Florida Solar Energy Center Will Host Monthly Tours

The public is invited to tour the University of Central Florida’s Florida Solar Energy Center for free on the second Thursday of each month.

FSEC staff will conduct the monthly tours of its highly energy-efficient facilities beginning Feb. 8, 2007 at 2 p.m. The center is located at 1679 Clearlake Road on the Cocoa campus that is shared by UCF and Brevard Community College. Monthly tours will be held the second Thursday of each month at 2 p.m.

Each tour will last about one hour and will be followed by a 30-minute video entitled “Killowatt Ours.” Visitors will have an opportunity to explore the FSEC building, one of the most energy-efficient commercial buildings in the world. Tour guides will point out some of the features that can be adopted by homeowners and businesses to make their buildings more energy efficient.

Tours will include an insider’s view of the wide range of research projects conducted at FSEC on hydrogen and fuel cells, buildings and energy efficiencies, the environment, photovoltaics, solar thermal energy and alternative transportation systems.

Visitors must register before the day of the tour since attendance is limited to 30. Call the FSEC Public Affairs Office at (321) 638-1015 to make a reservation.

The Florida Solar Energy Center, a research institute of the University of Central Florida, is the largest and most active state-supported energy research institute in the country.  Current research activities include solar water and pool heating, solar electric and distributed generation systems, energy-efficient buildings, alternative transportation systems, hydrogen fuel, fuel cells and other energy areas.  For more information about the center, visit www.fsec.ucf.edu or call the FSEC Public Affairs Office at (321) 638-1015.