Dan Lepinski, P.E.
Serving the Solar Industry Since 1972
Latest News
New Texas Solar Laws
Effective September 1, 2023
"A municipality may not apply a municipal building code to the construction of a solar pergola."
HB 3526 Link to the law.
See our "Resources Page" for copies of the new law, plus existing "solar" laws.
Solar-powered Eagle Cam!
Every year, we "give back" by helping schools, charities, and non-profit organizations. We donate consultation time, provide designs, and assist very deserving groups to obtain solar energy equipment at low to no cost. 2020 was a very unique year for us in many ways - and one project in particular. Click the links below for more information.
JBS Eagle Cam History & Story
Eagle Cam Installation Day Video
5 minute video
Eagle Cam Streaming Video
Live video and sound! Infrared LED lighting at night gives a black & white image. Color otherwise.
JBS Eagle Cam Official Website
Info, History, Glossary, & more!
Useful Links
- Expedited Solar Permits
- Expedited Solar Permit Checklist
- Texas Board of Professional Engineers
- North Central Texas Council of Governments Regional Codes Coordinating Committee
- North Central Texas Council of Governments Electrical Advisory Board
- US Dept of Energy Building Codes Assistance Project
- North Texas Renewable Energy Group
- Solar Glossary
- Oncor Interval Data
Frequently Asked Questions
This page answers questions about us, and
general questions about solar energy. If you have a question, and
it's not answered here, please use our Contact
Us page and send your question to us.On this page, we've listed questions
in the following topic areas:
- About Us and Professional Engineers
- About Solar Energy
QUESTIONS ABOUT US AND
PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS
- What is a "Licensed
Professional Engineer"?
A Licensed Professional Engineer has attained the engineering profession's highest standard of competence. At a minium, a "PE" must have earned a four-year engineering degree in their field of specialization from an accredited university, plus four years of "internship" under a Licensed Professional Engineer, plus taking and passing three rigorous examinations. The prospective PE must take and pass each exam in the sequence before they're allowed to move on to the next. Exam #1 is the "Rules and Ethics" exam. Second is the "Fundamentals of Engineering", an all-day strictly monitored examination. The third and final examination is the "Principals and Practice of Engineering". This is yet another eight-hour exam, which is also very strictly monitored. During the exam, only specific calculators are allowed. To prevent dishonesty, during the exam, rules are very clear on what can .. and cannot be brought into the room. The list of "cannot" is extensive. The list of "allowed" items is extremely short.
A Licensed Professional Engineer is required by State of Texas Administrative Law Article §137.61 to abide by and follow confidentiality and non-disclosure requirements similar to those in the medical profession. No confidential or private information may be disclosed to any other party or the public without informed consent of the client or the employer. Such information may only be disclosed only when required by law or court order, or if left undisclosed, would constitute a threat to the health, safety, or welfare of the public. A full copy of the law is available here.
- Why
must our project be designed by a Professional Engineer?
To protect the public from unscrupulous, unqualified persons from designing projects that may pose a danger to life, health, and safety.
Would you get into an airplane that was to be flown by someone without a pilot's license? How about having dental surgery from an untrained and unlicensed practitioner?
Why then trust your projects to someone who hasn't received the education and has proven themselves by years in the field and passing rigorous examinations as experienced and knowledgeable?
Services of a Licensed Professional Engineer are required by Law in many cases, but not all. The State of Texas Board of Professional Engineers has provided an excellent "decision tree" to define when a Professional Engineer is required, which you can download in PDF.
The Texas Engineering Registration Act was enacted as the result of a tragic natural gas explosion at a public school in New London, Texas in 1937, where nearly 300 students and others were killed. In response to concerns that the public could not identify who was qualified to practice engineering, the 45th Texas Legislature passed the Act as emergency legislation, and it became law when signed by the Governor on May 28, 1937.
- What are the requirements to
become a Licensed Professional Engineer?
To become licensed, engineers must complete a four-year college degree at an accredited university, work under a Professional Engineer for at least four years, pass two very intensive competency exams, and earn a license from their state's licensure board. Then, to retain their licenses, PEs must continually maintain and improve their skills throughout their careers through continuing education requirements and other experience.
Every state regulates the practice of engineering to ensure public safety by granting only Professional Engineers (PEs) the authority to sign and apply their PE "seal" on engineering plans, and offer their services to the public.
Just as doctors, airline pilots, architects, dentists, surgeons, and others must be licensed and proven qualified to perform their tasks and duties, Licensed Professional Engineers are also required to meet the same high standards as others in their respective fields of specialization.
To use the PE seal, Licensed Professional Engineers must complete several steps to ensure their competency:
1. Earn a four-year degree in engineering from an accredited university engineering program.
2. Take and pass the Professional Engineers "Rules and Ethics" examination. Applicants can miss only one question. If two or more are answered incorrectly, the applicant must wait 30 days, then re-take the exam. Questions are different each time to avoid memorizing the exam. There is no limit to the number of times the Rules and Ethics exam may be taken.
3. Pass the "Fundamentals of Engineering" (FE) exam. This is an all day proctored examination.
4. Complete four years of progressively complex engineering experience under an existing Licensed Professional Engineer. Think of this as a four-year "internship".
