Solar roof shingles are the newest players on the block. A Solar Roof will complement your home’s architecture while turning sunlight into electricity. With an integrated battery, energy collected during the day is stored and made available any time, effectively turning your home into a personal utility. Glass solar tiles made by some manufacturers are sold as so durable they are warrantied for the lifetime. The roofing systems using combination solar and non-solar glass tiles (shingles). Both of the tiles appear the same from the street. They have been tested to withstand 2” hail stones at 100 mph without a blemish. One of the benefits of the solar roof shingles is the use of power in the event the electricity from your utility provider were to fail. The home would have access to the battery storage to continue to run things like your refrigerator. Currently, there is a 30% tax credit but with that said, the cost of a solar roof will hit the wallet and since it is so new to the market, it is hard to say what the long term savings will be. This is also new technology and like all newer technology bugs can be present. If you are interested in a solar roof, give our professionals a call and we can help you with making the right choice in this new market.
RACKLESS SOLAR ROOF SYSTEMS
There are two well established solar technology companies that make what they call solar shingles but are better described as small, rectangular solar panels that are installed without traditional racking systems. CertainTeed also makes a solar shingle that are installed alongside asphalt shingles. The 63-W monocrystalline solar panels are about 46 in. long and 17 in. wide — bigger than asphalt shingles but smaller than traditional solar panels. SunTegra has two building-applied products, also using monocrystalline solar panels that are bigger than the surrounding shingles. The SunTegra Shingle is about 52 in. long and 20 in. wide and rates at 110 W. The SunTegra Tile is also about 52 in. long but 14 in. wide and produces 70 W. The CertainTeed and SunTegra products are attached to the roofing deck for a sleek solar look not often achieved by elevated racks.
SOLAR SHINGLES AND TILES
When solar shingles and solar tiles are sized to look like traditional roofing products, the result can be a more uniformly designed solarized roof. Luma Solar designs custom solar roofs, using 54-in. long and 15-in. wide, 65-W polycrystalline solar panels (or 75-W monocrystalline panels) connected together for the entire roof span. Similarly sized metal panels are used along the roof perimeter or where solar cells can’t perform. The Luma solar shingles blend in with the non-solar metal panels for a uniform look.
DeSol Power Tiles also has a solar roof but uses individual polypropylene tiles similar in shape to traditional roofing tiles. An entire roof is installed, with some of the tiles having 17-W monocrystalline solar cells embedded. The tiles are screwed to battens on the roof plywood level. The roof looks uniform in design, although the solar tiles are shinier than the solid, polymer tiles.
Hanergy is rolling out two CIGS thin-film solar tile products: the curved HanTile and the flat Thin Film Flat SOLARtile. Both are installed among other non-solar-generating tiles. The HanTile roof installation looks less obviously like solar than the flat tiles.
Tesla’s solar roof is definitely the more aesthetically pleasing solar tile choice. The company is manufacturing solar cells hidden behind tempered glass, and matching non-solar tiles are used along the roofing edge. Tesla’s tiles are 14 in. long and about 8.5 in. wide, with an unknown power output. The solar tiles are manufactured in Tesla’s Gigafactory in Buffalo, New York, that it also shares with Panasonic. It’s assumed that the Solar Roof tiles use crystalline silicon cell technology from Panasonic. Similar to other true solar shingle and tile products, Tesla’s solar tiles replace an entire roof, so other, more traditional roofing tiles are not used.
IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR AN EXPERT IN SOLAR ROOFING YOU HAVE COME TO THE RIGHT PLACE.
We know the products that are available and can walk you through all of the options and expected outcomes. Schedule your free home evaluation and estimate today.
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