Josh Weiner, Author at SepiSolar

This post was written by Josh Weiner, Solar Expert Witness & Solar Engineering Expert. Mr. Weiner has been at the forefront of the solar energy industry for over 20 years and is an industry leader on solar-plus-storage engineering & design. Josh’s expertise spans both in-front of and behind-the-meter initiatives including residential, commercial, utility, grid-scale, and ev charging solar and storage applications.

Normally I don’t get excited when a new version of the NEC comes around. That’s because a lot of Code authors argue and change the rules around installing disconnects, DC conduits, or even worse, grounding. I swear, section 690.47 on Grounding Electrode Systems will never stop changing, and I’m sure the entire section will continue to be revised over and over again. Nobody ever seems to agree on active grounding of photovoltaic (PV) systems. It’s amazing what controversy that such a well-understood physical phenomena (“grounding”) can evoke out of installers and inspectors. But I digress…

The reason why I’m most excited about this new Code cycle is due to the addition of NEC 691, 706, 710, and 712. Bill Brooks, James Rogers, Jason Fisher and the rest of the CMP (Code-Making Panel) 4 team really did an amazing job with this new release of NFPA 70 (the NEC). For those of you who don’t know, the CMP principals are the ones who advise the NEC technical committees to add, subtract or modify various articles of the NEC in order to accommodate ongoing technology improvements, new applications and product configurations, etc., all in the name of health and safety. Feel free to check out the members on CMP-4 by clicking here.

For fellow California legacy solar aficionados who have been in the industry for a while, you’ll notice that Rhonda Parkhurst is also on this list (from the City of Palo Alto). For anyone thinking of moving to Palo Alto and wishing to go solar, there is the beautiful neighboring city of Menlo Park. It is just as gorgeous as Palo Alto, only a hop-skip-and-a-jump away from the VC’s of Sand Hill Road, and with a far simpler permitting process for solar PV. I’m digressing again…

So what’s the big deal about NEC 2017? Doesn’t it revise various grounding requirements again (we now have definitions of “functional grounding,” for instance), expand on rapid shutdown requirements and introduce seemingly empty articles, like NEC 691 on Large-Scale Photovoltaic (PV) Electric Power Production Facility, which offers a whopping 1.5 pages of material?

Well, sure, that’s one way of looking at it. But what I like best is that the Code is so much more clear, organized and broken down than ever before, when designing for PV, energy storage, and micro-grid systems. These types of systems are accelerating in adoption, complexity and benefits to consumers in ways the world has never seen.

When I started installing grid-tied Lithium battery systems to do demand charge reduction in New York City back in 2011 (I was a founding member and consultant of Green Charge Networks back in 2009), there were no codes that applied to our installations. It was a complete mess. I remember pulling Code language out of NEC 480 and 690.71, which were barely able to help, if at all, in order to justify to NYC inspectors that what we were doing was indeed Code-compliant and safe.

And that was the easy part because when you start to mix cutting-edge technologies like grid-connected battery systems with PV (DC- or AC-coupled), with or without a grid-connection (e.g., micro-grids, diesel gen-set, etc.), then you were really on your own because there wasn’t even a hint from the Code on how to design those systems in a Code-compliant way. The only way to proceed at that point is to use all the time, experience and knowledge you have from installing PV and other electrical systems in the past, use the best judgment you have and take great care to work with all stakeholders to ensure the system gets installed at the end of the day, without hurting the customer on costs, obstacles and delays. As usual, technology leads regulation, and being a pioneer on the cutting-edge isn’t always easy, but knowing as many rules and requirements as early as possible goes a very long way. Only the strong survive. Many PV installers, engineers, entrepreneurs and business executives understand what this means, and very few have made it out in one piece.

Stay tuned for our next newsletter where I would elaborate on these awesome code sections…….

Ready to register on SepiSolar’s Customer-Centric Online Portal? You can quickly request free quotes, view your project status, communicate with your team and more! Click here for a quick tutorial that shows you exactly what to do.

This post was written by Josh Weiner, Solar Expert Witness & Solar Engineering Expert. Mr. Weiner has been at the forefront of the solar energy industry for over 20 years and is an industry leader on solar-plus-storage engineering & design. Josh’s expertise spans both in-front of and behind-the-meter initiatives including residential, commercial, utility, grid-scale, and ev charging solar and storage applications.

Whether you own solar panels, are a customer of our commercial solar services or are an astronomy aficionado, Monday is going to be an exciting day. On August 21, 2017, the moon will pass between earth and the sun. The moon will block the view of the sun in many parts of the country, some partially and a few completely.

The last eclipse of this kind was in 1979—and the national electricity grid was completely different back then. Solar panels were rare during that era; today solar power is growing in leaps and bounds. The increasing presence of solar panels makes many wonder what the eclipse means for those households and businesses powered by solar.
What will happen for solar users when the sun is eclipsed on Monday for two minutes and 43 seconds? Will the country’s utility scale solar energy plants go dark?

