Clifton says that during a recent blackout, one of his customers with a similar system did not even know about the blackout, and learned of it from neighbors curious as to why his lights were working. Several Cupertino residents have added systems similar to Mannion's on their homes. She believes that solar technology can improve both private residences and public buildings. As a member of the city's library commission, she hopes to put photovoltaic panels on the roof of the new library. I would love to see public buildings use solar power.
Price can often discourage the use of photovoltaic technology for public and private use.
Even with government assistance, though, the initial expense of solar energy is still high. In fact, Clifton says that he has yet to receive a service call for a photovoltaic system. He also says that the price of the technology constantly falls, and a system today goes for one twentieth of the cost of a system twenty years ago. This fact did not convince Mannion and Minow to wait for lower prices down the line.