Daryl Stone photo Marcia Blackwell and her dog, Lucy, in the living room of their solar-powered Long Branch home.

LONG BRANCH -- The tan ranch house on Liberty Street does not stand out among its neighbors -- unless you count the two large glass-like panels that resemble skylights.

The panels are part of a solar-energy system designed to make the equipment blend in, according to the company, GeoGenix LLC in Rumson.

Marcia and Tom Blackwell, the owners of the home, are pleased with the system, which makes theirs the first solar-energy house to become operational in Long Branch, Marcia Blackwell said recently.

In fact, Marcia Blackwell has become so impressed with solar energy that she is now helping the company that installed her system to market itself.

"I've been talking it up so much, and I'm so passionate about renewable energy . . . and the positive impact it can have that I felt I should get into the business," Marcia Blackwell said.

The Blackwells will open their home to the public from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 2 as part of the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association's Green Buildings Program. Visitors will be able to meet the homeowners and examine the system, which is used to operate all utilities in the house except heat, which is provided by natural gas.

The Blackwell home features a 4.8-kilowatt system that powers the washer, dryer, dishwasher and air conditioning. Since it began operating May 9, the Blackwells have not paid anything to Jersey Central Power & Light Co. for electricity.

The cost to install the roof panels and accompanying equipment inside and outside the garage was about $40,000, said Blackwell. But New Jersey's Clean Energy Program, which encourages the use of clean energy systems, offers up to a 70 percent rebate, if certain conditions are met.

That brings the cost down to about $11,000, said Blackwell and Gaurav A. Naik of GeoGenix. The cost can be reduced even less -- to an average of $7,000 -- if the client agrees to up-front credits for the purchase of its so-called "green tags," credit toward renewable energy credits the system produces, which is then sold to other electric companies, Naik said.

Even if property owners opt not to use their green tags up front, the system will pay for itself within seven years, Naik said.

He said the National Board of Realtors has determined that for every dollar of annual electrical savings, property value will increase $20.

His company has installed solar-energy systems in homes on Long Beach Island and in Shrewsbury, Wall, Rumson, Long Branch and West Long Branch. This year, they are installing systems in Monmouth Beach, Middletown, Holmdel and Tinton Falls.

Daryl Stone photo Large panels on the roof of Marcia and Tom Blackwell's house are part of the solar-energy system that powers the property. The Blackwells' home is the first solar-energy house to become operational in Long Branch, and Marcia Blackwell is now helping the company that installed the system to market itself.

" This summer, we're getting twice the number of calls we got last year," Naik said. "It's catching on."

For the Blackwells, it was an easy choice to go solar.

"We really try to live green," said Marcia Blackwell, who is also an officer manager for a telecom company. Her husband installs fire-suppression systems. "I don't know if that's too granola a word. We really try to live a sustainable lifestyle. We eat green, we grow green. We compost."

She said the rebate is what closed the deal for her.

"If someone is willing to give you 70 percent off, you go to the next step," she said.

She went to the state Web site and chose three vendors from the list provided. She chose GeoGenix primarily because it was local, and she knew if something went wrong, she'd know where to turn.

She's been busy trying to get other customers, including the city and its schools, hooked on solar. So far, she has had a meeting with Long Branch City Business Administrator Howard H. Woolley Jr., who admits the idea is enticing.

In the city's case, she submitted proposals for city hall and Fire Headquarters, Woolley said.

"It looks extremely interesting," Woolley said. "At first, I was somewhat skeptical, but I think it could make a lot of sense."

Her next step is the Long Branch Board of Education, which currently is embarked on a major building program. Schools Superintendent Joseph M. Ferraina said he is open to talking about sustainable energy, particularly for the new Audrey W. Clark School, where officials are in the process of choosing an architect. "I am open to any form of energy that is cost-effective and saves the environment," Ferraina said. "We would listen to what they have to say. I'm interested."