The term "Green Energy" is even more vague than "Green Building". Does it mean only non-fossil fuels, or are no-CO2 clean coal and nuclear energy technologies okay? The definition doesn't matter to ECO. We provide project specific home or building energy consulting and design services. The process starts with an ECO Energy Consulting and Design contract that is separate and in addition to ECO's structural design services. The process will include a discussion of preferences and interests for green or alternative energy systems like solar or wind. We will estimate your structure's preliminary energy requirements for heating, cooling, and lighting. Then we research and develop each energy system's details. We may consult with 3rd party companies for added expertise. Then ECO design & engineering will add detailed solar and wind systems to the project blueprints. The end result is a customized low-usage high-efficiency structure powered by 'green' energy. The construction details will become permit ready blueprints construction documents so your green project energy system can become a reality.
Since this is being written in a political month (11/08), I'll state my personal political position on global green energy. I call it "real world sensible green". I support solar and wind, as well as smarter 'non-corn' biofuel efforts like waste or algae fed bacteria that make ethanol or even a form of gasoline. I like other sensible green energy projects such low fertilizer, salt tolerant, water-efficient sweet sorghum based ethanol processes. My first career gave me the opportunity to understand enough about energy to allow me to support all oil, gas, nuclear and clean coal production. These are all required if we want to eat while we develop the greener alternatives that may come online in 10+ years. After a decade or so, I look forward to the day when fossil resources are only used to make plastics, adhesives, and other task required energy products like aircraft fuel.
But above all these green or non-green energy sources, I must place 'non-use', 'reduce-use', and 'higher energy efficiency'. These three will always sit on top of my environmental improvement energy pyramid. If other's don't see tomorrow energy needs in this way, they just do not understand what they are talking about (there - I actually said it!). Today's solution? Buy some good walking shoes to wear out, buy a good bike and ride it, and buy a fuel efficient automobile. Then when you're ready, let us help design your energy-efficient-small-footprint-outdoor-space-home.
Shelter-In-Place Onsite Energy - I don't know about you, but Ike's 'only' CAT-2 experience has confirmed our argument that every new home or building should be designed to windstorm resistance, plus 'shelter-in-place' , plus have a limited load onsite power capability like Grid-Tied Solar PV systems with battery back up. The following Information was published on 10/31/08 by Chris Boyer who works for Houston's Standard Renewable Energy. For those of you who have never met Chris let me offer that if Chris says it, it is worth listening to. For those of you looking for solar PV and wind start with established companies like SRE, APS, Ignite, and Meridian.
In 2008 a GRID-TIE SOLAR PV system could generate electricity at about $8,000 per rated kW size. 2010 solar panel prices are now much lower. Each rated kW makes about 1250 kWh per year in Houston). However, when the grid goes down, the system goes down with it. To keep the lights on during a power outage, your options are a back-up generator, or a battery back-up solar system.
For solar site design information such as orientation, wind resistance. and answers to other what-if's visit our Solar & Wind Energy System Engineering webpage.
ON SITE GENERATORS such as a portable gasoline generator works well and conomically (~$800 for 5 kW) to keep the refrigerator and some lights on for the occasional long term outage - if you can find 10 gallons of gasoline every day and if you don't poison yourself with carbon monoxide. A permanant natural gas generator with an automatic transfer switch is an elegant solution to keep the whole house running (including AC) . Reliable ones run from $10,000 (15 kW) to $30,000 (45 kW) installed (requires plumbing & electrical permits). There is about a 30 second delay between the time the grid goes down and the time the generator starts powering the house.
PV grid-tie systems will not work with most back-up generators - I tried it. It doesn't work because the sine wave and voltage limits of generators are not "grid" quality. There are high-end, electronic governered generators that may sync with a PV system, but there still needs to be a dump load for excess PV power.
SOLAR GRID TIE with BATTERY BACK UP In 2008 Grid-Tie solar with battery back-up cost about $12,000 per rated kW of solar power (2010 solar panel prices are now much lower). The power output of the inverter in not the same as the rated solar power, usually it is sized to be almost double. Loads powered by a battery back-up system will not see any outage when the grid goes down - the switch is instantaneous. SMA, Outback and Xantrex have good equipment for this purpose. The recent tax credit makes back-up systems economically attractive. Look at the following example:
CASE A: PV Grid-Tie Cost: $28,000 for a 3.5 kW (no batteries) Generator Cost: $12,000 for a 18 kW nat gas generator PV Tax Credit: - ($8,400) NET Cost: $31,600
CASE B: PV Grid-Tie/Back-up: $42,000 (including batteries) PV Tax Credit: -($12,600) NET Cost: $29,400
Thinking even further outside the box than this would be the addition of an insulated water reservoir in or under the concrete slab. Water has about twice the thermal capacity of concrete by volume (4.75 times by weight!). Diverting an HVAC unit to cool stored water or concrete at night will benefit from lower off-peak utility rates, and potentially downsize the HVAC unit. Even without water storage, the cooled concrete mass would reduce the amount of cooling energy needed to cool a home during the day. ECO has a preliminary design for a residential UFAD in slab system. We just need a cutting edge project to use it!
