While renovating this house on Long Island, NY, the owner hired Bright Power to install a solar hot water system.

The two-story house has a southeast-facing rooftop suitable for solar-panels. Bright Power installed the panels flush to the sloped roof. This approach minimizes the visibility of the panels from the street and reduces the cost of the hardware needed to secure the panels to the roof.

In the basement, Bright Power installed a special hot water tank that draws as much heat as it can from the sun - typically 30% to 70%. When the sun is not sufficient to heat all the water, a hot water boiler is used to heat the water the rest of the way. The Schuco brand solar system delivers hot water as reliably as a standard gas boiler, but at a fraction of the cost.

Smart Financing: This homeowner took advantage of $7,000 in tax credits from the New York State and Federal governments. Incorporating solar panels while the house was still early in the gut renovation process allowed this homeowner to reduce plumbing and roofing costs by over a thousand dollars.