Solar Solutions
(Page 3 of 4)
May/June 2008
by Deborah R. Huso
Working with water
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Kimbis says solar is especially good for pumping water in remote areas. He points to the Hirsch Ranch near Racetrack, Montana, where a solar-powered pumping system uses a passive tracking rack and two 64-watt PV modules to provide up to 2,800 gallons of water per day for cattle. It cost Rick and Pam Hirsch $2,400 to install the solar system. “How much you save depends on the replacement fuel,” Kimbis says. “If you’re remote, that fuel is going to be diesel.” Diesel is expensive; plus, there’s transportation involved in getting it to the site, not to mention the noise involved in operating a diesel-powered generator. “Diesel is really dirty, too,” Kimbis says. “It’s hard to get cleaner than a PV panel.”
The most popular use of solar energy today is to heat water directly. Sun-powered water heaters can be as simple as a barrel or bladder painted black. Fill the vessel with water, place it in the sun and there you go. More sophisticated, and arguably more useful, solar water heaters make use of collectors consisting of metal tubing fused to a metal plate (painted black) that’s enclosed in an insulated and clear-glazed box. Sun energy penetrates the glazing and is transferred to water (oil or an antifreeze solution are also used) flowing through the tubes via the heated metal plate. While a solar hot water heater sized for a home can cost anywhere from $4,000 to $7,000, long-term savings can be substantial even in the northern states.
Kimbis says one can expect a four- to six-year payback on a solar hot water heater. They can also be retrofitted into an existing water heating system. “It’s an easy way to offset costs,” Kimbis says. “Farmers use a lot of warm water for cleaning and in dairy operations.” Heating water can account for as much as 40 percent of the energy used on a dairy farm.
Why solar makes sense
The economics of solar power on the farm vary from place to place. “A lot depends on where your farm is located,” Kimbis says, “because solar radiation is better in some places than in others, and tax incentives are different in each state.”
For example, Utah, where Whipple resides, offers tax credits up to $2,000 for residential solar installations. The federal government also offers a $2,000 tax credit. Farmers who make 50 percent or more of their income from agricultural endeavors can also apply for renewable energy installation grants offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Since the introduction of its Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Improvements Program in 2002, the USDA has granted more than $2 million to help start rural solar projects in 20 states.