolina Sun

Published by North Carolina Solar Energy Association

Triangle Tour of Solar HomesSaturday, October 14, was a beauti-

ful sunny day almost everywhere acrossthe United States for the National Tourof Solar Homes. Here in the Triangle, itwas a perfect day for seeing what solarhomes can do. Seven homeowners andthe RAFI-USA office opened theirdoors to 201 enthusiastic tour-goers. Thevisitors drove through the mostly ruralcountryside of Orange and Chathamcounties to see passive and active solar

technologies and designs, as well thelarge photovoltaic system at theHudepohl and Khalsa residence.

On the Friday evening before, almost100 of those tour attendees came to a twohour seminar that featured an excellentslide show by Paul Konove and AliciaRavetto on designing and building apassive solar home, and an inspirationaltalk by Larry Shirley of the NC SolarCenter. To see this many folks out on a

Friday night was inspirational to thetour organizers!

Up in Yancey County, Kurt Johnsonorganized a tour of 14 solar-poweredhomes and saw 80 visitors. Many hadcome out to look at leaves and got a bo-nus of a solar home tour. In Boone onOctober 21, they had 45 people on aguided tour of solar installations.

Continued on page 3

Affordable Housing Subsidized by the Sunby Marcus Renner

As the sun’s rays shine down uponthe Earth in a somewhat even distribu-tion, we are subtly reminded that thewarmth they produce flows hand-in-hand with their visible light distribu-tion. Where the sun shines, its energycan be used. It seems as though solar en-ergy has been almost a novelty in pastyears, with only the driven environmen-talists and knowing engineers and archi-tects purporting its benefits. There (ofcourse) is hope, however, as we see gov-

ernment agencies and universities, archi-tects and engineers, and public and pri-vate sector groups utilizing solar in awide array of ways.

One of the best reasons for using so-lar energy in this day and age is themonetary savings solar can provide. Butmost of the time the only people whocan afford to utilize the sun’s benefitsare those that have the money to hire adesigner or architect who is knowledge-able about the subject.

Continued on page 7

Tour visitors were able to see many technologies in one place at the Hude-pohl/Khalsa home: solar hot water collectors (lower left beside the swim-ming pool), passive solar home with retractable awnings, large PV

tracking collector (right) which powers most appliances except the geother-mal heat pump, and a smaller PV collector (far right at edge ofwhite building) which powers a water pump that serves their community.

Inside:Solar Installers —Making Solar Happen 5

Solar Center News 9

Opportunities in RoofingMaterials 12

NORTH CAROLINA SOLARENERGY ASSOCIATIONPO Box 6465Raleigh, NC 27628-6465Tel. (919) 832-7601E-Mail: [email protected]://www.ncsolar.org

2000 Board of Directors

Chair: Hank WallWood Wise Design & Remodeling

Vice Chair: Sherri Zann RosenthalZann Developments LLC

Secretary: Lisa WilsonDesign Collaboration

Treasurer: Chris LarsenNC Solar Center

Past Chair: Richard HarkraderNew Morning Solar Realty

Van CrandallPioneer Electronics

Bob FloraThe Flora Company

Bob LekerNC Energy Division

Mark MarcoplosBuilder

Marcus RennerAppalachian State University

Pascale RosemainInnovative Design

Ghasem ShahbaziNC A&T State University

Larry Shirley, DirectorNC Solar Center

Dona StankusDona Stankus, Architect

Tom WillsSolar Consultants

Executive Director: Susan Luster

Membership Coordinator: Kathleen Cleary

Administrative Assistant: Eleanor Settle

CAROLINA SUNis a publication of the NCSolar Energy Association (NCSEA), a privatenonprofit organization founded in 1978 tocommunicate with solar enthusiasts and solarbuilding professionals in North Carolina.NCSEA carries out many of its activities incooperation with the NC Solar Center, andencourages the public to contact the SolarCenter (1-800-33-NC SUN) for solar infor-mation.

Managing Editor: Susan LusterEditorial Board: Chris Larsen, Marcus Renner,Sherri Zann Rosenthal, Dona StankusDesktop composition: Klaus Holder

CAROLINA SUN accepts unsolicitedmanuscripts, artwork, and photographs.All materials are subject to editing.

From the ChairThe energy crisis is back and it will not goaway. Is the energy crisis simply that gas isexpensive at the pumps? No, fuel has beenkept artificially cheap for two decades withtax incentives and industry-driven energypolicies. Is it a crisis that heating costs willbe whopping more expensive this winter?Yes, sort of. The poorest families have theleast insulated houses and will spend a lotmore attempting to stay warm with highernatural gas costs.

But the crisis is that we use too much energyin this country. America has 5% of theworld’s people but we guzzle up 25% of theenergy. We import millions of barrels of oilevery year to satisfy our ever growing needfor energy.

