Richard Lawrence has a long history in the solar industry and is very knowledgeable in many areas (He was formerly the Executive Director of NABCEP among other things). Our main focus of this podcast was apprenticeship programs. This is a big deal, since to qualify for the Inflation Reduction Act 30% Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for projects over 1MW, fulfilling the apprenticeship and prevailing wage standards are required.   Topics covered:   Richard Lawrence career: IREC Program Director...

Cameron works and lives in New York where having a NABCEP PV Installation Professional (PVIP) helps you qualify for the NY State program that helps fund projects.   Here are some of the topics we discuss:   NYSERDA = New York State Research, Energy Research Development Association www.nyserda.ny.gov NY Sun Program NABCEP Certifications Indent Builders www.indentbuilders.com IBEW = International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers www.ibew.org 3 PathwaysDobbs FerryBest Investment is...

Hermann Scheer (RIP) was a German politician who is responsible for making grid-connected solar profitable in about the year 2000 as he brought the German policy forreimbursing people for solar energy, so that they would make a profit. This broughtabout years where over half of the World’s installed PV was in Germany. This createdthe modern solar industry and kick-started modern PV manufacturing. If it were not forHermann Scheer, we would probably be 10 years behind where we are now with...

Where do we start, in this podcast we covered many things and Jeff Spies is very active and connected in the solar industry.   Here is a short list of what Jeff does and has done:   Owner of Planet Plansets www.planetplansets.com NABCEP Board of Directors www.nabcep.org/about-us/board-of-directors CALSSA Board of Directors www.calssa.org Solar Roots, the Pioneers of PV Documentary, Executive Producer www.solar-roots.com The Solar Panel Podcast...

This is my first interview with a real US Military General and I am honored that he took the time to meet with me. I am not worthy!   John Kem is in the civilian sector now and is the President of American Battery Factory! In this podcast we discuss their huge Gigafactory, which they are building in Arizona and which will go online towards the end of 2025 making made in the USA lithium iron phosphate (LFP) lithium-ion batteries. They are working on prismatic battery cells, which are as big as...

Joe McCabe has been in the solar industry since before there was a solar industry. In this podcast we talk about many things.    Here is a list of topics: ASES Fellow American Solar Energy Society www.ASES.org International Solar Energy Society www.ISES.org MREA = Midwest Renewable Energy Association SMUD = Sacramento Municipal Utility District PVUSA Davis California PV Policy SAM software PV Reliability Workshop Nerdfest Golden Colorado SANDIA Community Solar Gardens Bifacial Solar Vertical...

In this podcast, we learn how UL issues first certification to UL 9741 (and UL 1741 SA) for an AI-Driven Vehicle-to-Grid Compliant EV Charger to Fermata Energy.   https://www.ul.com/news/ul-solutions-issues-first-certification-ul-9741-and-ul-1741-sa-ai-driven-vehicle-grid   Alex Cattelan has been working on EVs for 2 decades and has experience engineering many famous electric and hybrid vehicles, including the Chevy Volt for GM. She also has extensive experience working for Polaris, Johnson...

One week before recording this podcast, Garret Little passed his NABCEP PVIP exam. In this podcast we talk about his experience taking the exam 9 years after his first try and getting a really good score! We also talk about the exam experience, memory techniques, taking the Ecotech class vs. the HeatSpring class for preparing for the exam. There is nothing more important for passing an exam than knowing what to study.   Here is the class Garret took to pass the NABCEP PVIP exam:   NABCEP PV...

I came across a really cool YouTube video, rivaling Mr. Beast, but for solar, which was a purple bearded solarboi going off on Rapid Shutdown UL 3741 PV arrays, I immediately contacted him and a week later, here we are recording this podcast. This guy is entertaining and we are lucky to have him in the industry. This industry needs to be fun!!   derek the solarboi has 3 NABCEP Certifications   PVIP (PV Installation Professional)PVCMS (PV Commissioning and Maintenance Specialist)PVSI (PV...

Great conversation with Tyler Hortin! His company does everything from Wh to GWh and focuses on prismatic cells that are almost 1kWh! This makes for less cells and less connections that can go wrong. The technology here is Lithium-Iron Phosphate (LFP) and we will talk about the supply chain and implications of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). They are affiliated with American Battery Factory, so we talk a little bit about manufacturing in the USA towards the end.   Key Words:Lithium Iron...

Tor "Solar Fred" Valenza is a regular in the solar industry. Tor has a podcast called Probably True Solar Stories, which takes his expertise as a former Hollywood writer and merges that with the solar industry. Some of his Hollywood work was on popular shows, such as Stargate SG-1, Dharma & Greg, and The Dead Zone. Tor's current day job is he is a chief solar public relations geek at UnThink Solar, a solar PR and communications firm.   In this podcast we talk about how Tor Valenza became...

