Solar Power to the People: Modular Residential Solar Shade Structures Created by Envision Solar
LifeTreeT and LifeShadeT Solar Kit-Build Structures Offer Stylish Outdoor Living Space
LA JOLLA, Calif.-- September 01, 2008 --Envision Solar, the La Jolla, California based firm best known for its award-winning design of the Solar TreesT in Kyocera's landmark Solar GroveT, has expanded its product line of photovoltaic shade structures to include two "flat-pack" easy to install modular shade structures, each with eight solar panels providing 1.4 kilowatt of clean energy.
The LifeTreeT is a single post steel structure with a cantilevered canopy, and the LifeShadeT is a four-post structure made of Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) certified sustainable wood. Both are an attractive and functional application of solar power that provides recreational shade, without a requirement for a complex and invasive rooftop installation. The structures are shipped in easy to assemble components and include solar power modules, micro-inverters, and access to an online real-time tracking system to monitor production of clean energy. The structures are anchored in post-holes by concrete, in much the same way that basketball hoops or flagpoles are installed, and a local electrician can connect the AC wiring from the structure to the house meter.
At a price point of $15,500 for the LifeShadeT and $18,500 for the LifeTreeT, these new products offer a lower cost solar power option for homeowners and businesses. Envision Solar designers have focused on modularity as an important goal, because it offers price efficiency and accessibility to clean energy to more people. CEO Robert Noble adds, "We are committed to massive retail deployment of this product in a flat-pack format for local assembly and installation."
In addition to their attractive design and low price, The LifeTreeT and LifeShadeT products offer state of the art technical features; they were designed specifically for photovoltaic modules made by Suntech, and both the LifeTreeT and the LifeShadeT are equipped with "micro-inverters" from Enphase Energy. Micro-inverters convert the energy from the sun into usable alternating current at each module, eliminating the need for a bulky inverter on the side of the building at the meter and making connection to the meter a less costly undertaking. Enphase Energy also offers online access to a real-time monitoring package so that owners can track their clean energy production.
Noble describes the company's mission to employ the principles of sustainable design to innovate in the solar power sector: "We see renewable energy as an architectural element that be integrated into our spaces and our lives."
About Envision Solar International, Inc.
Envision Solar International, Inc. is a turn-key, solar integrated building systems developer. The company's mission is to provide aesthetically pleasing photovoltaic systems to increase the worldwide use of renewable energy. Led by a group of visionary architects, builders and engineers, Envision Solar transforms heat-absorbing parking areas into beautiful, efficient solar power plants. Learn more about us at: www.envisionsolar.com.
Contacts
Envision Solar
Pamela Stevens, 858-768-5151
pstevens@envisionsolar.com
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