We are the rich kid with the fancy cars andexpensive toys among all nations. We set alousy example.

Personally I like more of these toys than Icare to admit. I like driving a nice car. I reallylike nice houses. I choose to enjoy the com-forts of America, mostly guilt-free, most ofthe time. My bubble gets burst, however,when I read about the rapid decline of trees,habitat, species, rain forests, and whole cul-tures of people as a direct result of over-con-sumption by the richest ten percent of theworld’s population.

“I envision a time when anenergy crisis is five days ofcloudy weather.”

At the recent Parade of Homes in WakeCounty I was dazzled by the quality of de-sign and convenience in the homes featured,yet stunned by the excess. Two people livingin four thousand square feet of grandeurwith four huge air conditioners all in a rowchurning away day after day, sucking kilo-watts through a wire from a coal-fired utilitymiles away.

Neighborhood after neighborhood, eachgrander than the next, where forests stoodlast year, consuming vast resources in theirconstruction and operation, and no hint ofconservation. No solar panels. They are notallowed...neighborhood covenants.

October 14 was, ironically, the last Saturdayof the Parade of Really Big Homes and alsothe one Saturday of the Triangle Tour of So-lar Homes. Wonderful contrast. I had a bitof culture shock, I admit, going from NorthRaleigh upscale to Chatham County rural inthe same week, viewing homes with suchdifferent attitudes.

But it felt like church to me, going into theHoffman-Valentine home with elegant darkfloors and knowing that those floors willsave thousands of dollars of heating energyover the lifetime of the house. The floorsconserve energy. The windows conserveenergy. The sun heats the home most of thetime in the winter and the design keeps itcool in the summer. The owners love theirhome because it feels great and looks greatand especially because it is designed toavoid excess consumption.

Solar homes are a small part of the solution.Renewable energy in the form of solar,wind, hydro and biomass is a big part of thesolution. Consumption of energy is not sobad if you produce your own from a rooftopPV panel or from a stream out back. Solarhomes, solar schools, and solar office build-ings need to be toured. They are examplesof great design.

I envision a time when an energy crisis isfive days of cloudy weather. I envision astate where conservation is a strategy inevery building design. Solar makes sense.

North Carolina has the best tax credits in thenation for solar. Visit our website atwww.ncsolar.org to learn more and thankyou for your support helping NCSEA pro-mote the benefits of renewable clean energy.

Hank WallNCSEA Chair

Hank Wall, NCSEA Chair

JoinNCSEA

2 CAROLINA SUN November 2000

The RAFI-USA solar office building in Pittsboro was the first stop on theTriangle Tour Saturday morning.

Homes on the Triangle Tour ranged from the smaller Parker home (left) show-ing a classic passive solar design with greatroom, to the Vanderbeck’s largerhome (right) with multiple areas for solar gain.

Almost 100 people came to the Friday night solar home seminar before theTriangle Tour of Solar Homes.

Continued from page 1

In Asheville, the Boniskes opened their beautiful off-gridhome in Asheville to twenty visitors. The Solar Boat inWrightsville Beach was also on the tour again this year.All in all, there were well over 300 people in North Carolinalearning about solar homes firsthand during October.

If you weren’t able to attend the Triangle Tour of SolarHomes, you can see the homes in the tour book on our website:www.ncsolar.org. If you’d like a printed copy of the book,you can request one by email at [email protected] orby calling 919-832-7601.N

of Chatham County, Inc.

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Carolina Country Builders

TriangleTourof SolarHomesTriangleTourof SolarHomes

Gold Sponsors: Silver Sponsors:Duke SolarInnovative DesignWood Wise Design & Remodeling

Advanced EnergyAlicia Ravetto, AIA - ArchitectBeaver BrothersBrown & Jones ArchitectsCarolina Country Builders of Chatham CountyDesign HarmonyEnvironmental Quality ControlFireplace EditionsFrank Cole Building CompanyGiles Blunden Architect

Havencroft Inc.Heartwood RealtyNew Morning Solar RealtyRaleigh Specialty ProductsRedstone RealtyRestoration WoodworksSolar ConsultantsSolar Village InstituteSundog BuildersUncommon Properties

October 14, 2000

Organized by

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November 2000 CAROLINA SUN 3

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Solar Installers — Making Solar Happen.By Marcus Renner

Our state of North Carolina is giftedwith many people who are involvedwith renewable energy. We have the NCSolar Center in Raleigh, which is a bas-tion of information and energy, and thereare many solar architects, engineers, de-signers and educators throughout thestate. Luckily, North Carolina also has agood share of renewable energy installers.Featured in this article are two of our re-newable energy installers, Solar VillageInstitute, Inc. and Rock Castle Solar.