NERC Does Not Expect Reliability Issues

The good news is that experts do not believe we will experience blackouts. Much attention and planning has been directed at preparing for the eclipse’s impact. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), a nonprofit regulatory body that works with the entities controlling the grid, does not anticipate reliability issues for the bulk power system. Their analysis was shared in their 2017 Summer Reliability Assessment published in April.

While sunlight will be obscured during this monumental event, demand and supply play a role in how electricity will be affected. The eclipse’s path of totality starts in Oregon and moves east towards South Carolina over a 90 minute period. Solar generators directly in the path of totality will be most affected the most during the eclipse. In those areas, other sources of power will increase output to compensate for the temporary decrease in solar energy. Only 17 solar photovoltaic generators fall in this category, most of which are located in eastern Oregon. Those not directly in the path of totality will be less affected.

Preparing for the Future

What we learn during this eclipse will help us better understand and plan for the next one, which occurs in 2024. By then, solar power may be ubiquitous—it has grown approximately 68 percent per year over the past 10 years. The eclipse on August 21 will help us better prepare and discover how well the country’s system works when the sun goes dark.

Visit this link to learn more about our commercial solar services.

This post was written by Josh Weiner, Solar Expert Witness & Solar Engineering Expert. Mr. Weiner has been at the forefront of the solar energy industry for over 20 years and is an industry leader on solar-plus-storage engineering & design. Josh’s expertise spans both in-front of and behind-the-meter initiatives including residential, commercial, utility, grid-scale, and ev charging solar and storage applications.

August 2 was Earth Overshoot Day, and while it sounds like one of those quirky internet holidays, it is not one that our solar consulting services company celebrates. In fact, it’s a day no one will celebrate. It’s the date when the population’s demand for natural resources in a given year exceeds the planet’s capacity to replenish them. Formerly known as Ecological Debt Day, it marks the point when the yearly deficit truly begins.

The Concept

Earth Overshoot Day is calculated by the Global Footprint Network. This international group strives to changes how the world manages climate change and its ecological resources. They developed the Ecological Footprint, which measures the natural resources remaining on our planet against demand. To determine Earth Overshoot Day, they calculate how many days of the year that the Earth’s biocapacity can fulfill the population’s demand. The remaining number of days left during that year represents the overshoot.

Since Earth Overshoot Day fell on August 2, this means that every day until 2018, we are operating at a deficit of natural resources. This means that all the natural resources used from now until then are unsustainable. It’s a scary prospect considering we are barely halfway through the year.
The first Earth Overshoot Day was devised by Andrew Simms of the New Economics Foundation in London. In 2006, the think tank partnered with Global Footprint Network to launch the first campaign for the overshoot concept. That year, Earth Overshoot Day happened in October. If you do the math, you’ll find that in just over 10 years, we’ve already “lost” two months.

Contributing Factors

Much research shows that the three major factors affecting our dwindling natural resources include deforestation, overfishing and the emission of greenhouse gases. A way you can quickly contribute towards reducing this resource deficit is to go solar! Solar panels use no combustion and therefore emit no greenhouse gases to generate power. Going solar will reduce your carbon footprint and ultimately save you money on utilities.

Click through for information about our solar consulting services.

This post was written by Josh Weiner, Solar Expert Witness & Solar Engineering Expert. Mr. Weiner has been at the forefront of the solar energy industry for over 20 years and is an industry leader on solar-plus-storage engineering & design. Josh’s expertise spans both in-front of and behind-the-meter initiatives including residential, commercial, utility, grid-scale, and ev charging solar and storage applications.

Ready to register on SepiSolar’s Online Portal? Visit this link for a quick tutorial that shows you exactly what to do.

This post was written by Josh Weiner, Solar Expert Witness & Solar Engineering Expert. Mr. Weiner has been at the forefront of the solar energy industry for over 20 years and is an industry leader on solar-plus-storage engineering & design. Josh’s expertise spans both in-front of and behind-the-meter initiatives including residential, commercial, utility, grid-scale, and ev charging solar and storage applications.

You are invited to meet the real people who will be doing your solar drafting work at SepiSolar. We will be awaiting you at Booth # 8520 at the front of the hall at Moscone West 2nd floor at 2017 Intersolar North America, the largest solar gathering in the USA.

WHERE AND WHEN?

Tuesday July 11 – Thursday July 13
Intersolar San Francisco
Josh Weiner’s
SepiSolar Solar Drafting Experts and Consultants

WE ARE CUSTOMER-CENTRIC!

Receive the most personalized service on your solar drafting work with SepiSolar, where your account manager is also your designer.

solar drafting experts

This post was written by Josh Weiner, Solar Expert Witness & Solar Engineering Expert. Mr. Weiner has been at the forefront of the solar energy industry for over 20 years and is an industry leader on solar-plus-storage engineering & design. Josh’s expertise spans both in-front of and behind-the-meter initiatives including residential, commercial, utility, grid-scale, and ev charging solar and storage applications.

