Solar Story: How the Friess Family Built Solar Into a Life of Sustainability
The two met at UW–Stevens Point in the early 1970s and married shortly after. After renting locally for a few years, they bought their home on College Avenue in 1975, a house originally built around 1880, and they have lived there ever since. Over the decades, they have transformed and improved the home piece by piece, raising a family there and now helping raise a second generation: their grandson and granddaughter.
From the beginning, Jack and Jeanette have been committed to conserving energy and living sustainably. As Jack shared, “From the start, we were always fairly big energy ‘conservers,’ seeking ways to reduce our consumption”
through choices like small, gas-efficient vehicles, high-efficiency appliances, and everyday practices such as gardening, composting, and recycling. They also spent years improving their home, “from completely gutting it and re-doing everything, one room at a time, to adding a large addition with sun and play rooms.”
Adding solar, Jack said, “just seemed a natural extension to what we’ve always done.”
For the Friess family, one of the biggest surprises has been how much their solar system changed the way they think about energy use. “Probably the biggest benefit of our solar system was how it educated us in the amount and areas where we use (and abuse) electrical energy,”
Jack said. Becoming more aware of drawing from the system’s battery
at night motivated them to reduce their home’s electricity use even further. During the day, they now plan larger energy demands, like EV charging
or running the electric dryer, to line up with solar production when the sun is shining.
That awareness has paid off in practical ways. Jack says they enjoy combined summer gas and electric bills of around $20, and they especially love knowing they are, in his words, “driving on sunshine.”
Their Northwind Solar system has evolved over time, beginning with the installation of 20 panels and battery backup. Later, Northwind added four large bifacial “winter panels” mounted at a 60-degree angle on a specially built solar dormer, a unique feature that helps maximize production in the colder months.
When it came to choosing Northwind, Jack said the team stood out from the start. “Whether discussing with us our original concepts of design or providing top-notch engineering and technical assistance, Northwind’s dedicated staff provided us with ‘above and beyond’ support and services.”
When people ask whether solar is worth it, Jack and Jeanette are honest and practical for them; the return on solar is much more than a simple financial calculation. “Every day we gain so much in knowing: 1) we are helping to reduce our ‘carbon footprint,’ 2) we have greatly reduced our utility bills, and mostly 3) we have added significantly to the value of our property and our lives.”
Northwind helped make that possible, and Jack says they are always happy to share their experience with others who are curious about solar and this new approach to “living the dream.”
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