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New Carlisle home shines on Earth Day

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By Andrew McGinn, Staff Writer 3:40 PM Friday, April 22, 2011

NEW CARLISLE — On a cloudy, cold and all around gloomy Earth Day, the 40 solar panels on John and Alycia Lee’s roof still got to shine.

Their home on Milton-Carlisle Road became a sort of showroom Friday for energy efficiency, with representatives from the company that recently installed the panels on hand to talk to interested neighbors and the director of the state’s Environmental Protection Agency present to celebrate Earth Day.

“What a better place to do it than somebody’s home where they’re promoting an alternative fuel source?” said Scott Nally, director of the Ohio EPA.

The panels atop the house convert sunlight into electricity — with excess energy funneled back into the grid or even to neighbors.

“They went from being energy consumers to energy producers,” said Michelle Waldgeir, vice president of marketing for Astrum Solar, the company that installed the 40 panels in a day.

Being science teachers — Alycia teaches high school physics at Northwestern; John teaches middle school technology in West Milton — the Lees wanted to do their part for the environment.

“I thought about windmills,” John Lee said, “but we’re down in a valley.”

Taking advantage of a low-interest “eco loan” from the state and a federal tax credit, the Lees went with solar — a project that runs “about the cost of a car payment,” John Lee said.

“We’re not high rollers,” he said, “but we can make it happen.”

While they haven’t yet received their first electric bill, it’s not uncommon for homeowners with solar energy to actually receive money from a power company.

“The numbers actually go backwards,” Waldgeir said of the meter.

And, yes, even in crummy weather, the panels still produce some energy.

“Maybe I need to be out here promoting rain guards,” Nally said.

Contact this reporter at amcginn@coxohio.com.

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