www.naplesnews.com/news/2009/aug/16/solar-power-one-nap -
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Last Visited: 8/16/2009
Dr. Raymond Phillips, a doctor at The Gastroenterology Group of Naples, explains how the Bidirectional NET Meter reads the amount of energy flowing in and out of the building and then how much power is then routed to the Florida Power and Light.
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Dr. Raymond Phillips, a Doctor at The Gastroenterology Group of Naples explains how the Bidirectional NET Meter reads the amount of energy flowing in and out of the building and then how much power is then routed to the Florida Power and Light.
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Dr. Raymond Phillips, a doctor at The Gastroenterology Group of Naples, explains how the installation of solar panels at his office building offers direct currents. From there, the energy is inverted through converter boxes into alternating currents and then distributed equally throughout the buildings. The energy that is left unused flows out to Florida Power and Light and then is reimbursed to The Gastroenterology Group's energy bill. Dr. Phillips says that this solar powered system produced 50 percent of the demand needed to run his practice.
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Dr. Raymond Phillips, a doctor at The Gastroenterology Group of Naples, explains how the installation of solar panels at his office building offers direct currents. From there, the energy is inverted through converter boxes into alternating currents and then distributed equally throughout the buildings. The energy that is left unused flows out to Florida Power and Light and then is reimbursed to The Gastroenterology Group's energy bill. Dr. Phillips says that this solar powered system produced 50 percent of the demand needed to run his practice.
...
Dr. Raymond Phillips, a doctor at The Gastroenterology Group of Naples, explains how the Bidirectional NET Meter reads the amount of energy flowing in and out of the building and then how much power is then routed to the Florida Power and Light.
...
"I'm rooting for the sunshine," Phillips said.
Not too long ago, Phillips, who has been at the practice since 1991, was watching the electric bill for his practice climb 5 percent year over year despite an office-wide effort to monitor air conditioning use and money spent tinting all the office windows.
In 2008 the annual electricity cost reached $26,000.
"It got to the point where we were asking, 'What else can we do?'" Phillips said.
Two years ago the solar option dawned on Phillips.
At the time Florida government was reimbursing solar panels at $4 per watt on top of a federal energy efficiency tax credit and the credit crisis was canceling larger solar projects, which was bringing material costs down, Phillips said.
Solar power "just became much more feasible," he said.
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At those times the practice's meter actually runs backward, sending power back to the Florida Power & Light for energy credits, Phillips said.
Phillips tracks the flow of electricity from his office computer through a software called SunnyPortal.
He expects the system to pay for itself in about four years.