MicroFIT Walk Thru - Multiple Projects on One Property

Last week I was looking at the siting issues involved in putting up a MicroFIT project on the piece of property show below.

When looking at the layout I was curious to see weather I would be able to put half of my project on the garage in the rear of the property and the other half on the home in the front. I was aware that the FIT program had put restrictions on people having multiple microFIT projects on the same piece of property but I wasn't sure how they had addressed the issue of having one microFIT project spread between different roofs on one piece of property. In looking for an answer I came across this document that was posted on the OPA's MicroFIT website (microfit.powerauthority.on.ca). The document states that:

"...a single rooftop facility may have generating equipment located on multiple buildings on a single property so long as the total capacity of the generating equipment located on the property is reflected in a single application and shares a common connection point"

 So it looks like I'm in business. I should be able to have the projects share a common connection point. Lets see how much room I have in order to determine what the approximate size of the project is going to be.

Using the local mapping software provided by the local municipality I was able to determine that the roof on the home in the front of the property is roughly 693 sqft. The roof of the garage in the back is able to provide another 567 sqft. This will give me a total rooftop area of 1,260 Square Feet. At this point I do not have any particular panel in mind for use in my projects but I will use the popular Sharp 230 in order to estimate how much energy I may be able to generate. This panel is compliant with the Ontario Domestic Content rules and will roughly take up 17.54 square feet (39.1" x 64.6").

Using these measurements I was able to determine that I should be able to fit 39 panels on the front home and 32 panels on the rear garage. Of course this assumes that I will be able to cover every square inch of space on the two roofs with solar panels. What's important to take away from this calculation though is the fact that I will most likely have to split the two projects up in order to reach 10kw.

Using a conservative estimate of 30% wasted space on the roofs I was able to calculate the size of my system as follows:

Using the 30% estimate of wasted space the areas now shrink to:

• Front = 693 x 0.7 = 485 Square Feet
• Rear = 567 x 0.7 = 397 Square Feet

Using the Sharp 230 on this project would allow for 

• Front = 485 / 17.54 = 27 panels = 6,210 Watts
• Rear = 397 / 17.54 = 22 panels = 5,060 Watts

Therefore I should be able to fit 11,217 Watts between the two roofs or 11.216 kw. With the MicroFIT program it is important to note that the Ontario Power Authority will rate your system based on the output of your inverter and not the actually size of the array.

The Lord's MicroFIT

My Lord! Check out this microFIT project! Amen.

MicroFIT Walk-Thru - Siting

I am currently in the process of applying for a home microFIT application and thought that some of you who might be thinking about doing the same would like to see exactly what is involved in the process. So keep an eye on my blog for updates on what I'm doing!

I guess the first thing I had to do in order to put together a MicroFIT application was to look at the physical orientation of the property and building. Google maps is a good resource for this but I usually find the resolution to be lacking once you zoom into the home or property in question. I find that most municipalities generally have a mapping feature on their website with air photos of the area. I like using the air photos as they usually provide a better picture of the property or roof in question. On top of that most of the local mapping software also has measurement tools that will allow you to get an idea of how much square footage you have to work with on your roof. I've included both the google maps and air photo pictures of the property I am applying for.

Renewable Ontario Energy Headlines - Jobs from the Sky, More Modules for Ontario

North Dundas set for solar farms

Sovello Enters into Manufacturing Agreement for Solar Modules in Canada

 

Renewable Ontario Headlines - Hudak Goes Off, Local Officials Challenged, Wind Foes Solwed, FIT Continues

Timing is everything, especially in politics. Saw this interesting article this morning.

Tim Hudak Wants Moratorium to Spread Onshore

Here are some more headlines from the last week:

Wind power foes lose legal challenge

Ontario regulatory uncertainty clouds solar power market, report

Elected Officials Challenged: Come Clean!

