Solar Roof Tiles

If you are interested in installing solar panels on your roof, there are a number of options.  One of the most recent innovations are solar roof tiles.  These look just like the real thing, but they help deliver clean, green solar energy to your home, without the need for bulky solar panels.

These tiles are perfect if you live in the desert Southwest, southern California, or if you simply like the look of clay roof tiles. The Solé Power Tile system is the first building-integrated photovoltaic roofing product that has been designed to blend with curved roof tiles.  The only thing you’ll notice are significantly lower electricity bills!

Solar shingles

Solar roof tiles work as follows.  The tiles are designed to be installed so that there is only a 3 inch overlap, leaving the remaining 15 inches of roof tile exposed to ultraviolet sunlight.  Expect to install approximately 30 tiles per 100 square feet of roof surface, which can generate up to 860 kilowatt-hours annually.  According to SRS Energy:

“triple-junction amorphous silicon thin-film technology incorporated within the Solé Power Tile allows the system to produce an estimated 8-20% more energy than incumbent crystalline silicon panels.”

If you cannot utilize 100% of the power generated by your solar roof tiles, excess energy can be stored in batteries or fed back into the grid.  Your utility company may provide you a credit on your bill for doing so!

If you are not a fan of tiled roofs, you can go with a more traditional-looking solar power roof shingle installation instead.  As with the solar roof tiles, the solar shingles blend seamlessly and also use thin film solar technology.

The Sole Power Tiles are only available in the West Coast area of the United States currently.  They’ll be sold nationwide starting in 2010.  Remember that solar incentives and rebates are available to defray initial costs of solar roof tiles or other solar panel installations!