Tour of Solar Homes

Southern IL Solar Tour Recap

If you missed the tour a couple of the sites are open year round by appointment so call us at 618 893 1717.

Thanks to an article on the Sunday before in the Southern Illinoisan, an article in the Nightlife, and one in the Carbondale Times along with the promos on WDBX- Community Radio we had a great turnout. This year thanks partially from a small grant from the Illinois Solar Energy Association we were able to do a little commercial radio advertising. If you missed the tour a couple of the sites are open year round by appointment so call us at 618 893 1717.

Although we had less people than on previous years, the new people who came on the tour did so with more knowledge of Renewables than previous years.

We had two homeowners back out at the last minute due to remodeling jobs taking longer than they thought and a solar hot water system sprang a leak so the people on the tour got to see repairs in action.

A few people drove over an hour to view systems and one man drove over two hours from Indiana.

There are a lot of people that have been living off of the grid around Southern Illinois for over 15-20 years but they were kind of embarrassed to show off their systems because the systems are so small and simplistic. We are looking for some passive solar (and regular solar electric) homes/buildings to showcase next year if you know of any.
Thank for all who participated in the 8th Annual National Solar Tour and the 4th Annual Southern Illinois Solar Tour. Let us know how we can do the tour better next year, which will be Saturday October 2, 2004 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Saturday October 2, 2004 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Welcome to the 8th Annual Solar Tour, here are the directions; there will be Solar Tour signs. Phone 618 893 1717 or 800 229 0453. Some educational material will be available at all sites but most of the information is at site 1. View the Federal building in Carbondale, and all the construction signs in the area that are solar powered.

Pomona: Site 1 consists of multiple systems; one powers the barn and consists of 300 watts of Photowatt photovoltaic (PV) solar electric modules, 16 6 volt deep cycle batteries, and a Trace 1512 inverter to produce 110 volt AC to run the lights, radio, and the occasional power tool. The house system is also a stand-alone system that powers the living room. This system is small but simple. The panel (195 watts of PV, 4 modules) charges four 6 volt sealed deep cycle generic batteries that power a little 300-watt inverter. A plug strip in the living room provides a simplistic breaker. Also a RV trailer system, consisting of an BP 85 watt module charging a battery which runs lights, laptop, cell phone, fans and a radio. Also see two solar powered attic fans in operation.
Directions are; Coming south from Murphysboro on 127 about 7 miles to Pomona, turn right on Pomona road following the wine trail. Drive down the hill and at the stop sign turn left, again following the wine trail. Go one mile to Gates Road. Down Gates Road, park and view the systems. Lots of information will be available. Directions to the other sites are also here. This site is open year round by appointment. To go from this site to site 2 go back to 127 and go south and follow the wine trail to the through Alto Pass and Cobden.

Cobden: Site 2 is a grid connected back up PV system that produces electricity for the farm. System includes 1200 watts of Siemens PV solar modules, a 403 wind gen-set, run through two Trace 4048 inverters producing both 110 and 220 volt AC, with 16 Trojan T-105 6volt deep cycle batteries for back up power.
Directions are; Drive south on highway 51 from Carbondale, go past the wine trail signs near Cobden road, past the Karl Sweitzer vegetable stand off the road to the right and start looking for Spanish Bluff Rd. on the left as you come up the hill. Turn left on Spanish Bluff Rd. The road forks, take the left fork. Go maybe a 1/4 of a mile and the road branches into 3 roads, look to the right for parking. See the barn, the system is behind the barn. To go from this site to site 1 go back north on 51 and follow the wine trail to the west through Cobden, Alto Pass, and Pomona. This site is open year round by appointment.

Du Quoin: Site 3 is a solar hot water system and using a solar electric pump to circulate the liquid. This couple produces the majority of their domestic hot water using this system.

Johnston City: Site 4 is a grid integrated power system that was designed to produce an average of 70% of the necessary electricity for the place. System includes 3960 watts of SAPC Sharp 165 watt PV solar modules on two dual axis trackers, a 403 wind gen-set, run through two Trace 4048 inverters producing both 110 and 220 volt AC with 32 generic Exide T-105 6 volt deep cycle batteries for back up power.

St. Louis: The EarthWays Home, the Gateway Center Resource Efficiency's headquarters, is a three-story Victorian residence built in 1885 and renovated in 1994 to showcase energy efficient systems, recycled products and waste reduction practices. Systems and products in the EarthWays Home offer visitors a springboard to rethink product design and building operations to achieve affordable resource efficiency. Visitors will experience hands-on applications of sustainable lifestyle choices. Many existing features in the EarthWays Home are readily available for general construction and renovation. Examples of things to see:

EarthWays Public Tours
3rd Friday & Saturday each month
10 am • 11 am • Noon • 1 pm
Admission: $2 per person
Missouri Botanical Garden Members
and Children Age 12 & Under Free