Outlet-free enterprise

Alicia Robinson

In an effort to keep rising energy costs at bay, two local business

owners looked to the sun.

Architect Edward Morse and mechanical engineer Robert Scott are

enjoying savings on their electric bills from a solar-power system

recently installed in the Newport Boulevard building where they work.

Morse, of Morse-Boudreaux Architects, and Scott, of United

Mechanical Consultants, own the building along with Mike Boudreaux,

Dan Splitter and Bill Thomas. In addition to their offices, the

building houses work spaces that are leased to design professionals,

such as construction managers, electrical engineers and interior

designers.

The modern-looking, high-ceilinged space, with glass-walled

cubicles and air circulation pipes made of fabric, was once an

Oriental rug store. Morse and Scott moved into the building in April

2003 and had a solar power collection system installed earlier this

year.

“We started talking about it and decided that, No. 1, it would be

a good hedge on increasing utility rates,” Morse said. “It takes care

of about three-fourths of our electrical energy needs at full

capacity.”

That reduced the building’s electric bills from $1,300 a month to about $400 a month, Morse said. Even on overcast days, the solar

panels can collect enough energy to meet at least one-fourth of the

building’s demand.

A San Clemente company called New Vision installed the system,

which is designed to offer benefits beyond electric cost savings.

Rather than installing solar panels on the building’s roof, the

designers created a free-standing steel canopy right next to it at a

21-degree angle. The canopy holds 243 solar panels that each collect

160 watts of power, and its angle helps shade the side of the

building from the heat of the day as well as providing cover for a

row of parking spaces.

The power is collected and sent to a box in the back of the

building, where it is converted from raw power into a usable form,

and a meter inside the building tells people how much power is being

generated and how much is being used.

Morse and Scott were considering the long-term cost savings and

the environmental benefits of going solar, but the deal was sweetened

by federal and state tax credits and incentives offered by Southern

California Edison.

The power company has been inundated with requests to get into its

solar power incentive program, said Howard Green, director of the

self-generating incentive program for Southern California Edison.

Edison pays $4.50 per watt and discounts customers’ electric bills

when their solar systems generate more power than their buildings

use.

From 50 applicants when the program began in 2001, it has grown to

167 applicants so far this year, Green said.

The Newport Boulevard building is one of several in Costa Mesa

with the system, but its design is unique, he said.

“I thought it was a very interesting project,” Green said. “They

tried to make it look as if it was part of the building.”

Morse and Scott said they’re pleased with the results, and they

look for ways to incorporate solar power or other energy-saving

systems into their design projects, but not every client is

receptive.

“Even though it’s been used for years, it’s still kind of a new

thing for developers,” Scott said.

Scott noted that because the electricity that powers most of

Southern California comes from Montana, Utah and elsewhere, it is

delivered through a frustratingly inefficient system. He added that

his solar power system is more than 90% efficient.

“It seems to me a great shame to have such a marvelous resource --

sunlight -- and not use it,” said Scott, who also had his home

equipped to collect solar power. “It’s a small positive impact, but

it is a positive impact.”

For information on Southern California Edison’s self-generation

incentive program, visit https://www.sce.com or call (800) 736-4777.