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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>There are good people who make and teach
other people how to make solar modules.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Richard Komp, co-author of the 1983 edition of The
New Solar Electric Home, author of Practical Photovoltaics, President of the
Maine Solar Energy Society, etc. See <A
href="http://www.mainesolar.org/">http://www.mainesolar.org/</A></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Tor Allen, founder of the Rahus Institute, etc. See
<A href="http://www.rahus.org/">http://www.rahus.org/</A></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>and many more well-informed, good people
around the world.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=gilligan06@gmail.com href="mailto:gilligan06@gmail.com">Matt
Lafferty</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=jryago@netscape.com
href="mailto:jryago@netscape.com">jryago@netscape.com</A> ; <A
title=re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org
href="mailto:re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org">'RE-wrenches'</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Thursday, February 12, 2009 7:41
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: [RE-wrenches] Panel
Fire</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Hi Jeff,</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Somebody should keep an eye on that neighbor of your
friend. There have been any number of "DIY" publications and scams out there.
Here's just one of many that basically lead to the same thing.... <A
href="http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/hsh/1031018343.html">http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/hsh/1031018343.html</A>
The C-list ad has a link to this place: <A
href="http://www.solar-panel-kit.net/">http://www.solar-panel-kit.net/</A>
</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><EM><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></EM></SPAN><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT
face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>What this one is is a $50 book that tells you how to
build your own windmill, PV module.... Yada Yada... This particular one is a
guy named Michael Harvey. Anybody know him? </FONT></SPAN><SPAN
class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>This is only 1
bright idea away from the guy who rented the shop next to your friend. As in,
that guy bought this book thinking he was gonna "beat the utility". When he
went to Ebay to buy his 1st batch of cells, he saw that they weren't all that
scarce. He beat Travis C out on an auction and built a couple for
himself. Then he had the bright idea! What if he did this for a bunch of
people and sold them? </FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>It's not necessarily that the guy with the bright idea
was evil... Not necessarily. He could just happen to be a guy who isn't fully
informed and thinks that there's just no reason for why everybody else charges
so much and wants to do right by everybody. But, as the old saying goes,
ignorance is no excuse for the law.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009></SPAN><SPAN
class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>I'm wondering if this is really the brainchild and
"factory" for CitizenRE... Independent dealers all over the country buying
surplus cells on Ebay... </FONT></SPAN><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT
face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>That would be a mahvelous concept... Until
they burn, of course. That kinda puts a kink in the residential PPA model. But
hey, if all you gotta do is buy $30 worth of slotted angle, 64 each 1/4-20 x
1" bolts & nuts, 20 lags, a tube of caulk, and some wire for BOS and the
modules cost you $0.50 a watt and you don't bother faking a label on them, you
probably don't have to even apply for a rebate. You could have your kids just
slapping cells onto plexiglass and putting clear shrink-wrap over the front
and sticking them onto 1-1/2" aluminum angle for a frame. </FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Just a thought.... </FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV align=left><EM><FONT face="Monotype Corsiva" size=4><STRONG>Matt
Lafferty</STRONG></FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2><A
href="mailto:gilligan06@gmail.com">gilligan06@gmail.com</A></FONT></DIV>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr align=left><SPAN
class=453191503-13022009><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr align=left><SPAN
class=453191503-13022009></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr align=left>
<HR tabIndex=-1>
</DIV>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=453191503-13022009> Jeff Y
wrote: </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, sans-serif">
<DIV><BR>The other day a guy rented a warehouse near a business friend of mine
and he went over to say Hi. My friend later told me this guy told him he
was planning to "build" solar pv modules that he was going to
sell and install. Although my friend was no engineer and didn't
really know what to look for, when I described some of the typical equipment
that is required he said it was mostly just work benches and hand
tools. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I am betting your first reaction was the same as mine which was
- how could he expect to hand build solar module's to compete with
commercially made and certified solar modules?</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Anyway, after reading this thread I am wondering is this more common than
I thought? Is this some kind of trend? Are there others out there
trying to build solar modules? And finally, with all the different
commercially made and certified solar modules out there in any size, wattage,
and shape you want, how can they expect to be competitive, assuming their
home-made modules don't catch fire?</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV></DIV>
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