DEGERenergie set to double capacity of Ontario manufacturing facility

The Receding Horizons of Renewable Energy 

Don’t blame green energy

Ontario Power Authority Announces Second Round Of Renewable Energy Contracts

Wind Works sells five Ontario projects

 

 

 

Less Green Jobs, More Green Jobs, Turbine Prices Drop, Niagara to Harness Wind

Province announces 40 new energy projects 

Niagara Region Wind Corporation awarded contract from Ontario Government for its 230 MW Wind Power Project 

Wind power industry says thousands of jobs ‘scorched’ by Ontario policy change

Oversupply Causes Drop in Wind Turbine Prices

Province announces 40 new energy projects
The Ontario Power Authority has approved 40 new large renewable energy projects including solar, wind and water. The authority says the projects will create 7,000 direct and indirect jobs, including construction, operation and maintenance, and attract $3 billion in private-sector investment. [Read More]

Niagara Region Wind Corporation awarded contract from Ontario Government for its 230 MW Wind Power Project
Niagara Region Wind Corporation (NRWC) is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a Feed-In-Tariff contract from the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) for its proposed Niagara Region Wind Power Project.[Read More]

Wind power industry says thousands of jobs ‘scorched’ by Ontario policy change
Ontario’s decision not to proceed with proposed offshore wind projects jeopardizes thousands of potential construction jobs and billions in investment dollars says the developer of a multi-billion dollar offshore project.[Read More]

Oversupply Causes Drop in Wind Turbine Prices
Wind energy, it appears, has never been so competitive. Prices for wind turbines last year dropped below €1 million ($1.36 million) per megawatt for the first time since 2005, due largely to over-capacity, greater manufacturing efficiency and increased scale, according to the market researcher Bloomberg New Energy Finance.[Read More]

Renewable Ontario Headlines - Kourtoff Speaks Again, One Stop Panel Pricing, Green Growth in Brantford, FIT Stops

Trillium CEO Questions Ontario's Offshore Decision 

PanelPrice.com - New Website for Solar Panel Price Comparison

Brantford, Area 'Well-Positioned' For Green Job Growth 

Energy in FITs and starts

Trillium CEO Questions Ontario's Offshore Decision

Trillium Wind Power Corp. has spent the past 15 years working toward developing four offshore wind projects in the Canadian side of the Great Lakes. But a recent decision by the Ontario government to stop offshore wind development puts the developer's pipeline of up to 3,500 MW in jeopardy.
 

Ontario's Ministry of Environment (MOE) took many in the wind industry by surprise when it announced that it was halting development of proposed offshore wind projects while further scientific research is conducted. 
 

John Kourtoff, Trillium's CEO, says there are no environmental issues with wind projects that are located 10 km out. [Read More]

PanelPrice.com - New Website for Solar Panel Price Comparison

Technology marketing specialist HMG has just announced the official preview of PanelPrice.com, a new online shopping platform dedicated to solar panel price comparison. PanelPrice.com helps to buy solar power modules for residential locations and commercial PV sites. It is intended for home owners and project developers. “We are looking forward to our new website because it will give savvy shoppers a long awaited tool for finding the right solar panels from trustworthy merchants. Finally, buyers of solar energy products can save a lot of money through our solar panel price comparison.” says Jens Bonerz, founder of HMG. [Read More]

Brantford, Area 'Well-Positioned' For Green Job Growth

A report that identifies which sectors show the most promise for the creation of "green" jobs has been released by the Workforce Planning Board of Grand Erie.

The 62-page report pinpoints agriculture, construction, manufacturing, utilities, transportation and warehousing, and waste remediation as the top sectors for green employment.[Read More]

Energy in FITs and starts

Ontario’s feed-in tariff program elegantly kills two birds with one stone. First, it empowers the private sector to develop the clean power projects Ontario needs to meet its promise to close its coal plants. Second, it provides a big boost to green manufacturing with a target of creating 50,000 new jobs. For the FIT program to succeed, investors in projects and in manufacturing facilities need to remain confident that the program is stable and their investments won’t be subject to unexpected or arbitrary rule changes.[Read More]