5. Take and pass the "Principles and Practice" of Engineering (PE) exam. This is another all-day examination, also strictly supervised.
The National Society of Professional Engineers offers additional information.
- How difficult is it to pass
the PE "Power Engineer" exam?
Very difficult. The National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying indicates only 60% of those taking the Power Engineering PE exam pass the first time. Of those re-taking the exam, the pass rate is only 28%. Those that fail twice virtually never try again.
- What parts of Texas do you
serve?
The entire state.
- Do you practice in other
states?
Yes. We are also licensed in New Mexico. (NM License 23759.)
- Will you come to our school /
university and speak with our graduating students about
engineering / solar energy?
Yes, we'd be happy to assist. We need to receive your request well in advance of your requested date, and will gladly give a talk / presentation if we're available on that date. We've talked with graduating students at many colleges, universities, as well as professional organizations and government agencies.
- If I / we send drawings to
you, will you review them and apply your Professional Engineer's
seal to them?
No. This isn't legal for any Professional Engineer.
This is known as "Plan Stamping". A Professional Engineer who engages in "Plan Stamping" is subject to significant fines and penalties up to and including revocation of their license. Per the Texas Board of Professional Engineers, the client or customer who requests this action by a Professional Engineer is equally responsible for violating the law, and can be held liable in court.
- What is "Plan Stamping"?
Texas Administrative Code, Title 22,
Section 137, delineates how a Professional Engineer's seal is to be
used, and not used. One of the prohibited practices is "Plan
Stamping", which is defined as follows:
"Plan stamping is demonstrated when a Professional Engineer or Professional Surveyor places his or her registration seal on any drawings, designs, plats, descriptions and/or specifications that he or she did not author or for which he or she did not have personal professional knowledge and direct supervisory control and responsibility."
§137.33 Sealing Procedures
(a) The purpose of the engineer's seal is to assure the user of the engineering product that the work has been performed or directly supervised by the professional engineer named and to delineate the scope of the engineer's work.
(b) License holders shall only seal work done by them, performed under their direct supervision as defined in §131.81 of this title, relating to Definitions, or shall be standards or general guideline specifications that they have reviewed and selected. Upon sealing, engineers take full professional responsibility for that work.
Additionally, a Licensed Professional Engineer may not perform any engineering assignment or seal any document for which the engineer is not qualified by education, examination, or experience to perform adequately and competently. Refer to Board Rules §133.97(i), §137.59(a) and §133.59(b), the latter two of which appear below:
§137.59 Engineers' Actions Shall Be Competent
(a) Engineers shall practice only in their areas of competence.
(b) The engineer shall not perform any engineering assignment for which the engineer is not qualified by education or experience to perform adequately and competently.
In effect, the P.E. whose seal appears on the document(s) must have provable expertise in the field of practice represented by the contents of the document.
A copy of the Law may be obtained from the State of Texas Board of Professional Engineers, or downloaded directly as a PDF from this link.
QuEStionS ABOUT SOLAR PANELS
AND SOLAR ENERGY
- How do solar panels work?
Solar panels are made of silicon and other materials that release "electrons" when exposed to light. When set in the sunlight and connected to an electric circuit, solar panels generate "direct current" (flows only in one direction), the same as a car battery. Many solar panels can be connected together to increase the total amount of power output, the same way train engines are connected together to increase the total pulling power.
- What about hail?
Solar panels are required by Safety Standards to withstand hailstones up to one inch in diameter, and striking the solar panel at 55 miles per hour. This is verified by independent testing laboratories such as Underwriters Laboratory, Intertek / ETL, Canadian Standards Association ("CSA"), and others.
A simpler explanation ... hailstones that are large enough to break the back window in an automobile will probably break the glass in a solar panel. In that case, it's merely a matter of replacing the broken solar panel.
- How many solar panels do I
(we) have to put on our house / business to have a zero electric
bill each month?
The simple answer: More than you have roof space. Unless you have a home that's incredibly energy-efficient, and you live a very energy-frugal lifestyle, solar energy can help reduce your consumption, but not eliminate your purchase of energy from the utility company. Besides, solar panels don't work at night, and don't generate very much power in cloudy weather - so you'll always need the utility company at times.
- How long do solar panels last?
We used to think 20 years. Then 25 years. Then 30. Our Principle Engineer has solar panels he purchased and installed in the early 1970s, and they're still working! Our opinion: solar panels purchased and installed today will be working 50 years from now. Probably longer.
- What "wears out" in a solar
panel? Related: Do solar panels just "stop working" when worn
out?
Long-term exposure to sunlight causes very tiny changes in the solar cells over time. This causes their output to diminish very slowly. Diminish by how much? Less than one-half of one percent per year. This means in 20 years, solar panels will typically still be generating about 90% of the energy when they were new. If this is adequate for your needs (and it's almost certain to be), keep using them! Our Principle Engineer has solar panels he purchased in the 1970s that are still working!
- Will solar panels be covered
by insurance?
Some insurance companies offer coverage. Some don't. Contact your insurance agent or insurance carrier and ask them about their policies BEFORE you install anything.
There are numerous resources that answer questions about solar panels, solar energy, and related items. Visit any of the websites in the "Useful Links" (to the right, near the top of this page) for more information.
Have any unique or difficult "solar" question(s) you'd like to ask? Contact us