Solar Village Institute Inc.In 1992, Chris and Lynn Carter reno-

vated and moved into an 1870s farm-house in Saxapahaw, NC. From thebeginning they were determined to stayoff grid, and they did. Beginning withPV panels and a generator, they com-pleted the renovation and started theSolar Village Institute.

The Solar Village Institute is morethan a renewable energy installationcompany. In addition to being a fullservice renewable energy companyworking with photovoltaics (PV), wind,micro-hydro power and DC (direct cur-rent) community water pumping, theyoffer educational workshops for the pub-lic. The company regularly provides on-site power and educational workshopsfor festivals and events, such as the Fes-tival for the Eno, for which they poweredone of the music stages with PV panelsand hydropower. The Institute is also in-volved with green building, home schooleducators, and the North Carolina FarmStewardship Association.

Chris learned how to install systemsafter attending Solar Technology Inter-national programs in Colorado. Later,he studied wind power under MickSagrillo, an expert in the wind industry.After learning about wind power, theCarters installed a 3000-watt wind gen-erator, which allowed them to phase outtheir fossil fuel generator.

After completing renovations in 1992,they made their first renewable energyfor Giles Blunden, a Triangle area archi-

tect who lives in Arcadia cohousingneighborhood in Carrboro. Since then,the Institute has been installing aboutfifteen systems a year, with a specializa-tion in PV and wind hybrid systems.Their service area is southern Virginia,North Carolina and South Carolina.

The Solar Village Institute’s workhas paid off. Chris says, “One hundredpercent of our systems are still online.”He attributes this to the fact that the In-stitute is a full service company with anemergency hotline. Chris comments,“We act as our customers’ power com-pany.”

You canreach the SolarVillage Institute,Inc. at336-376-9530or [email protected]. Theirsite on the webis www.solarvil-lage.com.

Rock Castle SolarLocated in the mountains of North

Carolina, Rock Castle Solar has beenserving Boone and the surrounding areasince 1994. Operated by Rod Baird,Rock Castle Solar offers photovoltaic(PV), hydro, wind and solar water heat-ing system installation. Rock CastleSolar also has an off-grid store wherecustomers can see renewable energyand sustainable technologies in action.They are dealers for Zomeworks, Vanner,Morning Star, Trace and BP Solar prod-ucts.

Rock Castle Solar has installed sys-tems in North Carolina, Tennessee, Vir-ginia, South Carolina and Georgia. Aftermoving to the current storefront, thecompany started workshops and educa-tional programs for people wanting to

learn about renewable energy and sus-tainability. The business has also been astop on the National Tour of SolarHomes in Watauga County.

Rock Castle Solar has been a longtime sponsor of the Appalachian StateUniversity Solar Energy Society(ASUSES), a student chapter of theAmerican Solar Energy Society. Thecompany provides off-grid solar powerat ASUSES events such as the AnnualSolar Christmas Tree Lighting and EarthDay events on the campus of ASU. RodBaird also teaches many educationalclasses at area schools and daycares.

With its proximity to a university thecompany has developed portable PVsystems that can be easily moved, sincestudents are known to change residencesoften. As listed on their website, “A per-fect solution for those who are renting

and want to take their system whenthey leave.” Rock Castle Solar can bereached at 828-264-4484 orwww.rcsolar.com. N

Chris Carter ofSolar Village Institute.

Rod Baird and Scott Suddreth of Rock Castle Solar.

Environmental Federationof North Carolina

Support the

Help keep North Carolina healthy and green.Look for us in your workplace campaign.

EFNC, PO Box 196, Durham, NC 27702919-687-4840, 800-200-6311

NCSEA is a charter member of EFNC.


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Affordable Housing…Continued from page 1

One group in the most need of mone-tary savings, however, are people whoreside in low-income housing, and whocan’t afford the expenses associated withmodern construction. Enter architectBob Powell. Realizing the benefits ofsolar energy, and at one time being thecoordinator of four Community Devel-opment Corporations, Bob Powell sawan opportunity to integrate solar tech-nologies into affordable housing.

Seven years ago, Bob was the coordi-nator of four Community DevelopmentCorporations (CDCs) who were part ofa state and city effort to provide low-in-come housing in the East Side Parkneighborhood of Greensboro. At thetime, most of the neighborhood was di-lapidated and corrupted by the crimeand drug problems that are often seen ininner-city American areas. The State ofNorth Carolina and the City of Greens-boro took the initiative to give East SidePark another chance. The four CDCswere offered vacant lots in the area onwhich to construct affordable homes.Groups such as Habitat for Humanity,Home Inc. and the Episcopal Churchtook the offer and began building homesfor individuals and families in an effortto bring the community back to the peo-ple and out of the hands of criminalsand drug dealers.

