Welcome to the Year of Solar + Storage

A message from E2 Solar, presenting sponsor of the 2019 Green Tour.

Solar + storage may be a new term for many, but the 2019 Green Tour marks a transition point for solar + storage in Central Oregon and beyond. You will have a chance to see, in person, solar + storage systems that allow businesses and homeowners to have resiliency in the event of prolonged power outages and decrease their use and reliance on the utility grid.

Do you know or notice when an electric car drives by?

Similar types of battery storage systems that are now propelling over a million electric or hybrid electric vehicles are also making their way into homes and businesses across the US. Having a solar + storage system on-premise can provide a number of benefits depending on the scenario. Certainly having electricity in the event of a grid failure is one of the first things most people think of. However, homeowners on time-of-use metering schedules can benefit financially by using self-generated solar instead of higher priced grid schedules. Or for businesses, the ability to reduce peak demand charges by reducing what is required from the grid.

How about a storage system so smart it uses the weather forecast to reserve more energy as storms near?

As more battery interactive systems and technologies come online, the time is near when “mini-grids” can be used to create a neighbor-to-neighbor support system in times of need, and also assist the grid should injecting stored energy become beneficial.

Drive an electric car?

Imagine not just charging your electric car from solar or the grid, but using the battery in your electric car as a conduit to use that energy to power your home. These are all the benefits that solar + storage can or will provide now and in the future.

As has been the case from the very first “Green and Solar Tour” in 2000, homeowners and businesses have been opening their doors to educate and empower our communities to the benefits and possibilities of energy efficiency, solar, and now the new age of energy storage. Also since 2000, E2 Solar has been at the front, leading the way to make it possible for everyone to benefit from solar technologies and now we’re excited to bring the advantages of solar + storage to the communities we serve. We hope you enjoy the solar + storage version of this years’ Green Tour.

Thank you to our guest writer, Mike Hewitt, Co-founder of E2 Solar.