Solar Success Story at Moanalua Terrace

Technical Report · Mon Mar 01 00:00:00 EST 1999

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/15006925· OSTI ID:15006925

Solar systems prove to be the environmentally and economically sound choice for heating water in U.S. Navy housing at Moanalua Terrace in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Hawaii is a perfect environment for solar water heating,'' according to Alan Ikeda, a Housing Management Specialist with the Pacific Naval Facility Engineering Command Housing Department in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. ''The sun shines most of the time, we don't have to worry about freezing, the state offers a 35% solar tax credit, and our local utility supports the purchase and installation of solar systems with generous rebates.'' The Hawaiian Electric Company's (HECO's) $1,500 per unit rebate for solar water heaters installed on new construction helped persuade the Navy to take advantage of Hawaii's solar resource and install solar water heaters on family housing units. At Moanalua Terrace, the Navy had demolished 752 units of family housing, which they are rebuilding in four phases. Designers decided to use the opportunity to give the solar systems a try. When the 100 homes in Phase I were built, money was not available for solar water heaters. However, Ikeda subsequently secured a $130,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) to retrofit the Phase I homes with solar systems. In retrofit applications, HECO rebates $800 per unit ($80,000 total) on approved equipment, and Pearl Harbor Family Housing will pay the difference of the estimated $340,000 total cost, or about $130,000. The 136 units built during Phase II of the Moanalua Terrace project included solar systems in their specifications, so the Navy was able to take advantage of the $1,500 per system HECO rebate for approved solar water heaters in new construction. The Navy chose direct (open-loop) active systems that circulate potable water through flat-plate collectors coated with a black chrome selective surface. Each system consists of a 4-foot by 8-foot (1.2-m by 2.4-m) collector made by American Energy Technologies, Ltd., and an 80-gallon (302-liter) Rheem tank containing an electric backup element.

• Research Organization: National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: US Department of Energy (US)
• DOE Contract Number: AC36-99-GO10337
• OSTI ID: 15006925
• Report Number(s): DOE/GO-10099-671; TRN: US200412%%410
• Resource Relation: Other Information: PBD: 1 Mar 1999; Related Information: Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) Technical Assistance Detailed Case Study (Brochure)
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

14 SOLAR ENERGY
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
BLACK COATINGS
CONSTRUCTION
DRINKING WATER
ENERGY MANAGEMENT
FREEZING
HAWAII
HEATING
MANAGEMENT
SOLAR SYSTEM
SOLAR WATER HEATERS
SPECIFICATIONS
SUN
TANKS
TAX CREDITS
WATER
SOLAR
SUCCESS STORY
MOANALUA TERRACE
CASE STUDY
U.S. NAVY HOUSING
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
SOLAR WATER HEATING
ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS
BUILDINGS