It’s Energy Week—the perfect time to consider our residential or commercial solar services if you haven’t already. While the Trump Administration’s goal is for our country to become “energy dominant,” you can make a difference just by going solar. While plans to boost fossil fuel production may harm our environment, if we promote energy efficiency and sustainable resources, we can offset some of the harmful effects of greenhouse emissions.

The Plan for Energy Dominance

The Administration recently shared its plans to become self-reliant from other nations. This would make us a secure nation, free from dependency on the countries who use energy as an economic weapon. We would no longer be impacted by geo-political turmoil endured in these regions of the world. Since 1953, the United States has be a major net energy importer; with technological advancements, this can change. The Administration’s goal is to use these innovations to make our great nation a net exporter of natural gas by 2028. This would mean more job growth and expansion across the industry. Yet what will the environment impact be?

How to Make a Difference

What we can focus on now as individuals and business owners is utilizing sustainable energy sources and overall efficiency practices. It’s more important than ever to reduce our collective carbon footprint—and going solar is the perfect way to do this. When you install solar panels, combustion is unnecessary to power your home or building. This means no gas emissions and no environmental repercussions. You’ll also decrease your personal or business’ dependence on energy generated by fossil fuels, which reduces demand on utility companies.

Another way to help the environment and conserve resources is to employ energy efficiency on a personal level. Efficient technologies reduce waste and provide the same level of service using less energy. For example, many have taken to using compact fluorescent bulbs in lieu of traditional incandescent ones, as the former uses less electricity. This kind of practice helps even if you have solar, as it can contribute to your overage. Another great example of energy efficiency is insulation. Insulated homes and buildings require less energy to cool or heat.

If you’re ready to make a considerable difference, contact us now for information about our residential and commercial solar services.

This post was written by Josh Weiner, Solar Expert Witness & Solar Engineering Expert. Mr. Weiner has been at the forefront of the solar energy industry for over 20 years and is an industry leader on solar-plus-storage engineering & design. Josh’s expertise spans both in-front of and behind-the-meter initiatives including residential, commercial, utility, grid-scale, and ev charging solar and storage applications.

Mercedes has announced the introduction of its residential battery system into the North American market. Click here to read about this.

This post was written by Josh Weiner, Solar Expert Witness & Solar Engineering Expert. Mr. Weiner has been at the forefront of the solar energy industry for over 20 years and is an industry leader on solar-plus-storage engineering & design. Josh’s expertise spans both in-front of and behind-the-meter initiatives including residential, commercial, utility, grid-scale, and ev charging solar and storage applications.

SepiSolar Solar Design and Permitting is poised to meet the needs of solar installers and developers as their hometown of Fremont, CA is now mandating that all new homes will require that they have EV chargers and solar panels to be built to “ZeroNet Energy” by 2020. As the company most knowledgeable about single family, multi-unit and commercial projects that need to be designed to meet Fremont, SepiSolar will be active in this program’s implementation.

Click here to view the article in the East Bay Times about Fremont’s new solar legislation.

This post was written by Josh Weiner, Solar Expert Witness & Solar Engineering Expert. Mr. Weiner has been at the forefront of the solar energy industry for over 20 years and is an industry leader on solar-plus-storage engineering & design. Josh’s expertise spans both in-front of and behind-the-meter initiatives including residential, commercial, utility, grid-scale, and ev charging solar and storage applications.

Saturday, April 22 is Earth Day. It’s the perfect time to consider going solar if you haven’t already. Solar energy was first harnessed

This post was written by Josh Weiner, Solar Expert Witness & Solar Engineering Expert. Mr. Weiner has been at the forefront of the solar energy industry for over 20 years and is an industry leader on solar-plus-storage engineering & design. Josh’s expertise spans both in-front of and behind-the-meter initiatives including residential, commercial, utility, grid-scale, and ev charging solar and storage applications.

SepiSolar, along with several partners, completes impressive new solar power array at Mercedes-Benz of Fresno.

The new system includes:

396 kW, 328 kW AC.
1524 Jinko JKM 60-P Solar Panel Modules.
8 Solectria PVI 36TL & 2 Solectria PVI 20TL Inverters.
Skyline Steel Carports & Unirac Ballast Roof Mount.

At SepiSolar, we thank our clients and partners.

SepiSearch

Why I’m Excited about the 2017 NEC Coming Out, Part 1

How Will the Eclipse Affect Solar Power?

NERC Does Not Expect Reliability Issues

Preparing for the Future

Earth Overshoot Day Occurred August 2

The Concept

Contributing Factors

Tutorial for Self-Registration on SepiSolar’s Online Portal

Visit SepiSolar Experts at InterSolar North America

WHERE AND WHEN?

WE ARE CUSTOMER-CENTRIC!

Celebrate Energy Week by Going Solar

The Plan for Energy Dominance

How to Make a Difference

Do Residential Lithium Battery Systems Make Economic Sense?

Fremont-based SepiSolar Solar Design and Permitting is Ready to Meet the Needs of Fremont’s New Solar Legislation

Go Solar for Earth Day

SepiSolar and Partners Complete Install at Mercedes Benz of Fresno

CA Small Business Enterprise