TOO COMPLEX? Commercial projects have dedicated MEP Engineers to sort these complexities. Home builders have HVAC installers, Electricians, and Plumbers. So when it comes to selecting, sizing, and getting the installation details on paper for a home's Solar, Wind and Rain systems, who will do it? How about a Building Information Modeling Green Engineer? ECO can fill the technology and construction documentation gap required for installation of UFAD systems, solar photo voltaic systems, solar hot water systems, small wind generators, and live/rain water harvesting systems. ECO uses Revit Structure 3D to help with our structural analysis. ECO also has Revit MEP to help with our building energy efficiency as well as alternative and green energy consulting tasks.
ECO's engineer can consult on which energy systems might work, or more importantly, which will not work for your application. This can save you time and money of going down the wrong path. For instance, some systems can be designed to seamlessly go off and then back 'on to the grid' (auto grid connect) to temporarily bridge a hurricane caused black-out. Items like this 60 kW Capstone Microturbine are shown as an example of ECO's ability to support light commercial power systems. ECO supported the start-up of six 60 kW 'black-start' Capstone micro-turbines installed at a downtown Houston data center, and consulted on a the 250 kW 'black-start' natural gas fired engineer generator for the Harris County Board of Education's critical data center. ECO has also provide consulting for a Standard Renewable provided solar PV installed on a home just outside of Houston. While solar PV is just starting to make sense on a well designed energy efficient home, a larger system can provide a community security with the lowest cost combined cooling, heating, power (CCHP) possible when applied to a campus, office complex, active adult community, or coastal resort subdivision.
The term "Green Energy" is even more vague than "Green Building". Does it mean only non-fossil fuels, or are no-CO2 clean coal and nuclear energy technologies okay? The definition doesn't matter to ECO. We provide project specific home or building energy consulting and design services. The process starts with an ECO Energy Consulting and Design contract that is separate and in addition to ECO's structural design services. The process will include a discussion of preferences and interests for green or alternative energy systems like solar or wind. We will estimate your structure's preliminary energy requirements for heating, cooling, and lighting. Then we research and develop each energy system's details. We may consult with 3rd party companies for added expertise. Then ECO design & engineering will add detailed solar and wind systems to the project blueprints. The end result is a customized low-usage high-efficiency structure powered by 'green' energy. The construction details will become permit ready blueprints construction documents so your green project energy system can become a reality. 
Since this is being written in a political month (11/08), I'll state my personal political position on global green energy. I call it "real world sensible green". I support solar and wind, as well as smarter 'non-corn' biofuel efforts like waste or algae fed bacteria that make ethanol or even a form of gasoline. I like other sensible green energy projects such low fertilizer, salt tolerant, water-efficient sweet sorghum based ethanol processes. My first career gave me the opportunity to understand enough about energy to allow me to support all oil, gas, nuclear and clean coal production. These are all required if we want to eat while we develop the greener alternatives that may come online in 10+ years. After a decade or so, I look forward to the day when fossil resources are only used to make plastics, adhesives, and other task required energy products like aircraft fuel. 
Shelter-In-Place Onsite Energy - I don't know about you, but Ike's 'only' CAT-2 experience has confirmed our argument that every new home or building should be designed to windstorm resistance, plus 'shelter-in-place' , plus have a limited load onsite power capability like Grid-Tied Solar PV systems with battery back up. The following Information was published on 10/31/08 by Chris Boyer who works for Houston's Standard Renewable Energy. For those of you who have never met Chris let me offer that if Chris says it, it is worth listening to. For those of you looking for solar PV and wind start with established companies like SRE, APS, Ignite, and Meridian.
TOO COMPLEX? Commercial projects have dedicated MEP Engineers to sort these complexities. Home builders have HVAC installers, Electricians, and Plumbers. So when it comes to selecting, sizing, and getting the installation details on paper for a home's Solar, Wind and Rain systems, who will do it? How about a Building Information Modeling Green Engineer? ECO can fill the technology and construction documentation gap required for installation of UFAD systems, solar photo voltaic systems, solar hot water systems, small wind generators, and live/rain water harvesting systems. ECO uses Revit Structure 3D to help with our structural analysis. ECO also has Revit MEP to help with our building energy efficiency as well as alternative and green energy consulting tasks. 
ECO's engineer can consult on which energy systems might work, or more importantly, which will not work for your application. This can save you time and money of going down the wrong path. For instance, some systems can be designed to seamlessly go off and then back 'on to the grid' (auto grid connect) to temporarily bridge a hurricane caused black-out. Items like this 60 kW Capstone Microturbine are shown as an example of ECO's ability to support light commercial power systems. ECO supported the start-up of six 60 kW 'black-start' Capstone micro-turbines installed at a downtown Houston data center, and consulted on a the 250 kW 'black-start' natural gas fired engineer generator for the Harris County Board of Education's critical data center. ECO has also provide consulting for a Standard Renewable provided solar PV installed on a home just outside of Houston. While solar PV is just starting to make sense on a well designed energy efficient home, a larger system can provide a community security with the lowest cost combined cooling, heating, power (CCHP) possible when applied to a campus, office complex, active adult community, or coastal resort subdivision. 
