Firefighter Hazards - Residential Solar Panels

[RWC130 594]

Firefighter Hazards - Residential Solar Panels

NFPA links:

http://www.nfpa.org/~/media/Files/Research/Research%20Foundation/Research%20Foundation%20reports/For%20emergency%20responders/RFFirefighterTacticsSolarPowerRevised.pdf

http://www.nfpa.org/research/fire-protection-research-foundation/reports-and-proceedings/for-emergency-responders/fireground-operations/fire-fighter-safety-and-response-for-solar-power-systems

http://www.nfpa.org/~/media/Files/proceedings/PhotoVoltaicBrooks.pdf

Videos:

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2014/01/09/i-team-the-hidden-dangers-of-solar-panels/

http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2014/02/04/firefighters-warn-solar-panels-could-prevent-homes-from-being-saved-in-blaze/

Does your Fire Department have SOP/SOG on Solar Panels?

Talk, Train, Educate.

THEY CAN KILL YOU!

[16fire5 693]

UL has a free online course on the subject.

http://www.ul.com/global/eng/pages/offerings/industries/buildingmaterials/fire/fireresearch/pvsystems/

[dwcfireman 656]

I encountered this problem once at a fire. The house only had three panels, and, of course, they were buried in snow (because forbid that a fire like that one could happen in the summer!). Any way, I found the panels after I stepped on one, slipped a bit, and the sheet of ice slid off of them. Not a single firefighter at the incident knew about them prior to the fire, and you would never know about the panels because they were on the roof facing away from the road. And, no, I was not injured in the incident.

Where am I going with this? PREPLANNING! As I found out after the fire, I was able to go to the town hall and get a list of residences that have solar panels installed on the roof. It was a bit of a help (at the time it was a whopping four houses), but at least we knew that at least four houses in the district had solar panels.

Now to what I'm really getting to....Solar panels are always on! ALWAYS! That means they are always collecting and storing electrical energy. Well, there are a few other electrical sources we should worry about, too. Some homes and businesses have their own wind mills, harnessing the constant power of air movement to create electricity. And, some homeowners (albeit few) have their own hydroelectric generators. There are plenty of options available today for alternative power sources, different makes and models, and even mixtures of sources. We, the fire service, are a little behind on this technology in a couple of ways. More importantly, we don't realize the dangers involved with these power sources, and we need to recognize the dangers and learn as much as possible about them, just in the same form that we need to know building construction. I for one will be checking out the links that RWC130 and 16fire5 have provided us.

The other idea that came to mind, about being behind on this technology, is why don't firehouses look into this for powering the stations? A long term investment on alternative power can give you a few extra dollars towards an operating budget, which could help buys extra gear or some new tools. I'm not pushing the "Green Alternative," rather an idea that came to mind while writing the above. I'm sure taxpayers would love the idea as well.

[RWC130 594]

Where am I going with this? PREPLANNING!

AMEN!

[Bnechis 3,961]

The other idea that came to mind, about being behind on this technology, is why don't firehouses look into this for powering the stations? A long term investment on alternative power can give you a few extra dollars towards an operating budget, which could help buys extra gear or some new tools. I'm not pushing the "Green Alternative," rather an idea that came to mind while writing the above. I'm sure taxpayers would love the idea as well.

The reason more places do not have it, is cost.

A few years ago I was replacing the roof on my home and looked into adding solar panels. The cost estimates, the Con Ed buy back, and the tax credits ment the estimates were it would pay for itself in 16 years with an 18-20 year life expectancy. Truly not worth the investment.

Now I could not understand this as I thought it would have been a better deal. My mom has it on her house (in CA). She said their payback time was 7 years. This was because they are in a sunnier location and CA has more tax credits and requires the electric company to buy the energy back at the same rate they charge for it (Con Ed pays a % of that amount). & Fire stations do not get a tax advantage.

There are newer technologies that are less expensive and I have read some new designs are much cheaper, so in the future this may be a great idea.

[pasobuff 38]

I'm actually reviewing a proposal to put solar panels on our house. One of hte things my husband and I asked the company representative was what happens to the electricity if the power goes out. The answer we got was that it doesn't go anywhere - so yes, it would still be in the panels, and potentially in the cabling that goes to the cut-off switch. We also have a back up generator, so if that is running, the solar energy again would not be going anywhere....

As for cost, after the current tax credits and NYSERDA incentive, our system would cost us out of pocket just under 10k. That averages out to $68-/month, (15 year loan) including the National Grid line charge. Oir last electric bill was $134-, the one before that $184-...and we are not expecting it to go down. We can also pay off the loan early, if we paid $100-/mo it would be paid off in about 8 years. This is a system designed to produce 100% of our expected usage, so after the loan is paid off, we would be paying around $20/mo for the line charge - or whatever National Grid is charging.....

To me it makes sense, also, our panels would be on the front of the house, and I would also place some type of label at the meter. Our standby generator is right there too, so no missing that....

[x635 4,066]

Enlightening information, excellent topic, especially for truckies. So, basically, what do you need to do if you open up quickly? Go with horizontal ventilation instead?

On another note, I believe Ardsley's firehouse has solar panels on the roof.