An $8 bill from Energy? Solar power does the trick

The Times-Picayune
Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Denice Petit is upset with the size of a recent bill from Energy -- a whopping $8. No zeros, no mistake. "We used 77 cents worth of power, but the minimum charge is $8," she said.

A typical summer bill at the Petit home is about $25, counting an air conditioner that is temporarily on the power grid and a swimming pool filter, which the Petits have disconnected.

With solar panels, a wind turbine and super-efficient appliances, Denice and her husband, Sandy, spend a pittance to power their 1,000 square-foot house in Bayou Gauche.

Their home, at 886 Grand Bayou Road, is on the American Solar Energy Society's "National Solar Tour" on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., where people interested in alternative energy sources can stop by and listen to pioneers such as the Petits.

Sandy Petit, 53, an electronics engineer for the St. Charles Parish School Board, has tinkered with solar and wind power for 20 years. "I started out building solar camps, then moved into houses," he said.

A bank of batteries powers the house, which in turn are charged by a panel of solar cells. The solar cells generate 3,500 watts of power a day, enough to run the household, with the exception of air conditioning.

"This is what they use to power the space station," Denice Petit said. "If it's good enough for them, it's good enough for us."