Trends in Solar Roofing You Must Know About

By Evelyn Witterholt, RCS Reporter. 

With the solar roofing industry growing by the minute, here are some advancements to consider recommending to clients. 

When solar roofing first became commercially available in the 2000s, it seemed too expensive or inaccessible to the common consumer. Nowadays, it is not only more appealing to homeowners for environmental reasons, but it’s more financially feasible as well. According to Scientific American, financial incentives such as tax credits from the government and lowered installation costs in certain states have made solar roofing become more popular over the years. 

Many contracting companies or roofing manufacturers are hopping aboard the solar roof train. For those in solar roofing or who want to get into the industry, here are a few trends to keep an eye out for: 

Metal solar roofs 

The growth of metal roofing is undeniable and naturally there’s some overlap with solar roofing. Homeowners looking to get the most out of their roofs will do well to combine the durability of metal and the energy-efficiency of solar. Metal roofing contractors should pay attention to the rise of solar panels and consider offering customers the chance to optimize their metal roof with solar panels. 

For metal roofing contractors who do want to install solar panels on their roofs, consider the solar panel mounting systems that S-5!  offers. Their PVKIT® solar mount system for metal roofing is great because it can attach directly to the rails built into metal roofs. Because of this feature, it reduces the weight of the mounting system and the cost of materials. 

Affordable solar roofing systems 

As stated earlier, the financial incentives of solar roofing have attracted many potential buyers. But some still may find it to be an unattainable investment option. Not every customer will be able to afford to turn every shingle of their roof into solar. This doesn’t mean that they have no options. 

As a contractor, you can communicate with customers that affordable solar roof systems are out there. This Apollo® II solar system from CertainTeed gives customers the option of a cost-effective solar roof panel system that is still durable. You can also highlight the incentives available to them, such as the 26% federal investment tax credit (ITC). 

Solar roofing shingles 

Roofs made entirely out of solar shingles are also on the rise. Last year, we covered the solar roof made completely out of solar shingles from Tesla. Improvements in these shingles make it so that the solar roofs still look like any other roof, rather than having an obvious solar panel on top of an existing roof that could bother some customers. While these are a bit more costly, some customers prefer the curb appeal the solar shingles provide. 

Stay up to date with the latest roofing industry news when you sign up for the RCS Week in Roofing e-news. 

Photo credit: CertainTeed