All You Need To Know About Roofing With Solar Panels
The roof forms an integral part of any building. The roof gives an attractive and glamourous look to your house. There are different ways you can enhance your roof by fixing solar panels on your roofs in order to reduce your energy bills and save 1000’s of dollars for you.
Your roof can perform an extra function by saving your money with a rooftop solar system. For getting that free and clean electricity for decades, solar energy can be a worthwhile investment in the long run.
Solar panels generate electricity using the radiation that is emitted by the sun and ensures that all electrical equipment enjoys an uninterrupted power supply. When the solar panels are fitted on the rooftop, they are known as a photovoltaic system.
These solar panels are especially helpful for mid to large commercial as well as residential buildings.
The incredible advancement in solar power technology has helped to lower the cost of the equipment involved.
A great way to generate electricity for your home and business is by installing solar panels without increasing your impact on the environment.
However, before jumping in and starting the installation process, there are many things that you need to consider.
- Do your roof needs any repairs?
- What is the shape of your roof?
- How much weight can your roof handle?
- How do you connect to the grid?
- Is the contractor trustworthy and the warranties?
These are some of the frequent questions that you may come across before deciding on installing solar panels.
Types of Roof best for Solar Panel
One of the most important questions many would be concerned with is whether the solar panel is suitable and can be fixed on any type of roof. The answer would be Yes. Before installing the roof, one should make sure that the roof is perfect and free from any damages.
The solar panels can b fixed on any roof such as metal, tile, gravel, wood, or even foam.
Tile
The roof tiles are made of different materials like ceramic, concrete, polymer sand, and even stone tiles. In order to install the solar panel, they need to attach the brackets that would lift the panel up and rest below under the tiles.
Metal
Metal roofs are one of the eco-friendly and most durable materials that can even have a more extended life than solar panels. Solar panels work well on the metal roofs, and so these are one of most recommended for its low budget.
Tar & Gravel Roof
Tar & Gravel roofs are some of the oldest types of roofs. These roofs are installed by exchanging the layers of asphalt or tar and are heavier than other materials. These roofs are difficult to maintain and may need to use additional braces to fix the solar panels.
Wood
Wooden roofs are not somehow the best option for roofs, but the solar panels can be installed on this roof. When installing the solar panels, it should be placed in the south or southwest and ensure that there is a minimal obstruction to sunlight.
Roofing Solar Panels Cost
The solar panel installation on an average would cost around $18500 for a 6 kW for a house with a 1500 Sq Ft. The price per watt for a solar panel would range between $2.50 to $3.50.
The residential solar panels range between size of 3kW to 8 kW and would cost around $9255 and $24552 as total installation cost.
Solar Panel System Size | Average Solar Installation Costs |
2 kW | $6,015 |
3 kW | $9,225 |
4 kW | $12,035 |
5 kW | $14,893 |
6 kW | $18,500 |
7 kW | $21,008 |
8 kW | $24,552 |
Few main factors would affect how much you will spend on installing the solar panel. They are:
- The average utility cost and energy usage
- Rooftop’s solar potential, i.e., the amount of sunlight it receives
- The average local cost for a solar panel in your area
The average demand and labor cost
Metal Roofing With Solar Panels
Metal roofs are lighter, durable, and mostly made with eco-friendly recycled materials. So installing a solar panel is increasingly popular among the homeowners.
It is super easy to install the solar panel on the metal roofs.
The metal roofs can even outlive the solar panel is one of the most recommended roof types if you are going for a solar panel.
Easy installation, durability, and environment-friendly benefits are the main reasons why one should choose metal roofing with solar panels.
The installation is done with specialized mounting setups and uses mounting clamps to straddle blocks.
Main Features of Metal roofing
- Metal roofing is easy to mount solar panels
- The metal roofing with solar can host a standard PV panel and also thin-film panels.
- Metal roofs have high durability and can stay undamaged for longer years than solar panels.
- The metal roofs enjoy better cooling benefits with solar panels.
- These are more eco-friendly for homeowners.
Green Roofs With Solar Panels
Solar panels and green roofs go hand in hand. The green roof and solar roofs are common sustainable options for environmentally friendly roofs.
These are traditionally used to maximize the separate benefits from each one. The green roof and solar panel on a building is a totally new idea.
The green roofs enable to cool the surrounding air and offering a cooler temperature which allows the solar panel to work efficiently.
It also helps the rain to a runoff in front of the solar panel. The green roof is one of the cost-effective and environmentally sustainable options for a healthy building.
The solar panel has many benefits as they derive clean energy and also help combat greenhouse gas emissions. The green roofs help to remove the nitrogen pollution from the rain and also provide a house for flora and fauna.
Re-Roofing With Solar Panels
The normal life span of any solar panel will last between 30-35 years, and this will yield plenty of savings on your electricity bills.
As the solar panel has a long life, many of the homeowners have this question on this as to will this has any impact on their house roof. What will happen if they have to reinstall or remove the solar panels for a roof replacement?
It is highly important that before you decide to install solar panels, it essential to evaluate your roof and identify any damages and treat it.
If your roof is between 5 to 10 years old, it’s always a good idea to geta re-roofing done or get an expert opinion before you move to fix your solar panels.
Most of the solar service providers do not offer re-roofing, although there are some exceptions to it.
In both ways, re-roofing is most commonly done in line with a solar installation, and your solar contractor would give a good referral for the roofers in your area.
After a thorough examination, If it is understood that roof needs to replace prior to going for solar installation, its always a smart move to save your pockets.
But if you are running into a roofing problem post-installation of solar panels, then there would an extra labour cost associated with taking the panels off the roof and fixing it again once the roof is done.
Sometimes the mounting hardware also needs to be removed, which may even cost you extra dollars.
Solar panels are more durable than most of the roofing materials, and hence pairing solar with roof replacement would be aa best choice to experience the extended lifetime of the roof and the solar panel.
Call 678-543-0566 for any type of roof assistance with roofing with solar panels.