<html><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:verdana, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size:10pt"><div><span><font size="3" face="Times New Roman">
</font><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri">Dear
Esteemed Colleagues,</font></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri">The purpose of this email is to start sharing solutions to the roof top access issue. </font></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri">I am not an
expert in fire fighting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, one of
our best clientele demographic is firefighters. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have learned the following from them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>1) Firefighters avoid jumping on roofs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I witnessed this avoidance first hand along
with their venting technique during a home fire of my own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a single story house with flames
pouring out of the back bedroom window.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They stormed the house and simultaneously set up a HUGE fan in a door to
blow out the smoke and vent the house (the house was saved). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is my understanding this is how Europe and
other parts of the world have been fighting fires for decades. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>2) On the rare occasion where they
jump on a roof, a 3 foot pathway for a person carrying an 80lb pack offers no
appeal and alternate access and egress are employed. </font></span></div><div><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri">When I look
at houses in Germany and Japan, when I look at cover after cover after cover of
Home Power, and all of the articles and pictures within, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t see any of these anti solar pathways
being employed. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></font></span></div><div><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></font></span> </div><div><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></font></span><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri">I know what
it is like to be in that room out manned and out gunned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know what it is like to part of a truly
insane process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, something as
over the top hostile to solar as this roof top access thing is a line in the
sand that needs to be refought and reestablished.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no excuse for the solar industry to
cave on this rooftop access issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If
folks in the room won’t listen to reason, it is time to usurp the process and
appeal to more reasonable minds. </font></span></div><?xml:namespace prefix = o /><o:p><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri"></font></span></o:p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri">Unless we
are going to outlaw steep roofs, metal roofs, slate roofs, mossy shake roofs
and snow on roofs, singling out solar is irrational, hostile and extremely
detrimental to solar’s rapid, mass integration.</font></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri">I can't hardly think of a more important matter to the solar industry than this. I am here ready, willing and able to serve.</font></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%; font-size: 14pt;"><font face="Calibri">Thank you for your time and attention on this important matter.</font></span><font face="comic sans ms"><b></b></font></div><font face="comic sans ms"><b><div><div><b><font face="arial"><var id="yiv1528272707yui-ie-cursor"></var>Andrew Koyaanisqatsi</font></b></div><div><font face="arial">President</font></div><div><b><font face="arial">Solar Energy Solutions, Inc.</font></b></div><div><font face="arial">Since 1987,</font></div><div><font face="arial">Moving Portland and Beyond
</font></div><div><font face="arial">to an Environmentally Sustainable Future.</font></div><div><font face="arial"></font></div><div><font face="arial"><b>503-238-4502<br><span></span><a href="http://www.solarenergyoregon.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://www.solarenergyoregon.com/</a> </b></font></div><div> </div><div><font face="comic sans ms"><b>"Better one's House too little one day</b></font></div><div><font face="comic sans ms"><b>than too big all the Year after."</b></font></div></div></b><div></div></font><div></div><div style="display: block;" class="yahoo_quoted"> <br> <br> <div style="font-family: verdana, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> <div style="font-family: HelveticaNeue, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> <div dir="ltr"> <font size="2" face="Arial"> On Friday, February 14, 2014 9:47 PM, Exeltech <exeltech@yahoo.com> wrote:<br> </font> </div> <blockquote
style="padding-left: 5px; margin-top: 5px; margin-left: 5px; border-left-color: rgb(16, 16, 255); border-left-width: 2px; border-left-style: solid;"> <div class="y_msg_container">William,<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">Your frustration with the process is understandable, and quite justified to a great extent.<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">However, to say "... those directly involved in the rule making process...", and alluding to your previous description including "industry advocates", is patently unfair.<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">I'm one of those "industry advocates. I, along with Bill Brooks and many others on these committees, do our level best to bring some modicum of sanity to an otherwise very insane process.<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">Over the years, I've been to many meetings with "industry advocates" such as Bill and many others. I've watched as he and our colleagues do their utmost to educate those who would
vote these issues upon us in an attempt to help them "see the light". A few we win. Many we lose. Problem is, there are more of "them" than there are of "us". Code decisions are frequently made by people who have no direct experience in the solar energy industry, and it shows. In spite of this, Bill, I, and others who ARE from the solar industry continue our efforts from within. As Andrew from Portland proved in his post earlier this week .. even one person in the right place at the right time can make a difference.<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">Your frustration is evident when we hear from you (and others) when you say .. "They're supposed to have the public's interest foremost in mind...".<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">"They" in this context no doubt references the code committees and the constituent members, including those from our industry.<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">It's just that some of us are
on your side, and are continuing the struggle to the best of our ability.<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">Richard Perez said it best in an editorial of perhaps 15 years ago, when code problems back then were as much an issue as they are today. As best I can paraphrase .. ".. if this madness continues .. *they* will have us all sitting at home in perfect safety .. in the dark." [Emphasis is mine.]<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">Richard went on to exclude those of us within the solar industry from the ubiquitous "they" on these committees.<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">The effort continues, but it's an uphill battle at best. The work isn't often visible to you or others, but rest assured, our "industry advocates" are doing their best under otherwise very difficult circumstances.<br clear="none"> <br clear="none"> <br clear="none">Regards to all....<br clear="none"><br clear="none"> <br clear="none">Dan<br clear="none"><br
clear="none"><br clear="none">--------------------------------------------<br clear="none">On Fri, 2/14/14, William Korthof <<a href="mailto:wkorthof@gmail.com" shape="rect" ymailto="mailto:wkorthof@gmail.com">wkorthof@gmail.com</a>> wrote:<br clear="none"><div id="yqtfd29225" class="yqt7774372183"><br clear="none"> Subject: [RE-wrenches] California State Fire Marshal's "Solar Photovoltaic Installation Guidelines<br clear="none"> To: "RE-wrenches" <<a href="mailto:re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org" shape="rect" ymailto="mailto:re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org">re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org</a>><br clear="none"> Date: Friday, February 14, 2014, 9:42 PM<br clear="none"> <br clear="none">I wholeheartedly concur with the critics here. [rant mode on]<br clear="none"><br clear="none">I've long been very critical of certain elements of the Electric code...But the state fire Marshall guidelines are approaching outrageous. <br clear="none"><br
clear="none">I feel very let down by the industry advocates, trade groups, and especially those directly involved in the rule making process... They're supposed to have the public's interest foremost in mind---code standards are supposed to be based on the rigorous test that they demonstrably prevent loss of life and loss of property at an economically justified cost. Instead, it seems, the rule-making has advanced to secure a role for continuing stream of proprietary and incrementally more costly "safety" hardware along with a secure role for those in the process to secure themselves a reliable permanent stream of consulting gigs training and retraining ever more complex and unintelligible code rules.<br clear="none"><br clear="none"><br clear="none">/wk<br clear="none"><br clear="none">William Korthof<br clear="none">714.875.3576<br clear="none">Sustainable Solutions<br clear="none">#956904<br clear="none"><br clear="none"><br
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