Barry Cinnamon has been blogging about the Solar Industry since 2007.
Every week Barry hosts The Energy Show, a 30 minute informative talk show that covers a broad variety of energy related topics spanning technology, economics, policy, and politics that are shaping the future of how we generate and consume electricity, along with practical money-saving tips on ways to reduce your home and business energy consumption.
The Energy Show runs every Saturday on KDOW Radio AM in San Jose California.
Barry heads up Cinnamon Energy Systems (a San Jose residential and commercial solar and energy storage contractor) and Spice Solar (suppliers of built-in solar racking technology). After 10,000+ installations while at the helm of Akeena Solar and Westinghouse Solar, he’s developed a pretty good perspective on the real-world economics of rooftop solar — as well as the best products and services for homeowners, manufacturers and installers. His rooftop tinkering led to the development of integrated racking (released in 2007), AC solar modules (released in 2009), and Spice Solar (the fastest way to install rooftop solar modules).
How Often Should I Clean My Solar Panels
When someone gets a new rooftop solar installation, the second question they always ask is "how often do I need to clean my solar panels." We'll answer that question on today's show — taking into account the different effects of rain, dust and electric rates (BTW, the...
The most conspicuous driver of the residential solar industry's growth has been large, national-scale solar installers. Their market share has been increasing, primarily because they offer attractive financing to homeowners. Although all solar installers large and...
It's encouraging to see how much safer -- and less expensive -- solar equipment has become over the past dozen years. These improvements will continue as engineers and manufacturers collaborate with code officials. There is a vibrant interplay between new code...
To many of us old timers, the battery storage industry looks a lot like the solar industry did ten years ago. Energy storage on the grid depends on future battery cost reductions, requires sophisticated management electronics, tricky packaging, favorable government...
8 Ways To Make Rooftop Solar Installations Faster, Safer and Cheaper
There's a right way and a wrong way to install solar panels on rooftops. We did research on 20 rooftop systems averaging 10 years old. The results are described in our recent White Paper: "The Importance of Safe and Reliable Solar Mounting Systems." You can download...
Protecting Your Right to Go Solar
Your right to go solar and get full credit for the electricity you send back to the grid is threatened. Not just in California and Arizona and Hawaii — but also at virtually every single investor owned utility (the aptly named IOUs) in the country. Net metering is the...
Solar Startups Are Hot Again
Solar start-ups are hot again — especially those that address the "downstream" part of the value chain: installer services, customer acquisition, system design tools and analytical systems. And as in years past, there are a dozens of companies showing new types of...
Saratoga Man Grows Buffalo Mozzarella Clusters on Heirloom Tomato Plants
SARATOGA, CALIFORNIA, July 23rd 2013 - This backyard gardener has found a way to grow buffalo mozzarella balls along with various heirloom tomatoes on the same plants. He prefers to be unnamed at this time until he perfects his single-plant caprese salad technique....
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