Special series about growth in our area. The Olympian Ann Butler is one of five homeowners who have installed solar panels on their roofs as part of the city of Olympia's rooftop solar system project. Butler's panel can generate 100 watts of power. After years of inactivity, interest in solar power is heating up again in South Sound.
People seem more serious about doing it.
For years, nobody was talking about solar power. South Sound is home to roughly 2,000 solar power applications, primarily to produce heat for hot water in homes, said Dan Kneelands of Energy Specialties, which designs and installs solar power systems. The whole country has been in a solar power lull for years. It all boils down to cost, Kneelands said. And it's hard to get bank financing because the payback for solar power in a home is longer than the length of the mortgage.