General Information

 Everyone feels better about their personal property investment ideas such as solar and wind turbine applications when they get a chance to meet face to face with their contractor . At Hydro Electric,LLC, we take great pride in personal attention to each and every project. That is why we love to meet with you at your property to get a lay of the land and answer your questions face to face. That way everyone has a greater degree of comfort in their renewable energy investment ideas and who they are dealing with. We offer this free service and consult to all our clients. Please contact us at your convenience and let us meet out at your place!

 

 

Things We Look For At Your Home

 • Utility company and anticipated electrical demand of your home

 Any renewable energy system we talk about will include a conversation about tax credit and rebates afforded to the system in question. The installation rebate is directly linked to the specific electrical utility provider to your property. We will be able to discuss the type and amount of rebate afforded to you upon learning of your utility provider. Tax credits afforded to your system are independent of your utility company, but you can plan on taking a 30% federal tax credit of the total system cost (prior to rebate) over the following two tax years.

 In terms of custom fitting a renewable energy design to your place of residence or business, we will need to review your past electrical consumption. After you gather 12 months worth of past electrical bills, we can sit down and calculate what your average monthly electrical consumption has been for the past year.This information will allow us to design a PV system to conform exactly to your electrical needs, thereby avoiding over-designing more PV than you need. As solar panels can cost on the order of $700-$900 per panel, we want to design a PV system that will fit your needs. This electrical consumption data will also aid in determining how many wind turbines we need to meet 100% of your electrical needs.

 

 

 • Southern exposure (unobstructed)

 For solar(PV) systems, one of the site specific criteria for ultimate performance of your PV system is the degree of unobstructed (unshaded) southern exposure available at your property. Typical PV systems are mounted on your roof, parallel with the roof lines for stability against the elements and aesthetic beauty. However, if your southern roof is shaded by trees, power lines or roof gables, we may want to talk about the possibility of locating the PV panels on a more unobstructed portion of your property, and then trench the power back to your breaker panel.

 

 

 • Wind Turbine Site Locale

 For clients interested in wind turbines, we will need to discuss an open area on your property where the wind flow is not affected by trees, structures or other topographical features. Typically, for air foil-type wind turbines such as the Skystream 3.7., we recommend an area 250 feet from any obstruction to wind flow. If this is not possible, we then need to discuss how the turbine will need to be situated 20 feet taller than the closest obstruction. For Larimer County residents, anything greater than 40 feet will require a variance.

 

 

  • Condition of Roof

 Solar module efficiency is directly related to the sun's angle of reflection upon the modules themselves. Therefore, for greatest efficiency of a fixed PV system attached to your roof, the slope angle of your roof is taken into consideration. We may want to talk about a different locale for these modules in the event that your roof slope is too steep or too shallow. We want to get the most production for your money, so we will explore all the possibilities, including a pole-mounted PV system on your property.

 

 

 • Potential HOA Issues

 Home Owner Associations (HOAs) have a tendency to throw a monkey wrench into the plans of home owners wishing to add structure to the property. Wind turbines come under the most scrutiny, but fear not! Governor Ritter recently passed House Bill1270 prohibiting HOAs from blocking your reasonable efforts to install and operate any type of renewable energy system. We all want to be good neighbors, but sometimes we come across less than reasonable interests, and that is where we reference our clients to this bill.

 

 

 • Electrical Service to your Home

 One of the more important aspects of your renewable energy system is getting your design and proposal approved by both the utility company and the jurisdiction in which we need to pull an electrical permit . As such, we need an understanding of how to tie your renewable energy system into your own electrical system.Therefore, we will closely evaluate the electrical service provided to your home/business. With this knowledge, we can accurately describe to you and the permitting entities exactly how we plan on tying your renewable electrical system into the grid.