Lakewood Couple Goes ‘Off the Grid’… Almost

Northeast Ohio isn’t the sunniest place on Earth.

But don’t tell Lakewood residents Chris Bata and his wife, Katie Romich.

The couple — recent transplants of Austin, TX — live on the sunny side of life. 

Looking to reduce their carbon footprint, they invested in 33 solar panels, mounting them to the top of their Virginia Avenue home and garage in September.

Their electric bill has been slashed to around $6 per month since.

“My wife and I are concerned about the environment and wasting fossil fuels,” said Bata, a computer programmer at Onix Networking in Lakewood.

“This is an easy way to instantly clean up your lifestyle. You get all this free energy right from the sun.” 

While concerned about the environment, Bata said it also makes sense from a financial standpoint.

“In 10 years it will have generated enough electricity to have paid for itself,” he said. 

The total cost of the panels was about $30,000, but Bata and Romich received a substantial tax credit to the tune of about $9,000.

“We’ve pre-purchased our electricity for the next 50 years,” he added. “It’s a long-term solution.” 

Since the panels were installed in mid-September, they’ve generated 2.89 megawatt-hours of electricity. The home is still tied to the power grid, so technically, the couple isn't quite "off the grid."

Any excess power — unused because there’s too much sunlight — is sold back to FirstEnergy at 6 cents per watt-hour.

Urban legends that Ohio doesn’t get enough sunlight to make solar panels worthwhile just aren’t true, Bata said.

Believe it or not, Ohio gets 50 percent more sunshine per day than Germany, the world leader in solar installations, according to Astrum Solar. 

“We’ve got plenty of sunshine here,” said Bata.

It’s believed that there’s only one other home in Lakewood — on Edwards Avenue — using solar panels.

Bata and Romich don’t mind being local clean-energy pioneers.

This isn’t their first attempt at “going green.” They also compost, use rain barrels and drive a hybrid vehicle. 

“Without solar panels, our energy is coming from a coal plant or some other dirty source,” he said. “We’re trying to do whatever we can.” 

Those interested in learning more about solar panels can contact the couple, noting they’re open to giving others a tour.