This shows how far the highest of the high-tech alternative energy technologies has come. Solar power is now accessible to anyone with a ladder, a power drill, and the gumption to climb up on a roof and install the panels themselves.

For Lowes, its an opening into a new and potentially lucrative DIY business.

“Theres definitely a growing market for this with the number of people moving toward energy efficient homes,” spokesman Steven Salazar said.

Buyer be warned, however. The DIY part of solar goes beyond installation.

Professional installers typically handle all the necessary paperwork, like clearance from the local utility and applications for a bevy of government subsidies that can make the system a whole lot cheaper.

“You put solar panels on your roof without a permit, bad things happen to you,” said Jeff Wolfe, CEO of solar installer groSolar. “The utility could shut off the power.”

Lowes will staff a kiosk near the panels that provides information on how to apply for rebates.

For anyone willing to tackle the paperwork, Akeena Solar promises a hassle-free installation that will immediately reduce the power you need to buy from the local utility.

Akeena Solar, Inc., based in Los Gatos, Calif., said it designed a system with the novice in mind.

“Its really not a big deal,” said CEO Barry Cinnamon. “The most dangerous thing is learning about ladder safety.”

The rectangular panels retail at $893 a piece. They produce the same AC power that runs in homes and plug directly into a circuit breaker.

To install, youll need to carry the 40-pound panels to the roof and drill holes - two per panel - into the rafters. After adding a barrier to prevent leaks and a couple of brackets, the panels are bolted to the roof.

The home would need a dedicated circuit breaker, just like a washer and dryer.

One panel packs nowhere near the punch of a full solar system.

A typical solar system installed by a professional usually has 20 panels. Each Akeena panel will generate about 175 watts of electricity, about enough to power a flat screen television.

If you want more solar power, you can snap another panel to the first, kind of like Legos.

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Turner, the former vice chairman of Time Warner Inc., is the 376th richest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of $1.9 billion, according to Forbes magazine. It has also called him the largest individual landholder in the U.S.

“Im putting my money where my mouth is and Ive made a multimillion investment in solar power,” Turner, 70, said in the interview in Washington on April 24. “Im looking to make an investment in wind power as well.”

Turner said he has a “multimillion-dollar” stake in First Solar Inc., the worlds largest maker of thin-film solar power modules. In 2007, Turner sold DT Solar, a commercial solar- project installer, to First Solar for $34 million.

Lisa Morse, a spokeswoman for Tempe, Arizona-based First Solar, wasnt available for comment. Phillip Evans, a spokesman for Turner, didnt respond to an e-mail request for information about his holdings.

First Solar rose $3.96, or 2.8 percent, to $147.46 on April 24 in Nasdaq Stock Market composite trading.

Solar Analysis

Turner said he may expand his solar investments. If he enters the wind business as well, he said that wouldnt put him in competition with his friend T. Boone Pickens, chief executive officer of BP Capital LLC, because the field is so open.

Turner also has given money to George Washington University in Washington to support a new Institute for Analysis of Solar Energy. Barbara Tesner, assistant vice president of development for the university, declined to specify how much Turner donated.

Turner said “one big question mark” hanging over the alternative-energy industry is the climate change legislation Congress is currently working on.

“One reason we created this institute, theyre going to have, as I understand it, a government relations component, and were going to lobby for a strong energy bill that encourages the development of clean, renewable energy,” said Turner.

Turner founded the Cable News Network in 1980. He is chairman of Turner Enterprises Inc., a closely held company based in Atlanta that manages his investments and land holdings, including more than 2 million acres in the U.S. and Argentina.

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