Today we’re profiling one of our favorite customers, the Blackwood family of New Jersey (see video above). Many SunPower customers have two drivers for making the switch to solar: it makes financial sense and helps the environment. The Blackwoods fully embody this line of thinking. They computed that the return on investment for ownership of their solar system over its lifetime would outperform the S&P 500 with average monthly savings of $200. They also invested in an electric-MINI Cooper to cut down on their carbon output, which combined with their SunPower solar system will enable them to reduce their CO2 output by 30,000 pounds per year! We’re proud to work with such informed, forward-thinking customers.

We talked with Phil Blackwood about his decision to purchase solar, the purchase process and what’s next in his ongoing quest towards energy efficiency:

SP: Why did you go solar?
PB: I have always been fascinated by solar power. When I talked to some people [with solar panels] I could see how happy they were with their systems, especially when the systems had already paid for themselves. I did some financial calculations and decided it was not only good for the environment but also a good investment. After we had our system installed I continued reading about the environmental benefits and found they are incredible.

SP: How was the solar the purchase process?
PB: The purchase process was simple. I visited our local dealer, really liked the people I met there, and pretty much decided on the spot to go ahead and get the system. After discussing it with my wife, we put down a deposit to get the panels ordered!

SP: How effective has your SunPower system been in reducing your monthly energy bills?
PB: My panels are producing exactly the amount of power I was expecting. My lowest electric bill has been $2. Typically I am saving more than $200 a month. The amount of power produced held up well as the days got shorter in the fall. They produce the most power in the summer - right when we need it to air condition the house.

SP: You’re obviously an eco-conscious consumer. Now that you’re armed with solar panels and an electric vehicle, what’s next?
PB: I held a big celebration to inaugurate my system, and later in the evening I started thinking, “Now what? Maybe I can paint my roof white!” I studied that and decided a better option was to install a radiant barrier on the lower side of the roof (inside the attic). It’s the same idea as white paint, but it’s on the inside instead of the outside. We had our radiant barrier installed in January. I’m also changing out all our light bulbs with LED and ESL bulbs. Since we have already done a lot of other energy efficiency work on the house, the one big thing remaining is to switch out our natural gas heating with a heat pump that runs off the electricity from our roof. And maybe expand our system. And maybe see if we can go from one electric car and one gas-powered car, to two all-electrics.

SP: What advice would you provide to a homeowner who is considering a solar system purchase?
PB: Go for it!

With major automotive companies, including Ford, Nissan and Chevy set to introduce electric commercial and passenger vehicles this year, we couldn’t be more excited about both the short-term and long-term potential for major carbon reductions.

The cause of our excitement in the short term is that even if these vehicles are getting their electricity from dirty sources, which will be the case for many considering that much of electrical generation is from coal fired power plants, electric vehicles will still be clear winners in terms of a reduced carbon footprint when compared to their internal combustion engine (ICE) cousins.

However, if they receive their charges from renewable sources, such as a house, utility or charging station that is generating solar energy, consumers can then enjoy a dramatically reduced carbon footprint. This is what gets us excited!

At SunPower we envision a future where more of our energy is renewable and electric vehicles are a big step in making one’s commute green. While we understand that electric vehicles getting fuel from non-renewable sources is a little dirty, when homeowners and utilities embrace sources of energy that are abundant and renewable, such as solar, the benefits of having more and more electric vehicles on the streets become exponentially better.

Why shouldn’t our cars get their energy from the same source that has been powering plant life for hundreds of millions of years? After all, in the early stages of the automobile, electric vehicles dominated the market (link). Over time, electrics lost out to ICE automobiles because of the cheap abundance of petroleum, but now with the prices of gasoline unstable, extraction more risky and supplies finite; and with solar and renewable energy more affordable and abundant, why shouldn’t we return to the automobile’s electric origins?

A recent report by Deloitte forecasts that the electric vehicle market will make up only 3.1 percent of total automotive sales in the US (link), but this doesn’t tell the real story of the future of electric vehicles and their potential. We are already hearing about the success of some of our customers who are early adopters. For example, read the following testimonial of one of SunPower’s satisfied customers Tom Moloughney (here is a link toTom’s blog) below.

"My 8.8kwh SunPower solar electric system provides enough electricity to charge my 100% electric MINI-E and still have enough energy production left over to cover most of my home usage, Tom said via email. "lectric cars are the future of transportation and many major automotive manufacturers have electric cars in development right now," continued Tom. “Within a few years you’ll have many choices to buy electric cars and combining one with a home based solar electric system from SunPower will not only save you a lot of money, but allow you to enjoy the benefits of driving a true, 100% zero emission vehicle."

If you are interested in getting your own solar system to power your electric vehicle, we are offering up to $2000 additional rebates to the first 100 Facebook fans to sign up for a free solar evaluation on SunPower’s Facebook Page. Don’t miss this limited time offer and feel free to share it with your friends!