Today, on a slow drive through theneighborhood one sees well-kept homesand yards. Children play outside, oftenspilling into the streets after balls, or ridetheir bikes on the wide thoroughfares.Bob said that this was a huge change fromless than a decade ago, when the neigh-borhood was riddled with drug activity.

What does this have to do with solarenergy? As coordinator of the CDCs, andlater as Executive Director of one ofthem, Home Inc., Bob saw his opportu-nity to implement solar into one of thehome projects. One resident getting anew home was disabled and sufferedfrom mild chemical sensitivity syndrome.She requested that her home not havecarpet, but a tile floor instead. With thechange from the norm that she was re-

questing, Bob thought he would pushthe idea a little more and suggested apassive solar home. The resident, PatCherry, thought the idea sounded goodand took Bob’s advice.

In keeping with the general vernacularof the other houses in the neighborhood,the overall design of the home was notaltered. Instead, window placement wasaddressed in order to take advantage ofthe exposed concrete floor. With theright amount of south-facing windows(12% of the floor area), and the properamount of roof overhang, the masonryfloor acted as thermal mass that wouldstore heat during the cold days of winterand release the heat into the home atnight.

Keeping the overall design of thehome the same was a little challenging.Ideally, a solar home is oriented on aneast/ west axis in order to have the long-est part of the house facing south to bet-ter access the sun’s rays. In the East SidePark neighborhood, the homes were ori-ented on a north/south axis, causing theside of the house to have the southernexposure required for solar utilization.This proved to be a blessing in disguisehowever.

Security is a big concern to the resi-dents of the neighborhood (and any city

neighborhood for that matter. Bob wasalso involved in a photovoltaic installa-tion in the area that powered motion-de-tector security lights.) Having an ampleamount of south-facing glass directedtoward the road was not desirable toresident Pat Cherry. Curtains or blindsare usually drawn so as not to invite un-wanted glances from the streetward sideof the house. A potential peeper is lesslikely to make the effort to walk to theside of the house to look in. Having thesouthern exposure on the side of thehouse enabled Pat to feel more comfort-able keeping the windows uncoveredfor the sun to warm the floor, and alsoprovide daylighting. Southern orienta-tion being on the side of the house alsohelped the house resemble the otherhomes in the neighborhood.

As it stands today, the solar home inthe East Side Park neighborhood ofGreensboro is an 1192 square foot,three-bedroom, one-bath building. It isdesigned as a direct gain solar homeutilizing south-facing windows that al-low the sun’s energy to strike the raisedconcrete slab and tile floor in the winter,while the roof overhang blocks thehigher summer sun. The southern win-dows also have blinds that enable lightto come in while keeping the heat outon warm fall and early spring days.Ceiling fans in the home help distributeheat to the parts of the home that aren’tdirectly affected by the sun. There are afew small windows on the north wall,which is generally the coldest side ofhouses in our hemisphere.

Continued on page 8

Cherry’s solar home in East Side Park,Greensboro.

HERO solar system on Cherry’s roof.

Architect Bob Powell and solar homeownerPat Cherry.


850 West Morgan St.Raleigh, NC 27603Phone: 919 832 6303

ENERGY EFFICIENT &ENVIRONMENTALLYSENSITIVE DESIGN

Affordable Housing…Continued on from page 7

In 1997, four years after completionof the house, Bob arranged for Pat toget a solar hot water heating system.Keeping in mind that this was low-costhousing, Bob researched affordable so-lar water heating systems. He foundRalph Cooke of Surry Solar Services Inc.in Mount Airy, North Carolina. Ralphhad developed what he calls the HEROsolar water heater, which he produces inMount Airy.

The HERO solar water heater was aninexpensive propylene glycol system witha heat exchanger mounted onto a con-ventional electric hot water heater. Thesystem is self-contained and relies on asimple automotive pressure relief valvethat has been used on cars for decades.In addition to being one of the most af-fordable solar water heating systems onthe market, the system requires very littlemaintenance. Surry Solar flush-mounteda solar water-heating panel on the area

of the roof with a southern exposure andattached the HERO unit to the existinghot water heater. With the cost of heat-ing household water averaging about40% of a home’s energy bill, this was awelcomed addition to the solar home.

Pat Cherry loves her solar home. Thefeeling during the day is light and airywithout the aid of artificial lighting. Thesouthern windows not only supplywarmth, but also daylighting, somethingthat has surely benefited Pat and hercondition. The addition of a low-cost so-lar water heater was a welcomed appli-ance to Pat, who says she finds herselfhaving to do a lot of laundry, which ofcourse requires a large amount of hotwater. When asked how she liked herhome, Pat replied, “I love it. I’d recom-mend it to anyone.”