In this episode we are triple fortunate to have three of the smartest individuals in a discussion on science and policy from the Federation of American Scientists (fas.org), a nonpartisan think tank connecting scientific research with policy making to address today’s most urgent needs. Transition to renewable energy is urgent! We talk about how we can transition to solar fast, and how science and policy need to work together to get the job done, and how individuals can get...

In this show we talk about the different stages of development of solar projects, which are projects that are from 1MW in size to GW sized projects.   Matias Sigal is an entrepreneur and has worked with many startups and incubators in different countries. He started off by being born in Argentina, and is currently a resident of Israel (which we discuss at the end of the podcast).   Matias has a company that developed software, which works sort of like Zillow for multimillion dollar solar...

In this podcast we talk about safe portable Energy Storage Systems (ESSs). Jon and Viridi are located in Buffalo NY.   Topics covered:   Portable ESS Building and Fire Codes including the International Residential Code (IRC) and the International Fire Code (IFC). Occupied Spaces Habitable Spaces UL 9540 UL 9540A UL CSA Thermal Runaway How Viridi is safer Cathodes and Anodes NMC = Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide LFP = Lithium Iron Phosphate NCA = Lithium Nickel Cobalt Aluminum...

In this podcast we have Bill Brooks and Sean talking energy storage system (ESS) Codes, with emphasis on interconnections, including supply-side and load side connections. Be sure to get Sean and Bill’s latest book, which is the 3rd edition of PV and the NEC, based on the 2023 NEC. To find where to get different versions of the NEC including the 2023 NEC for free check out the NEC tab at solarSEAN.com.  Disclaimer: This podcast was recorded in 2021. Supply-side connections (source connections...

2020 NEC radio 690 was originally published on Dec 30, 2019, but it did not post to other platforms, so we are reposting it.

In this podcast we have Bill Brooks talking energy storage system (ESS) Codes, with emphasis on the National Electrical Code (NEC) and stand-alone/islanding systems. Be sure to get Sean and Bill’s latest book, which is the 3rd edition of PV and the NEC, based on the 2023 NEC. To find where to get different versions of the NEC including the 2023 NEC for free check out the NEC tab at solarSEAN.com.  Disclaimer: This podcast was recorded in 2021. Flow batteries, fuel cells, Article 692 Fuel Cell...

We have just released the long awaited 2023 NEC class on HeatSpring. We spent more time making this class than any other class, so I am sure you will love it. We have Sean White and Bill Brooks going over many of the fun details and Code changes in this course. You can learn more here and some of the lessons are free samples.   www.heatspring.com/classrooms/30-hour-2023-nec-pv-energy-storage-building-and-fire-codes/active   690 Part VI is a shorter Part of Article 690 and the end of 690 was...

OhmConnect is a virtual power plant (VPP) provider and helps balance the electricity grid. Will incentivize people to reduce usage at certain times.VPP definition of OhmConnect“Collection of 100s or thousands of devices that they are controlling all independently, but coordinating in a fashion that the grid can see it.”Topics covered:SunPower relationshipDemand ResponseThermostat controlTV controlFridge controlLooking at VPP as reducing demand rather than increasing supplyGetting paid to take...

This podcast is a reading from Chapter 6 of PV and the NEC 3rd Edition based on the 2023 NEC by Sean White and Bill Brooks. You can buy the book on Amazon at: https://a.co/d/amFqNko   Bonding and Grounding is something that causes a lot of arguments and this book will get to the bottom of it.    Topics: 690 Part V Bonding and Grounding 690.41 PV System DC Circuit Grounding and Protection   Grounding Electrode Grounding Electrode Conductor (GEC) Equipment Grounding Conductor...

Sean White featured on the Clean Power Hour podcast with Tim Montague's co-host John Weaver on September 28, 2023. We are reposting this podcast, which you can also listen to on Tim Montague's awesome Clean Power Hour podcast, which you can find at www.cleanpowerhour.comSean White was at the University of Colorado in Denver during this podcast. We had a great time chatting to one another and discussing:1. The events at the just concluded 2023 RE+ Convection2. White House launches clean energy...

If you were walking around RE+ in Vegas, you may have noticed a track and all of these remote control race cars and wondered what that was about. That was the Horizon Hydrogen Grand Prix Pro (H2GP Pro)!   Here is what we talked about:   Horizon Hydrogen Grand Prix Pro = H2GP Pro STEM kits STEAM Science Technology Engineering Art Math RE+ Las Vegas Remote Control Race Cars Hydrogen Element Hydrogen Fires Lead Acid Batteries making Hydrogen Fuel Cells vs. Internal Combustion Engines with...

Learn about bidirectional EV charging/discharging with former White House and EPA policy advisor Clinton Administration, former County Supervisor in Virginia, Faculty at University of Virginia 23 years, Commerce, Architecture, Engineering who has a Philosophy degree and is an entrepreneur who started multiple companies. David Slutzky started Fermata Energy in 2010.   Here are some of the topics we covered: V2G Vehicle to Grid V1G smart charging V2X Vehicle to Everything V2B Vehicle to...