Top 10 Celebrities Who Should Go Solar

by Adele, posted on August 16th, 2010.

Solar panels are undeniably hot in the celebrity world; Brad Pitt, Tom Hanks, and Will Ferrell are just a few of the celebs to go solar. With so many stars owning unbelievably gigantic homes in extra-sunny places like LA, it’s surprising that even more people haven’t followed suit. We’ve rounded up ten of the biggest celebrity homes, and calculated just how much solar power they’d be able to generate by redecorating their spacious roofs.

10. Hayden Panettiere, Los Angeles, California, 13.8 kW

Hayden lives in this $2.6 million mansion in the Hollywood Hills (shown on the right in the pic above), with floor-to-ceiling views of LA all the way to the ocean. Panatierre is known for her activism– she’s spoken for Greenpeace and traveled to Japan to help fight dolphin hunting. We think she’s in a perfect place to take action at home and make use of the abundant SoCal sunshine.

9. Jessica Alba, Los Angeles, CA, 20.2 kW

Jessica Alba and Cash Warren bought this $4 million Beverly Hills villa in 2008 to welcome their baby girl. Jessica’s gotten attention for being green at home, with eco-friendly paints, used furniture, a synthetic lawn (plastic, but it requires no water) and a saltwater pool. Time to take the next step and go solar.

8. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, Montecito, California, 22.2 kW

Tom and Katie have a couple of places– this one is north of LA in posh Montecito. With seven bedrooms, it’s definitely big enough for some solar panels on the roof. A little renewable energy could help offset their emissions from their fleet of private planes and SUVs.

7. Tiger Woods, Windemere, FL, 38.6 kW

Tiger just lost this home, called Windemere, to Elin in the divorce settlement; he’ll be living nearby in one of their other homes, on Jupiter Island. Windemere was the scene of the fateful SUV crash last year. Like other gigantic homes, it uses massive amounts of electricity and could really benefit from solar power.

6. Leonardo diCaprio, Los Angeles, CA, 44.9 kW

Leonardo DiCaprio’s well-known as an environmentally activist; he even owns his own eco-friendly apartment complex in NYC. He was one of the first celebrities to drive a Prius. But having a gigantic home like this takes a LOT of energy. (He owns the house next door, too, which would also be a prime candidate for solar power).

5. Oprah Winfrey, Montecito, CA, 76.4 kW

Oprah has a home down the street from Tom Cruise in sunny Montecito, California. It’s on a 42-acre estate; watering a lawn that size in a dry climate takes a lot of energy. Powering everything inside the 23,000 square foot home takes even more. The house cost Oprah $52 million in 2001, and is estimated to be worth about $90 million now. She can definitely afford solar panels.

4. Jennifer Aniston, Los Angeles, CA, 90 kW

Jen bought this sprawling 6-bed mansion in the Hollywood Hills in 2006, after her breakup with Brad Pitt. Four years later (and after over $1 million of renovations) it looks like it’s still under construction. Probably the perfect time to add on some solar panels– she’s got the perfect roof layout for it. Brad’s already gone solar…

3. Candy Spelling, Los Angeles, CA, 128.58 kW

Candy Spelling, Aaron Spelling’s widow, has been trying (unsuccessfully) to sell the 56,500 square foot family home in Los Angeles. It’s the most expensive home on the market in the entire world, at $150 million. Inside, there’s a bowling alley and an entire room dedicated to gift wrapping. We know that solar panels help make houses more attractive to potential buyers; maybe she should try installing some. (Image credit)

2. Barack Obama, Washington DC, 156.4 kW

The White House actually had solar thermal panels, installed by Jimmy Carter in 1979, but Ronald Reagan took them down in the early 80s (d’oh!). Now, a group of solar installers has offered to give President Obama solar PV panels for free. Sungevity estimates that a 17.85 kW solar system could reduce the president’s energy bill by 80%. We’re all for it. (Image credit).

1. John Travolta, Ocala, FL, 201.44 kW

John Travolta is the only private citizen ever to own and operate his own Boeing 707. He has several more jets as well; appropriately, then, his home in Florida is equipped with a runway and airplane hangars. That’s a lot of roof space. Travola does care about environmental issues, and, somewhat ironically, gives lectures about global warming. We think he’d be an excellent candidate for solar panels.