At the Alt Car Expo 2008 in Santa Monica this weekend, we saw the Chevy Volt and Equinox take center stage. There were lots of bright flashes and interviews, with the smart Chevy girls answering lots of questions. Typical showroom stuff. However, the charging infrastructure questions still hung in the air.

Coulomb Technologies’ Charge Point was on display, showing how their recharge stations can be utilized by parking garages and city curb sides. Back in July Coulomb announced that it was working GM and utilities to make infrastructure available before GM’s Volt hits the road in 2010. Here’s a video on how it works.

Although not present, Better Place is digging into something similar. I’m not convinced that transportation as a service is the right model due to car choice, nor do I want a car where someone keeps taking out my battery. That would be like renting skating rink skates. And, the cell phone analogy kills me. As Joe Pesci and Chris Rock so clearly articulated, they do “F you with the cell phones.”

Will These Work?

Taking steps towards building an infrastructure is fine, I’m all for progress. But utilities have a hard enough time meeting the demand for our homes, and with pressure from EVERYONE for them to ween off of fossil fuels and to move toward wind and large scale solar, asking them to supply power for our transportation is…well it’s a lot to ask. There is a market need here. Is it possible could an entreprenuer break into the infrastructure business and help this cause with local production?

Where would solar need to be (efficiency, size) in order to plan and execute an independantly owned solar charging station?

Ok, so you’ve decided you want to pull the trigger on that solar installation thing you heard about. It pays for itself! Well, that is true, but only if the design is correct, the anchoring is solid, and the installers remember to connect it to your meter. How do you ensure it is all done right?

1. Get a Solar Site Evaluation

An evaluation of your house by a solar installer will focus on roof space and shade, potential energy production and “payback time”, projected costs, layout, and current electrical service voltage and bus rating. Most contractors offer an initial visit as a free consultation service, and it’s best get consultations with at least three different installers. You can use a contractor referral service, or ask a general contractor for some recommendations. Do not pay any money or sign any contract on the first visit.

2. Get the System on Paper

For a small home, ask the contractor to provide you with a detailed proposal, clearly explaining costs, equipment, and layout. If you have a larger home, this may cost you some money, but having a drawing with clear system details is worth the design costs when you have to do panel maintenance down the line.

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Solar power: Invented by Apollo, the Sun God, it can be used to cook eggs on the hood of your SUV or fry ants on the sidewalk. If one were so inclined, one could own a solar powered car with bicycle wheels and enough interior space for one seat and a can of soup. All made possible by harnessing the power of the sun’s ubiquitous rays.

That was my understanding until recently. Then I did a little research into the growing market for residential solar power applications. Solar power panels have progressed from your wacky neighbor’s dilapidated, roof-mounted albatross to one of the most sophisticated components of a growing supply of renewable energy in the US power grid. Those big gray panels used to be ugly, but not so much anymore; at least not as ugly as my last electric bill. The renewable energy market has been hurt in the past by a crisis of identity firmly rooted outside the mainstream. Logical folks are weary of the promise of free energy – you don’t get something for nothing. Then there are the jokes about con men selling, among other things, the solar powered laundry dryer for $49.95 – it’s a high quality length of clothesline. This undercurrent of negativity is fed by outlandish looking prototypes like Alan Freeman’s solar powered car. Find me one person that wants to drive that thing to work every day.

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Perception

Blue Collar people range from tough kids who were trade school graduates, uneducated slackers that couldn’t hack it in college, or salt of the earth, middle class family men (and women). People with the last name Sully, Chennette, or brothers named Mario and Luigi.

Green Collar people, although loosely defined, range from weirdos who hard sell goofy inefficient solar panels, Chinese silicon panel manufacturers,or those tech savy crunchy guys that live off the grid and thrive with Mother Nature. Guys named Granite or Saffron. Or One Feather.

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