Bill O'Reilly, on his Fox News show, showed some eagerness to install solar or wind on the roof of his home this winter during the November 15th edition of The Factor.
Judging from the video clip below, his guest was Alan Colmes, who plays a liberal on TV, and Monica Crowley, Ph.D., a conservative political commentator.
O'Reilly claimed that he'd go solar if only he could find somewhere it was available. He said, "I want to buy solar or wind for my house this winter. Can you tell me where to do that? There's nowhere, no one."
That's just wrong.
As Tor "Solar Fred" Valenza points out, there are scores of solar installers on Long Island.
O'Reilly lives in a waterfront Manhasset mansion on the North shore of New York's Long Island where, as Vote Solar says, "high electricity rates, plenty of sunshine and a strong workforce make solar a great fit."
Vote Solar took the opportunity on Friday to put out a quick call for New York solar companies interested in helping Mr. O'Reilly go solar, and by the end of this weekend, 16 companies and two trade associations representing dozens more solar installers had signed on to the cause.
Vote Solar sent the following note to the O'Reilly Factor on Monday morning:
Dear Mr. O'Reilly,
We hear you are ready to go solar pending your ability to locate a solar provider. We represent some of the hundreds of solar companies currently operating in New York State. We would be happy to help you get started with your investment in solar so you can join the many New Yorkers who are already saving money on their monthly utility bills by generating their own power.
Signed,
Clean Power Finance
Community Energy
EcoOutfitters.net
Energy by Choice
ETM Solar Works
Innovated Energy Solutions
KPS Solar
Mercury Solar Systems
One Block Off the Grid
RH Innovation Inc
SolarCity
Sungevity
Sunrise Energy Concepts
SunRun
Suntech America
Trinity Solar
Alliance for Clean Energy New York (ACE NY) -- representing 20 companies with solar operations in New York.
Long Island Solar Energy Industries Association (LIPA) -- representing 25 solar electric contractors on Long Island.
Edward Fenster, the CEO of SunRun, provided this learning moment: "Bill O'Reilly's request for information underscores that education and outreach must be done to help homeowners understand solar is available and often already less expensive than grid power today."
We've called and sent emails to Fox and O'Reilly's show to see how the search is going, but have yet to hear back.