Many of us realize the benefits of so-lar energy. We know the environmentalramifications of using it. We understandthat it can lead to a healthier lifestyle withless dependence on polluting and/or for-eign fuel sources. Solar energy can alsobenefit low income people. Just as the

construction of affordable homes bycommunity development organizationshelps people get back on their feet, socan the implementation of solar energy,with its low operating costs and highcomfort, help maintain the financial andphysical health of those for whomhomes are built. N

Bob Powell, a past chair of NCSEA,currently teaches at A&T UniversitySchool of Engineering. He can bereached in Greensboro at 336-273-5038 or [email protected]

Ralph Cooke, also a past chair ofNCSEA, owns Surry Solar Services Inc.and can be reached in Mount Airy at336-786-2953 or 838 Cross Creek Dr.,Mount Airy, NC 27030-9229.

Residential

Passive Solar Design

Green Architecture

Daylighting

❂

Alicia Ravetto, aia

Architect

❂

400 West Weaver Street

Carrboro, NC 27510

Tel. 919-933-0999

Fax. 919-933-1988

[email protected]

Go Solar!• • • • • • •

Take Advantageof

North Carolina’sIncome

Tax Credit

Go Solar!• • • • • • •

Take Advantageof

North Carolina’sIncome

Tax Credit


Solar Center • Solar Center • Solar Center • Solar Center • Solar Center • Solar Center • Solar Center • Solar Center

NORTH CAROLINA

SOLAR CENTER

Solar Center NewsNorth Carolina State University • Box 7401 • Raleigh, NC 27695-7401 • (919) 515-3480 or 800-33-NC SUN

Industrial Extension ServiceCOLLEGE of ENGINEERINGNorth Carolina State University

The NC Solar Center is sponsored by the EnergyDivision, NC Department of Administration, incooperation with North Carolina State University.However, any opinions, findings, conclusions, orrecommendations expressed herein are those ofthe author(s) and do not necessarily reflect theviews of the Energy Division, NC Department ofAdministration.

Division

North CarolinaDepartment of Administration

What’s New at the Centerby Chris Larsen, NC Solar Center

Onward and upward!New Personnel andNew Plans

The Center is going through a lot ofchanges these days, in large part the re-sult of changes within the Center’s parentdepartment at NC State – the IndustrialExtension Service (IES).IES recentlyhiredTerri Helmlinger, P.E., to take overas the department’s Executive Director.Since starting this past spring, Terri hasimplemented major organizational re-structuring, the results of which haveincluded the creation of theEnergyCenter of Excellence,of which theSolar Center is one part.

Our very ownLarry “Moose”Shirley has been tapped to take on theleadership of IES’s Energy Center forExcellence, while splitting time as SolarCenter head. To help Larry with SolarCenter management, a new AssociateDirector (AD) position has been createdand will be filled this fall. We’re excitedabout these changes and believe that theSolar Center and new Energy Center ofExcellence can bring more attention andresources to our state’s energy alterna-tives.

Staff newsThe Center is thrilled thatBarbara

Smith has stormed in to take over ouraccounting work. Barbara worked pre-

viously with the university in the Dean’sOffice in the College of Engineering, aswell as in the College’s Office of Re-search Administration. Barbara was withthe University Bookstore prior to thatand is an NC State alum. (She’s helpedidentify and remove all baby blue fromour offices.)

With the new semester we welcomeand welcome back new and old graduateand undergraduate students who are socritical in keeping the Center running.We’re pleased that seven students willbe working at the Center on a part timebasis this semester.Jennifer BrungartandGrey Joycehave jumped in to han-dle the Center’s graphic design needs.Both Jennifer and Grey are first yeargraduate students in the School of De-sign. Assisting at the Solar House duringthe week areChris Houk andMeganFloyd. Chris is a graduate student inmechanical engineering, and Megan is anundergraduate in multidisciplinary studies.

Returning to the Center, havingworked here in the spring areMoniqueNichols, Alphonsus Ngwodom, andJake Obi.Monique is an undergraduatein architecture will be working withBarb Irlbeck to keep the office running.Alphonsus, who works at the AttorneyGeneral’s office and is taking course-work in criminal justice, is continuingto work at the Solar House on Sundays.And, Jake, an electrical engineering sen-ior and the Center’s new PV technical

wizard, helps at the Solar House duringthe week.

Solar Hot Water UpdateThe Center’s technical staff has been

traveling hither and yon to evaluate oldinstallations and make plans for newones. Under contract to the NC Depart-ment of Energy, the Center has visitedand evaluated the performance of theDoT’s 14 solar hot water systems onrest stops around the state. A number ofthe systems have been under-performing,so plans are in place to bring them allback up to good working order. The reststop work is part of the state DoT’s longrange plan to incorporate more clean,alternative technologies into their facili-ties around the state.

