Sun Returns To Work On Condo Roof
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Building committee volunteers Ron Foster (left) and Jack
Pentony stand by a few of the new solar panels on the
rooftop of Windward Passage, Kailua’s 18-story condo
that’s making great strides toward saving energy with its
just completed renovation project. Photo by Byron Lee,
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Standing closer to the sun than any other structure in Kailua,Windward Passage is really cooking these days - and saving about $1,500 a month on its electric bill.
Just after Earth Day, the 18-story condo put the final touches on a seven-year-long effort to restore its rooftop solar panels, and it now looks forward to many years of cheap hot water for more than 200 dwellings.
“It ended up a pretty neat project,” said the modest Ron Foster who, with Jack Pentony and Tony Bimbo, was a key mover on the renovation. “It was a labor of love.”
Foster, a retired marketing professor and Pentony, a retired electrical engineer, convinced the WP homeowners association that the building’s defunct solar farm could be fixed or replaced for way under the estimated $350,000 bill they were looking at. The men got the OK, and by doing it themselves with volunteers and the maintenance crew, saved the association $200,000.
“Jack designed it and Tony put it together,” added Foster.“We couldn’t have done it without Tony, who knows soldering and knows where every switch is in the building.” Many homeowners were involved, he said, including a dozen building committee members with a variety of talents.R & R Solar manufactured the panels, as needed, for the effort.
The maintenance staff accomplished another mission unique to their job description: They carried each 200-pound solar panel up to the roof, on their backs in the freight elevator, one at a time. That makes 217 trips over a four-year period.
“We were limited by what fits in the elevator,“explained Pentony, pausing during a tour of the roof.“And we needed more panels than the existing system because they are smaller.
“The panels work in the daytime, store the heated water at night, and our heat pumps take over as needed,” he added, proudly pointing to the shiny new pipes and hookups. The two huge storage tanks, from the original system, each hold 5,000 gallons of water. They were placed on the roof via helicopter in 1979.
The condo also has a successful recycling program and makes rental money on several rooftop cellular antennae. But the solar gang is already eyeing some columns on the parking deck for their next idea. (They once held up bougainvillea vines that have since rotted and been removed.)
“I keep looking at those columns and thinking photo voltaic panels,” said Foster.“We’re studying the feasibility, since technology is getting more efficient and cheaper.We could pay for all of our electricity and sell it back to HECO ... ”
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