Ron and Carla Dupuis expect Assured Solar Energy of Yarmouth to be at their Freeport home any time now, to begin installation of solar panels on their garage roof. The Dupuis family was the first to sign up for the Solarize Freeport program, in which the town arranged bulk pricing for the installation of the panels.

They expect that the panels will eliminate their power bill, and that a heat pump installed at their home on March 16 should reduce by half their oil bill, Carla Dupuis says. On top of that, extra energy derived from the solar panels will power the heat pump.

The family is so enthused with their solar project, they have made their property available to show as a model home. Insource Renewables of Pittsfield has partnered with Assured Solar Energy of North Yarmouth as installation partners. The companies are sharing the installation and marketing.

“They want to use us as an open house to show people,” Carla Dupuis said. “We offered to do that. We feel very strongly about the benefits of solar energy.”

That wasn’t always the case – not for Carla Dupuis, at least.

“My husband has been pining for solar for seven or eight years,” she said. “Our garage faces directly south, so the garage faces perfectly for solar.”

Town Planner Donna Larson worked for months to arrange the best deal for Freeport homeowners, in a program called Solarize Freeport. She learned of Vital Communities, a nonprofit that, among its other projects, works to find alternative energy sources in New Hampshire and Vermont. Sarah Simonds , executive director of Vital Communities, provided Larson with some pricing models. Simonds said the typical price of installing a home solar system for a home using 5 kilowatts of electricity is $20,000. The panels immediately eliminate electrical costs, and pay for themselves in about eight to 10 years, she said

Vaughan Woodruff, owner of Insource Renewables, said that the price of a 5-kilotwatt system today is more like $17,500. The savings offered by Solarize Freeport depends on the number of people who sign up, Woodruff said.

“We expect to at least reach the lowest tier, which will be 12-15 families or more,” Woodruff said. “That savings would be about $1,500.” A 4.5 kilowatt system, which Woodruff has plans for on his desk, will provide the owner of the home a savings of about $650 a year in electrical costs, he said.

In January, Larson announced that Assured Solar Energy and Insource Renewables would work together on Solarize Freeport.

Carla Dupuis volunteered to be on the search committee for solar contractors. Once Insource Renewables and Assured Solar Energy were identified, she quickly requested a free quote. A kickoff meeting was held on March 7 at the Town Office. Three days earlier, the Dupuises had signed up as “Sunrisers,” which qualified them for discount pricing.

“Solarize Freeport convinced me,” Dupuis said. “For me, it was an opportunity to learn. What I learned from the Solarize Freeport program was very helpful.” On March 17 – the day after the heat pump was installed – Dupuis noticed the pleasant quiet of the furnace not running.

“It’s going to be so much more efficient,” Dupuis said.

In addition to the money savings Solarize Freeport offers, families get a $500 rebate from Efficiency Maine.

Larson noted that the town’s work with Solarize Freeport is done.

“Now it’s up to the installers,” Larson said. “People are not signing a contract with the town.”

Larson said she believes there are many people “in the pipeline,” awaiting installation of solar panels at their homes. More than 100 people have signed up for quotes, she said.

Solarize Freeport encourages local property owners to install a solar energy system between May and October of this year. Those who sign a contract prior to noon on May 2 will qualify for the bulk pricing. The greater the number of participants in the program, the lower the pricing on equipment and installation.

Matt Wagner of Insource Renewables puts the finishing touches on the installation of a heat pump at the home of Ron and Carla Dupuis, on March 16 in Freeport. By contracting for installation of a solar electric system prior to March 28, the family got a $100 discount on the heat pump. Courtesy photo