PV, PV EverywhereShawn Fitzpatrick andBob

McGuffey are working with highschools around the state on a programto install PV systems to charge electricvehicles. This effort follows on the suc-cess of a similar program headed byTodd Morgan three years ago when

Continued on page 10



What’s New…Continued from page 9

charging systems were installed at NorthJohnston High, Smokey Mountain High,Northampton High, and NC State Uni-versity.

Under the current schools program,the Center has been in touch with overten high schools around the state withelectric vehicle programs, and we willsoon be announcing the three schools

that will have systemsinstalled. As part ofthe program, partici-pating high schoolswill incorporate pho-tovoltaics into the highschool curriculum.

PV is also movingahead under the VASEprogram (Virginia Al-liance for Solar Elec-tricity). ThroughVASE, the Center is

coordinating the installation of systemsusing Solarex Millenium modules. Thefirst system to be installed was the 2 kWGreensboro Housing Authority system(see picture below). This system wasinstalled byTom Honeyof HoneyElectric and Solar with assistance fromTravis Thompson, an AppalachianState University graduate student andSolar Center intern this past summer.NCSEA Board member,Dr. GhasemShahbazihas coordinated the projectfrom NC A&T State University.

Unfortunately, the Greensboro systemsits idle at this time because Duke Powerhas refused to interconnect the system,citing non-compliance with their inter-connection standards. (Interconnectionissues remain a major barrier to PV inNorth Carolina. As noted in previous is-sues, net metering and interconnectionpolicies remain unresolved in our statedespite the fact that thirty other stateshave moved ahead with net metering.)

The three other VASE project systemsthat are in the works include CatawbaCollege, Chapel Hill Hargraves Recrea-tional Center, and the City of West EndPost Office near Southern Pines. We’llkeep you posted on progress with thesesystems.

For more information, contactBobMcGuffey at (919) 515-9781 orShawnFitzpatrick at (919) 515-7147.N

Solar hot water system on NC DoT rest stop in Johnston County.

ASU graduate student, Travis Thompson assists with system installation.

3 kW grid-tied PV system near completion on Greensboro Housing Authority apartments.



Calling All Contractors and New System OwnersBy Shawn Fitzpatrick, NC Solar Center

It’s time to register all of those new(post June 27, 1997) solar system instal-lations with the Million Solar Roofs In-itiative Solar Registry! We need the restof the country to see North Carolina’scommitment to solar energy.

In 1997, in a speech to the UnitedNations, President Clinton announced theMillion Solar Roofs Initiative (MSRI),an aggressive program to combat globalclimate change by installing 1 millionsolar systems on buildings in the UnitedStated by 2010. Over forty communityand state partnerships had joined the In-itiative. In 1999, North Carolina becamea partner in the MSRI, providing an ave-nue for communities throughout thestate to participate. Currently Watauga,Guilford, and Durham Counties and theTown of Chapel Hill are local partners inthe MSRI. North Carolina made an initialcommitment to install 1,000 systems by2010. As more solar communities comeon line, our state plans to up that com-mitment to 10,000 systems by 2010.

In order to keep track of the numberof newly installed systems, the MSRIhas established theSolar Registry.Thisis a web-accessible database that allowsusers to keep track of the initiative’sprogress by displaying the number andtype of new solar installations on a stateby state basis. The Registry is also a wayfor the MSRI program to recognize solarenergy system owners for their part inthis Initiative. All system owners receivea certificate of participation in the MSRIafter their system is registered. TheMSRI and Solar Registry web site iswww.eren.doe.gov/millionroofs.

To eliminate double counting and toensure accurate reporting, only registeredproviders have the ability to update thepassword protected Registry. Builders,installers, utilities, and other eligibleorganizations can become registeredproviders and can update the Solar Reg-istry. The Solar Center will be the cen-tral MSRI registering entity for the

North Carolina but understands thatsome installers may want to do theirown registering.

Parties interested in having the Centerregister their systems should request acopy of theNorth Carolina Solar SystemInstallation Tracking Form.The formcan be emailed, faxed, or mailed to thoseinterested. Once you fill it out, simplymail or fax it to the Center to be enteredinto the MSRISolar Registry.

Businesses and organizations thatwant to register systems on their owncan complete an application on theMSRI web site. Once your applicationis reviewed by the MSRI folks, you’llbe issued a user password that will allowonline updating of theRegistry.

Shy about your commitment to solar?System owners can choose to remain

anonymous, but to be counted in theRegistry,at a minimum you’ll need toprovide the city or county and zip codeof the installation site to prevent doublecounting.

Let’s stand up and be counted, NorthCarolina!

