Four years later the White House has finished installing solar panels on the roof. In 2010 President Barack Obama said solar panels will be installed to provide some electricity and to heat the water. While it took a couple of years, in 2013 the project to install the solar panels finally began. On sunny days, the panels are expected to generate 6.3 kilowatts of solar power.
The first set of solar panels was placed on the roof when President Jimmy Carter was in office. The West Wing offices were equipped with a solar water heating system. Even though Ronald Reagan removed the panels when he took office, President George W. Bush had solar systems installed to power a maintenance building and provide heated water for the pool.
Unable to cover entire roof due to security reasons
Because of security the officials won’t tell how many panels were installed but we do know that the project required drilling down to the concrete on the White House roof then using epoxy glue and threading rods to install a gridded subassembly that the panels could be secured to. The administration won’t say who installed the solar panels or any roofers involved but did say they were American companies.
President Obama is hoping to encourage the private and public sectors to find ways to reduce reliance on foreign energy and cut down on emissions being blamed for global warming. The administration will also devote $2 billion to improve the energy efficiency of federal buildings by 2016.
The energy department has two new efficiency rules, one to cut the energy consumption of new electric motors and walk in freezers and two launch a training program at community colleges to help people enter the solar industry.
