Tiny Watts Power Solutions, owned by Redmond’s Wes and Savana Watts, is a solar electric power company operating out of Redmond that developed a DIY kit that allows customers to take their vans off road and still have the comforts of home: heat, air conditioning, a stove and Wi-FI.

These rooftop solar kits generate and store electricity and do so without needing a noisy, smelly generator, Wes Watts said.

“Our products are off the grid. Bend is the van capital in the United States,” said Wes Watts, 31. “It’s a great place to have a van. It’s a good life. The business community is very resourceful and supportive.”

As a nod of approval for their work, the startup received a $12,000 Deschutes County economic development forgivable loan to help grow their business. The loan conditions require the company to hire more employees to double their team within two years.

It’s just the kind of business that the Economic Development for Central Oregon likes to encourage and support, said Steve Curley, Redmond Economic Development director.

“The outdoor space is very active with startups and entrepreneurs,” Curley said.

“Central Oregon was a good place for them to grow their business. We took a team approach to help them get connected to resources and people in the outdoor space here.”

As a traded-sector business, companies like Tiny Watts Solar bring new, high-paying jobs to the community, Curley said. What’s important here is the company is a regional manufacturer that sells its products outside the region, bringing new money in, he said.

“The grant is like a seed,” Curley said. “It’s a small amount of money meant to be a seed to help them grow. It helps businesses cover the cost of getting the new employees onboard. Even though it’s not a ton of money, it can have a big impact on a startup.”

Statewide, the outdoor sector that includes gear and apparel industry employed about 25,500 with a $4.1 billion payroll in 2021, the most current year data are available and excludes tourism and outdoor recreation jobs, said Damon Runberg, economist with Business Oregon.

Initially from Portland, the Wattses had been operating their business and living the van life for several years. They chose to live in their van, which cost $150,000, rather than try to afford rent or buy a home in Portland.

It also provided great data for research and development, Wes Watts said. After he graduated from electrical engineering school, the couple decided to take their product on the road and do custom installations for customers reaching out through social media. That was in 2017. Sales then were about $250,000 from the installation of about 12 projects.

“It was fun. We were constantly iterating with each project and constantly testing systems and living in our van,” Wes Watts said. “We realized there was a market for this and want to scale our company.”

They also tested their solar equipment on a sailboat during 40 days of sailing in the Pacific Ocean, said Savana Watts, 29. They used their solar equipment to power the comforts of home on the sailboat and were able to tap into their satellite Wi-FI connection to answer emails and run their business, Savana Watts said. In 2019, Tiny Watts Solar faced a turning point.

“We were running our business from that boat,” Savana Watts said. “We even grew and had a record year. In a way it opened our eyes to hunker down. We saw an opportunity to grow the company.”

Last year sales were about $1 million and more than 40 installations. Prices range from the cost of a single solar panel to an entire solar and water system set below a raised platform bed frame for about $30,000 made to fit different van configurations, according to the company website.

“Everything we earn is being poured back into the company at this point,” Wes Watts said. “We hope to double or triple our sales in the next three years. We’re looking to go from building three kits a month to six to eight as we ramp up sales.

“Our team can do it.”

To accomplish that goal, the Wattses are adding two more employees, refining the processes and opening up new sales channels by adding business-to-business sales in addition to direct to consumer, he said.

The solar units are installed on the van’s roof. They’re strong enough to walk on. In fact, the website features a photo of a couple sitting atop their roof in the wilderness, enjoying a hot cup of coffee. It wasn’t until the company that provides their composite material in Redmond suggested they share space that they moved to Central Oregon in 2022.

That’s when they made the switch from custom installs to DIY kits with easy to understand instructions and videos so that outdoor enthusiasts could install the system themselves, he said.

“People are building campers and are used to having hot water, heat, lights and need electricity,” Wes Watts said. “Our systems are lithium battery based and include all the things you need to have an off-grid system: an inverter to make 120-volt power, solar controllers for solar panels on the roof, voltage regulator that can talk to the alternator under the hood of the van. You can charge the system with your engine while driving, (with) the sun, or plug it in.”

The goal is to be able to park by a quiet lake and the solar will keep the food in the fridge cold and the appliances running, he said.

“Our company may be called Tiny Watts, but our system is a robust power system that can sustain modern power needs,” Savana Watts said.