For more information, contactRob Stevens at (919) 515-4092 [email protected]


Opportunities in Roofing MaterialsCan you step up to the top?by Dona Stankus, AIA

Our human need for shelter is sym-bolized by the roof. On a rainy day wecarry our portable roof, the umbrella, inan effort to keep the elements at bay fora short time. When camping, we oftenuse a modified roof or tent to provide asense of shelter from insects, animals,moisture, wind and sun. The componentsof our semi-permanent roof at its mostbasic include structure, waterproof layerand the visible finish/protective barrier.The old barn roofs of North Carolinaspeak very eloquently and simply ofthese components-wood structure, tinroof and paint or clear coat of finish.The function of these barn roofs wasshelter at a basic level. Today, ownersand professionals strive to go beyondthe basic and make our roofs work atcapacity, providing expanded opportuni-ties in function and materials.

The traditional functions of a roofinclude protection from the weather,water drainage and control of light. Aswe advance in our adaptation of the oldand new, we creatively find new oppor-tunities to stretch the use of the roof to

an even higher calling. One of the op-portunities that has become traditional inmost roofing applications is the installa-tion of insulation to minimize thermalfluctuations (slowing the rate of tem-perature change from inside to outside).The opportunities for roofing materialsthat we will review in this article includeenergy generation and water catchment.When choosing all materials for yourspecific project, I always advise that youconsult a professional (someone beyondthe construction material sales office);for many of these products discussedhere, design advice is extremely criticalto the functionality of the end product.

Opportunity 1:Energy Generation Materials

Using a roof to generate energy isnot new to many of those reading theCarolina Sun.What may be new tomany of us is how that is done. Untilfairly recently, most solar systems havebeen available as discrete systems withinthemselves, to be attached after the roof-ing system’s protective barrier has beeninstalled. Now, manufacturers are work-

ing to make the roof’s protective barrierand the solar generation cellsthe samelayer of the roof.This work began withthe development of commercial systems,using the solar cell as the protectivelayer on a flat or low-slope roof.

Examples of the solar cell as the pro-tective roof layer in commercial workcan be seen in thePowerGuard Systemby Powerlight Corporation in Berkley,California. This low-slope system util-izes the following layers—structure,roofing membrane, rigid insulation andsolar cell panel. The solar panel itselfacts not only as an energy generationsystem but also as ballast, the weightthat helps keep the waterproof layer(the roofing membrane) in place.

In 1997, Atlantis Energy Systemsintroduced a product that was not onlydirected at the commercial market butalso at the residential market. The prod-uct,Sunslates,replaces the roofing shin-gle (made of asphalt, slate, metal, clay,etc.) with a solar cell shingle that be-comes the roof’s final protective cover-ing while generating enough energy, at

minimum, to keepthe security systemrunning during apower outage. An-other manufacturer,United Solar Sys-tems (Beckaert ECDSolar Systems, LLC)out of San Diego,California, makesUNI-SOLARpanelssold as both architec-tural and structuralstanding seam metalpanel roofing withsolar cells attachedin addition to the PVShingle.


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Opportunities in RoofingMaterials…Continued from page 12

Under development in our own back-yard at Duke Solar in Raleigh, NC, is asystem calledPower Roofthat, in thewords of the manufacturer, “integrates thebest energy-efficient technologies withthe most advanced thermal solar systemsknown today” and is a “high temperaturesolar collector, a natural daylighting sys-tem, a radiant barrier, an insulating sys-tem, an optional means to capture passivesolar heat in the winter, an infiltrationbarrier, the building roof structure, and awaterproof, guaranteed roofing system—all in one.” Duke Solar is currentlyplanning a showcase of thePower Roofin a new building in Raleigh.

Opportunity 2:Water Catchment/Management Materials

In our current practice, a roof man-ages water by providing a way for it tominimize its contact with the building.Steep-sloped roofs go to gutters whichgo to downspouts which either dump thewater into a storm drainage system ordirectly onto the ground; or there are nogutters and the rain exits directly to theground off the roof. In a flat or low-slopedroof system, the water is often caught inroof drains which connect to roof drain-age piping which connects to a stormdrainage system. Although these are ourcurrent practices, we have not alwaysbeen so heedless of the value of water.

Old practices which have been revivedwith new technological twists includecatching rain and reusing it to waterlandscaped areas, for drinking, for fire-fighting, and for human waste removalin plumbing. In remote and dry areas,

many of these practices never completelyleft us. The specific focus of this articleis on what protective coverings and wa-terproofing materials in a roof systemare most appropriate for water catchmentwhen the collection actually occurs at alocation other than the roof itself andwhen the roof becomes the collectionlocation. A separate article on water col-lection systems below the roof line ison the author’s list of future articles.

