Incentives are driving growth of solar energy — and of Poulsbo business – North Kitsap Herald

by RICHARD WALKER,  North Kitsap Herald Editor
posted Nov 22, 2013 at 12:36 PM— updated Nov 22, 2013 at 2:41 PM

POULSBO — There are several incentives for Washingtonians to go solar.

Residential and commercial property owners with a “Made in Washington” solar array may be eligible for a check up to $5,000 per year for the power their panels put into the grid. At the same time, their power bill is reduced by the amount of power they produce.

35780nkitsap1122Solar-300x200Put a solar array onto your home, and you may qualify for a credit of up to 30 percent of the cost from the federal government.

Installation of solar-energy systems in Washington is exempt from sales and use taxes.

With the incentives in place today, a new solar-energy system can pay for itself in five to seven years. After that, money from all the power you generate goes into your pocket. (And you can periodically watch your meter run backwards.)

“With some of the most progressive incentives in the nation, the return on investment for Washington residents today is real and substantial,” said Tim Bailey, co-founder of Blue Frog Solar. “Working together, our state has made solar a smart buy.”

Those incentives are driving consumer investment in solar-energy systems for homes and businesses in Washington state — and driving the success of a Poulsbo-based manufacturer and distributor of solar energy equipment.

Before we go on, here’s a simplified explanation of how a solar energy system works. An array of photovoltaic panels — on your roof or on groundlevel open space — captures energy from sunlight (even when it’s cloudy). Energy goes from the panels to a microinverter, which converts the energy into AC current. That energy supplements the electricity you use from Puget Sound Energy.

When you produce more electricity than you use, that electricity is made available for use elsewhere, and PSE buys it from you.

Blue Frog Solar, 1015 Hostmark St., manufactures and distributes inverters. Working with a network of certified installers, Blue Frog Solar designs solar-energy systems for homes and businesses using APS America’s inverter technology and Itek Energy’s photovoltaic panels — all made in Washington to qualify for the financial incentives.

Click here to read more –>

 

 

APS America says Thank You for our success at SPI 2013

A big THANK YOU to everyone who visited our APS America booth at the recent Solar Power International conference in Chicago. We enjoyed meeting so many colleagues from around the solar industry, and we established significant new supply relationships with installers and customers.

Again: Thanks for stopping by! We are grateful for your strong interest in our APS microinverter products.

– Tim, Kelly, Andrew, Paul and all at APS America

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itekenergy in the news

APS America’s manufacturing partner itekenergy is profiled in the Bellingham (Wash.) Business Journal’s November issue. itek is Washington state’s leading producer of PV panels and a real success story for solar manufacturing. Read the story here.

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APS at SOLAR POWER INTERNATIONAL – October 21-24

APS technology will be on display at  Solar Power International in Chicago October 21-24 at booth #318. Come see our products and meet the APS team! 

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3-PHASE YC1000 – COMING SOON

It’s almost here, and only from APS – the world’s first true 3-phase microinverter:

  • Output ranging from 208v up to 480v
  • Works with 3 or 4 PV modules per unit
  • Programmable up to 480v
  • Up to 13 units in a string (52 modules)

See the groundbreaking YC1000 at Solar Power International, Booth 318, Oct. 21-24 in Chicago!

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A Bright Energy Future – Solar and its growth in Washington State

AN INDEPENDENT SUPPLEMENT BY MEDIAPLANET TO THE SEATTLE TIMES
October 1st, 2013

Washington home and business owners are “going solar” in record numbers and our local industry is powering the boom. Considered these facts:

  • Installation of solar energy systems in Washington homes and businesses is nearly doubling every year.
  • Solar panel manufacturing output in our state has increased six-fold over the past 24 months, driving down the cost for customers.

With some of the most progressive incentives in the nation, the return on investment for Washington residents today is real and substantial. Working together, our state has made solar a smart buy.

How smart? Residential and commercial property owners with a “Made in Washington” solar array may be eligible for a check of up to $5,000 per year for the power their panels put into the grid, while at the same time their power bill is reduced by the amount of power they produce. There’s a federal tax incentive as well ― put a new solar array onto your home and you may qualify for a credit of up to 30 percent of the cost from Uncle Sam. That’s not a deduction from taxable income, it’s a tax credit ― same as cash. And installation of solar systems in Washington is exempt from sales and use taxes, sweetening the deal for buyers.

With the incentives in place today, a new solar system can pay for itself in seven years of less. After that, all the power you generate goes into your pocket.

That’s a great investment for consumers, but there’s a larger benefit for our Washington economy: local jobs. The boom in demand has driven the production of solar panels and related equipment by Washington manufacturers to record levels, while professional installers in our local communities are finding new customers every day. All across the industry, those are green jobs building a greener Washington. That’s innovation!

And don’t let those could days put you off ― solar panels are more efficient in cool climates like our own. A panel in Seattle produces 90 percent of the power of one in Miami.

Kelly Samson
APS America

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Sustainable Business: Washington state’s largest solar community tests the marketplace

Puget Sound Business Journal
May 10th, 2013
click here to read article

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Adon Solar – the largest APS America customer in Hawaii

Adon Solar has become the largest APS America customer in Hawaii. Using our YC500A-H microinverters for residential lease programs, they are the first to take full advantage of the impressive features of this product.

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Solar Farms deploys APS YC500 in Hawaii installation

Solar Farms has deployed the YC500A-H in Hawaii. Focused mainly on residential applications the Solar Farms installations are showing how the YC500A-H can contribute to lower costs and installation times with increased reliability.
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APS America sends out first container shipment of YC500A-H inverters to Hawaii

APS America has added Hawaii to its list of regional deployment for the YC500A-H microinverters. First shipments started going to Hawaii in December 2012 and have been ramping up since then. APS America sent out its first container load of YC500A-H microinverters to Hawaii today. New customers are largely developers who recognize the value of the dual panel configuration of the YC500A-H and the labor savings of the installation. The microinverters shipped to Hawaii are programmed to meet the HECO Rule 14 requirements for output frequency.

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