EFS Energy
EFS Energy recently completed a 25.5-kW solar installation on a Civil War-era barn at Magill Farms in Millstadt, Illinois. This particular barn style, designed around the late 1800s, is known as a gambrel or prairie roof.
“What makes this such a unique build is that our designers made an effort to not only use the roof face, but we also encompassed the flat surfaces, as well,” said Jay Gifford, construction project manager at EFS. “A lot of other solar companies wouldn’t attempt a project like this because of the difficulty of the build, but EFS Energy has a proud history of customer service and an affinity for problem solving.”
EFS is based in St. Louis and has been developing solar installations across the Midwest for over 10 years. The company estimates that this solar array will offset 100% of the energy annual use for both the resident’s home and barn.
“EFS was excited to take on the unique challenges of installing solar on a historic, Civil War-era barn. Our expert installation crew was able to maintain the company’s high-quality standards without compromising on safety. The result is an aesthetically pleasing blend of a historic landmark and cutting-edge technology,” said Paul McKnight, owner and CEO of EFS Energy.
News item from EFS Energy
Interesting, by looking at the picture, it looks like these particular panels are just over 215 watts per panel. One could have used the Panasonic HJT 340 watt panels and had a maximum of 40.8kWh and an all around minimum of 35.9kWh under less than ideal light conditions. Get that tandem Perovskite solar PV panel with a 35% solar harvest efficiency and one could have about 63kWp average. With that kind of energy harvest, that and a 240kWh ESS could make true utility scale off grid possible.
This should be scary to the rote utilities, they are one lousy ‘discovery away’ from irrelevant. Folks with a 20 foot by 20 foot 400 square foot patch of roof space could have about 10.5kWp array, one could run the house and charge a BEV with that kind of power available. With a BEV with a bidirectional charger and V2H and V2G capability, the utility will have less and less involvement with residential electricity users over a 24 hour period.