Our Story

22 years ago I published an analysis of the US Renewable Energy Program.  At the time, commercially available solar technology was in its infancy.  Much of it was made by hand in small batches.  Big banks of lead acid batteries were required to store and use the energy.  As excited as I was about its potential, the experimental nature of these systems rarely delivered a value equal to their high costs.  Over the years, I have kept a close eye on the industry, attending educational seminars and trying to justify the effort and the payback.  Around the year 2000, the industry made a huge leap forward.  Around that time, battery-less grid tied (interconnected) inverters became commercially available, allowing photovoltaic systems to be installed without the cost, risk, and inherent inefficiencies of batteries.  While living in San Diego, I saw the introduction of solar kits, sold at big box stores.  These kits could be installed over a weekend.   The deregulation of the electric utilities and ensuing chaos and volatility of electricity rates led thousands of californians to install solar systems that produced some or all or their power.  Back in Cleveland, the utilities were still regulated and less than 10 systems were installed across the state.  In that environment, there was a common belief that solar technology wasn’t ready for commercial use or that there wasn’t enough sun in Ohio to make it worthwhile. 

Today, our customers believe in solar, they see the long term investment opportunities of solar, they believe that their solar electricity will cost less over time than electricity produced by coal fired power plants.  Our customers believe that energy independence is a core component of the new american dream.