ColoradoBiz Magazine -
[Cached Version]
Published on: 4/20/2006
Last Visited: 4/21/2006
Eric Wahl sells both wholesale and does solar installations for electricity production out of Glenwood Springs.His company, Colorado Solar Electric, is four years old.
He calls the Xcel Energy subsidy , Xcel will pay half the cost of a new solar electric system, about $15,000 , ,a fantastic development.,
,There,s two sides to the coin, though,, Wahl told CoBizMag.com. ,Getting into the business on a national level is al little harder because there is so much activity and demand.You can,t just start a Web site anymore.,
Although you need a few tools, a truck and probably some shop space, it is more important to have the installation knowledge , you still need to know basic electricity , than money to start a service business.And now that the industry is out of the back woods, Wahl said, you have to meet the challenge of marketing.
Solar thermal: This category also falls under photovoltaics, but uses them to heat water, such as your home hot water heater or an industrial plant.Wahl, owner of Colorado Solar, does not install solar thermal, but says that has the biggest demand from homeowners, and therefore represents the largest opportunity for business owners.