One of the barriers to collecting rainwater for reuse is the type of protectivecoverings that we install on our buildings.Asphalt shingle roofing is installed on themajority of residential buildings; asphaltroofing in the form of built-up-roofing(BUR-larger felts that are used to makeshingles are laid down in varying layerswith asphalt pitch) and modified bitumenroofing (similar to BUR but more tech-nically advanced) has a majority shareof the commercial roofing market. Thewaterproofing material basically inherentto asphalt is the bitumen which AsphaltRoofing Manufacturers Association de-scribes as follows:Bitumen: (1) a class ofamorphous, black, or dark colored, (solid,semi-solid or viscous) cementitious sub-stances, natural or manufactured, com-posed principally of high molecularweight hydrocarbons and found in as-phalts, tars, pitches, and asphaltines.The other component of an asphalt shin-gle is the protective covering of ceramicgranules shielding the asphalt from dete-rioration due to sun light. On top of allthis, asphalt shingles are highly suscep-tible to fungi and algae accumulationsunless a chemical deterrent is added tothe granule as a coating.

The combination of asphalt, ceramicgranules and fungi/algae on most of ourroofs creates a situation, in the writer’s

opinion, that provides a barrier to col-lecting acceptable rain water for easyreuse/redistribution. The filtration andtreatment necessary for quality drinkingwater production when collecting rainwater becomes a requirement for land-scape water on asphalt roofing. If the useof slate, clay, metal and other less toxicmaterials became more standard, the in-stallation of a simple water catchmentsystem for redistribution as landscapewater would be less costly to install andless time consuming to maintain.

There are several recycled roofingmaterials that have come on the marketin the last five or so years which have thepotential to be excellent rain water col-lection surfaces. One of these is a wood-shake appearing shingle,Eco-shakebyRe-New Wood, Inc. of Wagoner, Okla-homa, made of 100% recycled hoses andwood, of mostly post-consumer content.Three other manufacturers are CroweBuilding Products, Inc. of Ontario, Can-ada, manufacturer ofAuthentic Roof;EcoStar, Inc. of Vernon Hills, Illinois,manufacturer ofMajestic Slate(both ofwhich are slate-look shingles manufac-tured from 100% recycled EPDM rub-ber); and US Century, LLC of SanAntonio, Texas, manufacturer ofFlex-Shake,a slate-look shingle of 90% recy-cled tires, HPDE rubber and 10% slate.

When water is collected and used onthe roof itself, this affords the environ-mentally exciting development of theroofing material as a living roof. A livingroof is one that creates an environmentmade up of plant life, from grasses onsteep-slope roofs to small trees on low-slope roofs. There are several designerscreating these roofs from existing prod-



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Opportunities in RoofingMaterials…Continued from page 13

ucts; one roofing system that implementsthe living roof isThe Garden RoofbyAmerican Hydrotech. The system is de-signed so that a usable garden is createdon the roof area. American Hydrotechclaims that not only does the roof managerain water but it also processes airbornetoxins, recycles nutrients, provides andaugments wildlife corridors and in-creases a building’s energy efficiency.

There are lots of opportunities forusing every inch of our roofs to a higherdegree than tradition or complacencydictates, be it home, office, school orother building type. Even now, with ahigh degree of planning and design, wecan design roofs that function as bothenergy generators and water collectors.These quality systems often do cost ap-preciably more than their popular coun-terparts. Some of them would neverwork for remodeling of existing space

due to heavier structural requirementsand other limiting factors.

Now comes the writer’s editorialcomment. If we are designing and build-ing new homes, offices, schools, orother buildings that use our preciousfinite resources, I believe we need tobe especially judicious with our use ofthose resources and do our best to ex-tend the use in positive, creative ways;many manufacturers are creating waysfor us to do that, as evidenced by the op-portunities presented by roofing manu-facturers here. If an owner has enoughmoney to build a new building, the owneris the steward of that money, the stewardof fulfilling the basic human need forshelter. The owner decides not only theneeds but also the environmental impactof how the building performs on ourplanet. If you are that owner who buildsa new structure the question really is:are you willing to pay the price on anindividual basis, up front, forego otherperceived needs, and treat the environ-ment as the finite resource it is?N

ResourcesNational Roofing Contractors Association http://www.nrca.netAsphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association http://www.asphaltroofing.orgOikos http://data.oikos.com/productsEcoStar http://www.ecostarinc.com/index.shtmlUS Century, LLC http://www.flexshake.comAmerican Hydrotech http://www.hydrotechusa.com/garden.htmlEco-Products http://www.ecoproducts.comDuke Solar http://www.dukesolar.comAtlantis Energy Systems http://www.atlantisenergy.comUnited Solar Systems Corp. http://ovonic.com/unitedsolar/roof.html


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