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Saturday, October 6, 2007

BY ANDY BRUNER
Summit Daily News, Summit County, Colorado

SUMMIT COUNTY - The High Country Conservation Center’s ninth annual sustainable homes tour gave participants a glance at environmental construction.

Architect Len Kumar designed his own sustainable home, run on self-produced energy, to show clients the possibilities for energy independence. The only municipal service Kumar’s home receives is telephone service, but with satellite television and broadband internet, Kumar says he isn’t lacking for 21st century amenities. But living on solar power with a back-up generator, his energy consumption has to vary by the amount of sun on a given day. “You budget energy,” he said, “on the days with sunshine you do laundry, vaccuum cleaning and run your dishwasher.”

Kumar said he will be going “on-grid,” partially against his will. His mortgage company, he says, doesn't understand the off-grid lifestyle. “They think because I’m off-grid I’m living in poverty. They don’t understand I don’t need to be on the grid.” Kumar says there are advantages to joining the grid. Because he produces energy, he’ll receive financial incentives from energy providers so that on days when more energy is produced than he uses, he’ll be paid for his extrapower which will instead go to otherhomes in the area.