Solar Shingles - A New Dimension in Solar Energy.
Solar shingles are a great option as part of a complete roof replacement or restoration in addition to power generation. Generally speaking, shingles were traditionally known as tiles and the name “shingle” was referred to describe wood shingles, as is extensively the case outside of the United States. Solar shingles are roof tiles with solar cells which are sophisticatedly built-in.
How do Solar Shingles Work?
Solar shingles, frequently referred to as photovoltaic shingles, are solar panels devised in such a way as to imitate the appearance and functionality of common roofing materials, including asphalt shingles or slate, and at the same time generate electricity. Thin photovoltaic (PV) sheets are used to fabricate solar shingles, also known as solar roof tiles, which can either cover or swap the existing roof shingles. They take in the light from the sun and produce electricity from it. On average, each solar shingle can generate between 13 and 70 watts of electricity, giving a marginal cut in your electricity bills.
How to Install Solar Shingles?
Like regular shingles, solar shingles are friendly to install and lightweight and are made to resist wind, rain, and hailstorm. They are for sure an excellent solution for your home’s energy efficiency. Roof shingles are a type of roof coating made up of separate, overlaying sheets. These sheets are rectangular in shape and frequently flattened, that are positioned in upward courses, each of which overlaps the joints underneath it, starting laying it from the bottom part of the roof.
Difference between Solar Shingles and Solar Panels
The solar panel or shingle collects sunlight, which photovoltaic cells use to store. These cells are placed between layers of silicon-based semiconducting substance. Solar shingles and traditional solar panels follow the same technology. The substance charges up when receives sunlight, resulting producing an electric field. An inverter pairs with all solar shingles and panels. Direct current is produced by solar roofing. The inverter transforms the direct current into alternating current, which is then consumed in your home, preserved in your solar battery, or sent back into the main electricity grid.
Now have a look at the key differences between solar shingles vs solar panels:
Cost: Solar shingles are a budget-friendly one-time investment when replacing a roof. On the other hand, solar panels are economical if the roof is already in good condition to sustain the brackets.
Position: Solar shingles are the best choice if curb appearance is significant. Solar panels can be a good choice to increase energy efficiency, if your roof is not facing the sun or the roof is flat.
Installation Roof Safety: Solar panels are installed on the racks fitted in the roof by drilling holes, whereas on the other hand, solar shingles don’t demand this, rather than shielding the roof and leaving the roof with an attractive look.
Durability: For roughly 25 to 40 years, the energy efficiency of these solar shingle roofs is maintained. These are resistant to both weather and fire. Solar panels, if not damaged, can be long-lasting up to a maximum of 25 years.
Aesthetics: Solar shingles offer similar home protection to conventional shingles. They are blended in roofing materials have a more aesthetically pleasing look and are more compact than solar panels. Many homeowners favored this appearance.
Hence, opting for solar shingles, provide many advantages, including long-life facility, lower electricity costs, a minimal carbon footprint, cost-friendly, and little maintenance needed.
The Cost of Solar Shingles
The size and pitch of the roof, the kind, wattage, and brand of the solar shingles, as well as the labor cost and permits, are the major variables determining the cost of solar shingles. Additionally, the good news for homeowners is that solar shingles do not necessarily have to cover the entire roof.
Depending on your roof’s slope, size, and pitch, installing a solar shingle roof typically costs between $20,000 and $40,000 in total. A traditionally sized single-story residence will cost between $21 and $25 per square foot, or between $2,100 and $2,500 per square installed. In other words, solar shingles can cost anywhere between $3.50 and $8.00 per watt. Assess the required power of your system in wattage, and then check the wattage of the shingles you wish to buy.
Factors Contributing to Cost
Some major factors, including geographic location, might affect the cost to install solar shingles. Climates put an impact on the cost as well because solar installations may be more in demand in regions where there is more sunlight.
Large houses with higher electricity consumption necessitate more expensive kW systems. Because higher wattages are often more expensive than lower wattages, shingle wattages have an impact on solar shingle costs. The cost of higher-wattage shingles can be compensated by the extra electricity they generate, resulting in lower electricity bills. To assist in calculating the size of the solar shingle system required to meet their household’s electricity needs, homeowners may evaluate their current energy bills and needs.
How Many Solar Shingles Are Required?
Your energy requirements and the size of the roof will be taken into account by solar installation professionals when calculating how many shingles you need. On average, 350 solar tiles are required for a roof. The higher the required power output, the higher the shingles requirement. You won’t need to have shingles on your roof all the way around, though. We advise allocating 14 shingles for each square meter you wish to cover. For instance, a 3kW solar energy system would need between 200 and 250 solar shingles, but a bigger 10kW system will need between 600 and 700 solar shingles.
Specifications of Solar Shingles
We can estimate how many actual shingles are on a roof, as there are 29 conventional shingles (12in x 36in) in a bundle. No matter how big the square on the roof is (for example, 4′ x 25′ or 10′ x 10′,) a square of shingles is the entire number of shingles required to fill it. There are typically three bundles per square when shingles are sold by the bundle, though this can vary based on the type of shingles you’re using. We may estimate how many actual shingles are on a roof knowing that there are 29 conventional shingles (12in x 36in) in a bundle.
Because of fire safety regulations, most states permit only 2 layers of shingles on a roof. A contractor will advise a total replacement if you currently have two or more layers. Today, though, you can still find roofs with three or four layers.
Solar Shingles – Pros & Cons
Solar shingles are an amazing methodology to use sunlight to generate clean and self-sufficient energy. These are environment-friendly, aesthetic, and durable. Solar shingles are worthwhile for your investment.
Let’s go through their pros and cons:
Pros:
- Minimized Electricity bills, approximately 40% to 70% cost-effective.
