Some folks in South Carolina — which is currently ranked a dismal 20th in the nation in terms of total installed renewable energy capacity – are making an effort to move the state up in the ranks.

The South Carolina Energy Office has awarded a grant to help install solar hot water systems atop 60 homes in the state. The systems will be made by Velux — a Greensville, South Carolina-based solar water heated manufacturer. Once the systems are fully in place, Velux and Southern Energy Management, an installation company, will track the effectiveness of the systems in terms of monthly savings on utility bills. We haven’t identified all the homes chosen to participate, but we do know that one belongs to Clover, South Carolina resident Ken Newell:

“I was very thrilled when I found out we had been selected. In a tough economy, especially for people in the architecture and construction industry like I am, anything that can save money is a real godsend. I’m going to be very interested to see my power bill.”

The pilot program is an effort to get state legislators to back more renewable energy projects in the next fiscal year by showing them how much South Carolina citizens can benefit from such a system. Velux’s solar thermal systems should help that cause, as they are expected to account for about 75 percent of each home’s hot water needs. The sample data collected over the course of a year will be used to estimate how much money state homeowners can save on a much larger scale.

It is estimated that 25 percent of a household’s utility bill goes to pay for hot water, so it’s likely that these residents will see significant savings. Let’s hope it’s enough to convince South Carolina lawmakers to invest more in solar power.