Benefits of Solar Roof Shingles

Solar roof shingles have made it hard to distinguish solar-powered homes from conventional homes. Solar panel shingles use innovative technology that enables homeowners to meet their energy goals without compromising on the aesthetics of their home. These solar powered shingles blend almost seamlessly in with traditional roofing materials and are disguised as roof shingles.

Building-integrated photovoltaics systems, or BIPVs, combine solar cells with slate, metal, fiber-cement or asphalt roofing, which create the solar shingles. There are many options available, the most popular mimics the look of standard asphalt shingles. Other options available are flexible and can even be stapled directly into the roofing cloth. Solar panel shingles are able to generate electricity when the sun strikes a semiconductor layer, typically crystalline silicon which is laminated to the shingle's surface. One shingle by itself doesn't produce much power, just between 50 and 200 watts, but by adding the solar shingles across a large portion of your roof, you can then harness enough energy to power the entire needs of a home.

Beside the aesthetic appeal that shingles provide, they also offer other prominent benefits including the same protection and durability of traditional shingles while also producing electricity. Solar shingles come with special support structures that can withstand wind speeds equal to 80 mph, they are light weight, modular, easy to install and have relatively low installation costs, especially if you are already roofing your new home or are in need of a new roof for your current home.

Solar shingles work most efficiently when installed on a south-facing roof. They also need a roof that has a substrait that can handle getting hot. These disadvantages generally rule out certain homes with weakly angled or flat roofs as well as roofs with improper air circulation. It's best to have a contractor or installer out to evaluate your roof to see if it meets the requirements.

The main advantages of solar shingles over solar panels, is that solar shingles look just like a roof, without the use of bulky panels. And unlike solar panels, solar roof shingles not only provide electricity, but they actually protect your house from the elements like standard roofing shingles. So if you are building a new home or roof, or if your roof happens to be a good candidate, then solar roof shingles are a nice looking way to power your house with green energy.

Many consumers appear willing to pay a premium for solar power that is both functional and aesthetically pleasing. In the end, solar roof shingles offer a great option for those homeowners looking to achieve renewable energy goals with conventional aesthetics in mind. If you're looking for the most affordable solar electric solution, you probably won't find it in solar roof shingles, at least not yet. However, over the longer term, the technology of solar roof shingles is likely to greatly influence the way we think about, and look at solar powered homes.

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