- Solar shingles bear longer life as compared to normal shingles. Their life expectancy is 25 to 40 years.
- Solar shingles are efficient regardless of climatic severity means these are weather resistant.
- Solar shingles are highly fire-resistant and meet class-A, the uppermost fire rating.
- Gives your roofs an aesthetic and charming look.
- It increases the worth of your property by 4%.
- Negligible amount of maintenance is required.
- The solar shingles are ultraviolet resistant.
Cons:
- Difficult to transport if you relocate.
- Depends upon the position of the house and the slope of the roof.
- Cost is slightly higher.
- Installation takes time.
The lifespan of Solar Shingles
When estimating the cost of a new roof, keep in mind that solar shingles are made with a lifespan of 25 to 30 years. However, if properly maintained, they are durable enough to last even longer. This indicates that after installation, your shingles will continue to produce electricity for another two to three decades. Because your energy expenditures will be nearly negligible during this period, your shingles will generate enough electricity to pay them off. Conventional shingles cannot give such a performance.
Shingles deteriorate but at a slow pace, because they are shielding your home from the contaminants and doing their job. Some shingles are more resistant to deterioration than others despite exposure to the sun, rain, snow, and wind.
Comparison of available Solar Shingles
Due to the reliability, affordability, and aesthetic appeal of solar shingle roofs, more homeowners desired to include them in their new homes. Prices have gone up as a result of rising demands, increasing the profitability of this newly launched industry. Because of this, many businesses provide solar roofing solutions in one way or another.
Tesla Solar Roofs
In technical terms, Tesla is hardly the first company to have ever thought about solar shingles. Tesla has made it certain that its solar system is a roof first, in comparison to other companies. Tesla is certain that it can gain market share in the solar and roofing industries.
LUMA Solar Roof
The Solar Roof is an entire roof replacement solution offered by Luma Solar. The Solar Roof is Luma Solar’s brand name for their full-roof replacement solution, just like Tesla’s.
RGS Powerhouse 3.0
The thin-film solar-based POWERHOUSE series of solar shingles were first devised by Dow Chemical. In 2016, Dow discontinued their operations, and the following year sold its POWERHOUSE product line to RGS Energy. RGS Energy’s primary transformation to the POWERHOUSE series was to switch from thin-film to monocrystalline cells.
Hanenergy Han Tile
Thin-film solar is the expertise of San Francisco-based Hanenergy. Their HanTile product integrates thin-film PV and aims to imitate the appearance of a dark terracotta roofing tile. There isn’t sufficient information available right now on this device, apart from the company’s intended 25-year warranty for its HanTile product line.
GAF Solar Shingles
Every year, 1.5 million roofs are made using GAF shingles out of the total 5 million new roofs installed on houses. GAF Energy provides a web-based application for tracking your solar production.
Suntegra
The SunTegra Shingle and Tile are designed to exist in tandem with regular roofing shingles or tiles. Two solar roof products are offered by SunTegra. The first is their Shingle, which is installed on top of your current asphalt shingles, and the second is their Tile, which serves as an alternative for items made of concrete tile.
Certain Teed
A North American solar firm named CertainTeed specializes in producing wallboard, insulation, roofing, and other materials. The Apollo II shingle, which is placed on top of your existing roof, and the Apollo II Tile, which is a replacement tile that is similar to the Tesla Solar Roof, are the two solar products they now offer under the Apollo brand name.
Why GAF stands out among others?
GAF, General Aniline & Film, founded in 2019, is the top producer of roofing and waterproofing materials in America. To capitalize on its more than 130-year-long legacy in the roofing industry, GAF boosts the adoption of rooftop solar.
There is a 1 in 4 possibility that the materials manufactured by GAF were used to construct a roof. Rooftop solar power choices are now available from the leading roofing manufacturer in the US. GAF has coverage in more than 16 States and is delivering high-efficiency timberline solar shingles since 2021.
Clean energy and a stunning roof by GAF
The novel Timberline Solar roofing system is designed on cutting-edge inventions that simplify solar power. For your home, pick a dependable roof, with warranties backed by GAF, and above all clean energy.
Timberline Solar is a blend of durable, water-shedding shingles that are guaranteed to resist wind of up to 130 mph. As the first nailable solar shingles in the world, Timberline Solar Energy Shingles are very friendly to install. Through scientific research and development and innovative programs, GAF has led the way for more than a century. GAF outperformed in the development and manufacture of high-performance residential and commercial roofing products.
GAF Shingles Upgraded Features
Our best-selling Timberline Shingles come with exclusive GAF Dura Grip adhesive, which tightly secures each shingle and lowers the chance of shingle blow-off. The beauty that peoples enjoy, with enhanced defense against damaging winds and stains from blue-green algae. Timberline is the typical mix of aesthetic appeal and cost-effectiveness.
Conclusion
Yes, solar roof shingles are a very beneficial investment because they will boost the value of your house and considerably cut down your energy costs. Solar shingles have an ROI ranging from 50% to 80%, depending on the installation technique.
Residential solar installations have been slowly but surely rising in the US over the recent past. By installing solar shingles, your roof can perform a dual role: it produces clean energy and gives your house, workplace, or any other facility you own an elegant look. Solar shingles, which incorporate both strategies into one for a cost comparable to a solar panel system with roof installation, can be a more financially sound option in situations when replacing your roof is necessary.
Solar roof shingles can also be a wonderful option for newly built homes. Deciding to use solar shingles during construction can lower costs significantly, optimize ROI, and facilitate installation.
It is recommended that you receive a quotation for your exact roof plan and compare it to other conventional solar panel systems. Moreover, also get roofing installation quotes if you are interested in solar shingles. You can then determine which plan would best fulfill your needs.