Sole Power Tile, BIPV on a Whole New Level
Written by Dan Harding
Solar power continues its ascent in the home improvement market, offering increasingly affordable and aesthetically pleasing options for aspiring solar homeowners. Drawbacks to this point have included affordability -- minimized somewhat by federal and state tax incentives -- and the conversion efficiency of the panels themselves. Despite lots of promising research and product designs, no one product has been able to transcend these and other interconnected issues for solar. In the meantime, manufacturers continue to work on building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) products to make them cheaper and easier to install.
One such product, especially relevant to residents of California and the desert southwest, is the Solé Power Tile. Aside from its color -- a not-too-shabby navy blue with color upgrades available -- it ships and installs just like conventional ceramic or clay roofing tiles. It's just hard to get more building integrated than this, a definite consideration for energy conscious homeowners in need of a roofing upgrade.
The panels are still not proven but do come with a full warranty. They produce 500 watts of power per 100 square feet of roof space. SRS Energy, maker of the Solé Power Tile, has partnered with longtime tile roofing manufacturer US Tile to distribute and integrate the systems.
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