What to do? [RE-wrenches]

[Smitty]

Chuck, make a solar roofed gazebo?? I like the consulting thing too. Smitty.

"Chuck Heath, SunPower" wrote:

> Hello fellow Wrenches - Seriously, what do you tell an eccentric 60-year
> old multi-millionaire who wants a grid tied system but doesn't want the
> solar modules to "interfere" with the undetermined general landscaping
> plan? He and his wife are building their retirement home here in N.
> California.
>
> Advice from his friendly general contractor of many years: tell him you
> are a specialist, and will work as a consultant, with a written contract
> at at least $85/hr. and a $1,000 retainer.
> The Gen'l Contractor suggests he'll spend hours with me discussing before
> deciding anything.
>
> This potential clients' biggest concern is that solar modules are "ugly",
> so he wants to hide them as much as possible. He's thinking of having us
> put them _flat_ on a 150 ft. curved wall running roughly N-S, rather than
> any conventional top of pole or A-frame mounts ("they're ugly too"). He
> wants a graphic drawing of how it might look first.
>
> He wants us to coordinate with his Landscape Architect on the final
> design for this grid tie system using the California Buydown program. He
> could care less about efficiency. He's already paid big $$ for 3/4 mile
> of _underground_ PG&E primary (12 KV), and seems to want 5 kW of PV as
> "window dressing" so he can brag about being a "a great steward of the
> land" while reducing his PG&E bill.
>
> Finding out what he likes and is acceptable will take many hours, let
> alone developing a specific proposal.
>
> This is a rare opportunity for us, and we don't want to lose it. How
> would you handle it?
>
> Cordially, Chuck (what a dilemma!)
>
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