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A Green Dentist in a Bluegrass State by Richard Henry, DDS

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There aren't a lot of windmills in Mt. Sterling, Kentucky.
Actually, there might be only two, and both belong to Dr. Richard Henry. Dr. Henry has done something few dentists have—he's built one of the greenest dental practices in the country. Here's Dr. Henry's story on putting together one lean, mean—but also green—practice, as told to Dentaltown Magazine.

I wanted more than just an energy-efficient building. I wanted to make my own power and have a cool-looking place to work. My pockets were not deep, so my plan was as follows:

First, move from my old three-operatory rented space into a bigger one. Second, build a Lego office, where rooms can be easily swapped around and repurposed as I grow or my needs change. Third, add wind power and solar power as finances became available.

In my first year, I moved in four ops and a German horizontal windmill. Yep, they exported a windmill to me. Guess who gets to assemble and install a German windmill? That's me in Fig. 1 on a 50-foot bucket truck (for safety, always wear a harness).

Jay Leno has a bigger German windmill unit so I sent him a picture of me with mine and he sent me an autographed photo of him in front of his.

In my second year, I added a carport and then I slapped down some solar panels on the top of it. Next I added a USA Skystream wind generator.

As you can imagine, my office draws a lot of attention. People come in all the time to ask how the windmills work and where they can get one. These people get a tour (if they want) of the office and see that the high-tech theme continues into our operatories (CEREC/Biolase/Galileos/IO cameras, and even TVs in the ceiling).

I tell them all this technology runs on power. I tell them that I'm an "energy pig," but at the end of the year my wind/solar pays for about 30 percent of my electricity.

Does my power meter spin backward (meaning, do I put power back into the system)? Yes, yes I do.

Do I get a check from the Kentucky Power Company? No. Because my office is an "energy pig," I will never get it down to zero. Kentucky is a coal-energy user and we have lots of coal. My electricity is the cheapest in the nation, so the state will not send me a check for the power I put into the system. Here it's called "net zero."

Some states have very high energy costs, like California, where from what I've read, in some areas for every one dollar the meter spins backwards the state will pay you two dollars back. [Editor's note: Please check your state and utility company's regulations for existing rebates or fees.]

Every time I pull into the office, I smile. Cloudy days bring wind and no solar power; hot summer days bring lots of sun power and no wind power. You know that leaky toilet that runs your water meter up? That's kind of what I have in reverse, with wind and solar. It isn't a ton of power production, but it works all the time and it adds up.

I designed this building so that the last one out flips two switches at the door and everything except phones and the alarm system is off. However, I don't have to worry about someone forgetting to turn something off—this is when the power meter runs backward.

Before you jump in I have to warn you: It's a lot of work, some physical. I helped set a pole, and that's me on the 50-foot ladder truck. But if you don't have to do the work, that's great. In my case, no one around my city does these and I really like to mix things up after a day of dentistry and take on tasks like these.

If you want to make your office less dependent on energy and lower your bills, start reading. My best resource is Home Power magazine. Everything that's a solar/wind producer at my office is for home use. It made the codes easy to follow.

Want to keep it even simpler? Turn off everything you can at the end of the day, install a programmable thermostat, unplug or get a plug switch for those little power boxes (called "energy vampires") that transform AC to DC voltage.



If you really want to up your game, try some of these things.

Buy a waterless suction unit and turn it off at lunch or if no patients are in the chair to save energy. Keep the old one as a backup.

Change light bulbs to LED or CFLs (less heat and a lot less energy)—don't forget your outside lights.

Own your own building? Have a south-facing roof? Put up some passive solar panels.

Have room in your parking lot? Put up a wind generator.

Regarding maintenance, go up once a year to clean and inspect. Because it all plugs into my breakers inside, I can monitor the whole system from my computer.

I have a couple things coming up as well, like finishing the installation of a GALILEOS System. With a little time and some patience, and albeit some hard work, getting a green office—and one that saves money—is within everyone's reach.

Questions for me? You can reach me at dr24@bellsouth.net.

Dr. Richard Henry is a general dentist practicing in Mt. Sterling, Kentucky. His goal is to have the first practice in the U.S. that runs completely on renewable energy. Henry is a graduate of the College of St. Thomas and University of Minnesota School of Dentistry. To improve the quality of care for his patients, Henry regularly participates in seminars to expand his knowledge and courses that utilize modern techniques and materials, most recently minimum invasive dentistry with the use of lasers.


Dentaltown Magazine
April 2024
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