Plant Chicago’s solar array was installed on the roof of The Firehouse and brought online in February of 2022. We now have a full year of data to review!
Before we could install the system, we had to replace and insulate our roof. We don't know if the roof had ever been insulated (it is a 1908 firehouse after all), but we do know that adding insulation was one of the best ways to increase the energy efficiency of the building. The majority of heat transfer in buildings is through roofs, so it was really important to add plenty of insulation to reduce both our bills and environmental impact. We ended up squeezing in about 50 panels on the roof, the maximum we could fit without panels shading each other and meeting code requirements, resulting in a total of 16kW potential.
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The graph below shows historical data for Plant Chicago's solar array (the most recent 12 months of production). To view hourly data or real time data, click on the cog icon in the lower right corner.
Above: Historical and real time solar data for Plant Chicago's solar array on top of The Firehouse!