Guiltless Green Home Theater Overview

The new construction housing market has slowed. Remodels and retrofit projects are still vibrant. Green is the ultimate buzz word.

The concept of this project was to create a home theater in combination with a green component, the choice of which was solar panels. The power developed by the panels would more than offset the usage of the theater. We chose to use four Sharp 175 watts panels. These produce 700 watts per hour, which was tied into the main panel of the house. No battery is required because the entire house draws off the solar panel not just the theater system. Each geographic area gets varying amounts of usable sunlight.

The theater consists of the following items:

• Front projector
• 100 inch screen
• Six speakers including a subwoofer, a blu-ray player, an AV receiver
• Green power conditioner
• Universal remote control
• Ipod dock
• HDMI cables
• Two rows of theater chairs to accommodate up to six people

We chose to use a green power conditioner that turns off all items that would normally draw power in a standby configuration thereby conserving energy. The leather seats were made with a unique method that does not require the use of chromium in the tanning process. This is the “green element” of the seating.

The solar panels can produce approximately 22,000 watts weekly. (700watts per hour X 4.5 usable hours X 7 days in a week) Based on the combined power consumption of the theater, a family could enjoy 16 hours per week without using any electrical power from the grid. Any less viewing would send power back to the grid and diminish the accumulated usage of the entire house for that month.

An added benefit is the federal tax credit. Currently 30% of the price of the solar panels, inverter, roof rack, cabling, and installation earn the homeowner a deduction of 30% from their federal tax obligation.  Click here to discover additional local rebate and incentives information for virtually all communities in North America.

A Project in Green Home Theater Technology

Richard Glikes and David Berman of The Home Theater Specialists of America partnered with vendors to construct the world's first solar powered home theater. The Guiltless Green Home Theater has all the features of a high-end home theater room, with one extra; a connection to four solar panels that provide 19 hours of off-the-grid entertainment each week. HTSA worked with HiFi House, LG Energy Solutions and Nolen Companies to complete the project.

Below are links to some additional resources for more information on going GREEN and solar electricity.

The Basics of Solar Electricity

Guiltless Green Home Theater

Solar Electricity FAQ's