Valley Stream kitchen company goes solar

You can call it a bright idea that has one local business using solar panels to generate electricity, saving money and the environment.

“After they are installed, it gets you thinking about how else you can save,” said Bruce Bauerle, owner of Five Star Kitchens on East Merrick Road. “You become alert to the fact that you are saving energy and you do not want to waste energy.”

With a “need to go green,” he considered this alternative. “I was toying with solar and thinking about it,” he said.

Then last June, after a random call from Mercury Solar, an East Coast-based solar installation company, he became convinced. According to Bauerle, Mercury Solar looked up his building on Google Earth and said it would be perfect for solar panels.

The roof gets good exposure from the sun in the south — a ideal attribute for homes and buildings that benefit from solar panels. Marvin Greenberg, owner of Michael’s Electric in Lynbrook, explained that not every building is a good candidate. If it is shaded by lots of trees which block a lot of sunlight, the panels will not work efficiently.

But Five Star’s roof was so impressive to Mercury that a representative came down to see it, walk through, and even construct a model of what the panels would look like. Bauerle then purchased his 36.3 kilowatt photovoltaic system in October, before installing it in December. The system, which includes 144 panels, inverts direct current electricity into alternating current that is used in the building.

Saving money

The Long Island Power Authority offers rebates as an incentive, which Bauerle received. According to LIPA, a one-time rebate of $1.75 per watt for photovoltaic, or PV systems up to 10,000 watts, is offered to help reduce the overall installation cost. The rebate is issued once a system is properly installed and inspected, according to LIPA’s website.

However, LIPA will adjust its rebates from time to time to account for declining installation costs and “unprecedented demand” for solar systems, according to Mark Gross, the company’s director of communications. “The adjustment also allows more of our customers to participate in the program,” he said.

Since 2000, solar customers have seen a decline in the amount of investment needed to participate in solar energy, he added. Currently, about 1,000 residential systems have been rebated in Nassau County, according to Gross. LIPA’s solar programs have also rebated $105 million for residential, commercial, municipal and non-profit PV systems.

Bauerle also received federal grants. An up to a 30 percent tax credit is offered for residential customers and New York State also offers one up to 25 percent. Using the credits, Bauerle’s system will be paid off in a little more than three years, instead of 10 to 15.

In the meantime, he is saving about $850 a month. His normally $1,600 per month electric bill has been cut in half. But that’s not all. Whenever his system produces more electricity that the building needs, one of his meters can start running backward, deducting energy. LIPA can then issue a credit.

Benefitting the environment

Bauerle described his system as a “mini-solar generating facility” because whenever it generates excess power, it can be collected by LIPA’s grids. “You can generate to put the [power] back on the street and to the grids,” he said.

It’s a way to help LIPA fulfill its power needs. One of LIPA’s environmental objectives is to reduce peak electrical usage by 524 within the next 10 years, according to a company spokesperson. By giving electricity back, Bauerle hoped that LIPA does not have to build another power plant.

And very happy to do his part, Bauerle also described his success with helping the environment so far. By the second week in January, his system had generated more than eight million watts of electricity and saved 587 gallons of gas.