Thursday, September 07, 2006

Going solar: a SNAP

Well, I'm going to see about becoming a SNAP producer for GVEA. My little list of electrical equipment for the Republic office produced a rather larger electrical load total than I expected, and when I count surges for things like the heater startup and a coffeemaker, it gets a bit pricey. So I called up ABS Alaskan and Todd Hoener, Esteroid in charge of the Sustainable Natural Alternative Power (SNAP) program at Golden Valley Electric Association.

Looking over the basic requirements for a producer, I have to purchase and install the electicity-generating equipment (i.e., the solar panels, etc.), get an electrical permit, fill out the applications and agreements, and pay for hookup with GVEA (misc. fees and account setup, working out to $110 bucks plus line extension, which could be pricey). Then there's all those inspections and whatnot.

Only one problem (well, aside from all the cash): if I set up on this program, will I be able to power my office off of my battery when GVEA has its inevitable midwinter power outages?

3 comments:

John said...

darn, I was hoping the "N" stood for nuclear. A reactor in the yard . . . no need to get wood!

Deirdre Helfferich said...

Well, sorta--it's that big fusion reactor that shines in the office yard up in the sky. Y'know, the Sun. Helps the wood grow, too. Fortunately, it's not too close...not in MY back yard, at least. Mercury's, maybe.

Anonymous said...

Deirdre, will you post the text to today's speech? I loved it, and I think it would be great for the Esteroids not in attendance to read it also. Or print it in the next Republic!

Megan