Rooftop Solar Panels: 5 Steps To Roof Readiness
updated at : Thursday, January 19th, 2017
You have decided on rooftop solar panels but you are not sure if your rooftop is ready for it! You will learn 5 simple steps to determine your rooftop readiness for rooftop solar panels installation. The rooftop is a prime real estate for installing a solar energy system but is your rooftop ready for it? Let’s find out! The following are the questions you need to ask yourself.
Is My Rooftop Ready for Solar Installation?
The rooftop is the most preferred solar energy system installation location. Modern roofs are made of concrete or clay tiles which are extremely durable. Older homes were built with asphalt shingles. Both of these roofing materials are durable but you need to check the shape they are in. If you have a roof made of concrete or clay tiles, you are in good shape. They last a long time and already require a strong foundation to hold those materials.
Your solar energy system is warranted for 25 years and you should ensure your roof will be good for another 10-15 years. If you think your roof won’t last that long, you should consider replacing your roof before installing a solar energy system on your rooftop. You will waste a lot of money if after the solar energy system installation; you find out that the roof is not good enough. A reputed solar energy system installer will warn you if your rooftop is not in good shape and won’t be able to withstand the strain of the solar energy system installation.
Do I Have Enough Rooftop Space?
A typical home needs about 3000-5000 watts from the solar energy system to offset 90% of the electricity usage. Let’s consider that you will need a solar energy system that is 5000 watts or 5 kW. For each kW of solar energy generation, you require 75 square feet of rooftop space. If you plan on a 5 kW or 5000 watts solar energy system, you will need 375 square feet of rooftop space. Typical solar panels are 6 feet in width and 3.5 feet in height. If you have a rooftop that is 55 feet in width and 7 feet in width, you are in business. You will need only 20 solar energy panels, each generating 255 watts of energy. Solar panels capable of generating 20, 255 watts of energy that occupy around 375 square feet of rooftop space will be capable of offsetting 90% of your electricity needs.
How Much Solar Energy Will It Generate?
Since you have considered going with a solar energy system, you want to know how much green cash your rooftop will generate. This depends on a few factors! The factors are irradiance, roof facing, shading, and solar energy system size. We made a simple tool for you to find all of this out at our website SOLARINSTALLGURU.COM. You will need to enter your address and follow the instructions. You will not only know how much green cash your solar energy system will generate but also how much greenhouse gases you will reduce. Head over to SOLARINSTALLGURU.COM right now and find out. Pause here for a second and until you find out how much green cash your solar energy system will generate. The rest of the topic will make more sense to you when you have this information handy.
Impact of Flat vs. Sloped Rooftop
The solar panels need to be at a certain angle so the sunlight hits the panels directly to produce optimal energy. If your roof is flat, the solar panel installers will use angle brackets so the solar panels are at a certain angle and not lying flat. If the roof is already sloped then the need to use angle brackets is reduced. The angle at which your solar panels will be installed will depend on your location. Knowledgeable solar panel installers will calculate the optimal angle for your solar panels so that maximum solar energy is generated from your system. You need to monitor your solar energy generation. Contact the installers if your energy system is not generating the amount of energy, the SOLARINSTALLGURU.COM calculator showed you.
Impact of Shading
Shading is very important and it can break your solar energy system investment. You need to be 100% certain that there is no shading on the solar panels when it is producing solar energy. Even if one panel is shaded, the entire solar energy system suffers from low energy generation. To avoid shading, you need to make sure there are no trees around the solar panels that might hinder the direct sunlight. There must be uninterrupted sunlight directly shining on the solar panels, this is the key to producing maximum solar energy.
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