solar shingles finally on market

[dragon]

Kind of nice that they finally are starting to sell these.

Dow Chemical is moving full speed ahead to develop roof shingles embedded with photovoltaic cells. To facilitate the move, the U.S. Department of Energy has backed Dow's efforts with a $17.8 million tax credit that will help the company launch an initial market test of the product later this year.
Sunny future: Dow Chemical hopes to transform the solar power industry by integrating solar cells with conventional roofing shingles .
Credit: Dow Chemical

In October 2009, the chemical giant unveiled its product, which can be nailed to a roof like ordinary shingles by roofers without the help of specially trained solar installers or electricians. The solar shingles will cost 30 to 40 percent less than other solar-embedded building materials and 10 percent less than the combined costs of conventional roofing materials and rack-mounted solar panels, according to company officials.

Dow isn't the first company to incorporate solar cells into building materials. In recent years, a number of leading solar manufacturers have launched small lines of solar shingles, tiles, and window glazes. But as Dow looks to bring its shingles mainstream, other solar manufacturers are backing away from the products. Suntech Power, the Chinese solar maker, and the largest crystalline silicon photovoltaic manufacturer in the world, has several integrated solar systems on the market, but with the recent downturn in new housing construction, the company has focused instead on ramping up conventional photovoltaic panel output, says Jeffrey Shubert, Suntech Power marketing director for North and South America.

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According to analyst Johanna Schmidtke of Boston-based Lux Research, building integrated solar installations are, despite manufacturers' claims, still significantly more expensive than conventional rack-mounted solar arrays due to increased costs associated with manufacturing and installation. The devices currently occupy niche markets for those willing to pay a premium for the aesthetic value of the less-obtrusive integrated systems.

Companies looking to develop solar shingles and other solar-integrated building materials have also had to overcome significant design and materials challenges. "Putting solar panels directly into the roof or skin of a building requires a product that has structural integrity, weathering ability, and electrical integrity," says Mark Farber a senior consultant with Photon Consulting in Boston. "It has to be a good building material and a good power generator, and achieving both is hard to do."

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[Slacker]

That's really interesting. My wife and I have discussed, once we buy a house getting solar panels installed. It's really a no brainer between the tax refunds/rebates and the tremendous savings on electricity. I wonder what these look like, and what sort of generating capability they have versus a standard sized solar panel. I figure the cost'll come down significantly between now and two or three years from now when we'll be shopping.

[SCRawl]

This might make sense for me in a year or two. The way solar works for residential is that the electricity you generate goes right into the grid, for which the power authority pays you about 7-10 times what they charge you for electricity coming in. In other words, if you generate 1 kWh of electricity using solar you get paid enough to buy at least 7 kWh for your own use. The up-front charges are significant, and in some cases prohibitive, but for low-cost solar shingles things might get a little closer to "not crazy". The other hardware -- the equipment necessary to turn the solar power into something the grid can use -- likely won't go down in price due to this innovation, though.

[His Divine Shadow]

I wonder about these claims of sending electricity into the grid, as I understand it, the entire grid is made for centralized power generation, will it really be as easy as all that in getting people to contribute tiny tiny bits of electrity into the grid? I remember hearing, on this forum I think, how costly it would be to redo the eletrical grid from a centralized model to a decentralized one, on par with say going from 110 to 230 volts.

[CaptainChewbacca]

I wonder about these claims of sending electricity into the grid, as I understand it, the entire grid is made for centralized power generation, will it really be as easy as all that in getting people to contribute tiny tiny bits of electrity into the grid? I remember hearing, on this forum I think, how costly it would be to redo the eletrical grid from a centralized model to a decentralized one, on par with say going from 110 to 230 volts.

Technically it doesn't go to the whole grid, for example the power that my house generates won't go to someone 30 miles away, but it reduces the local demand for power in the subgrid in which the power is generated.

[General Trelane (Retired)]

Kind of nice that they finally are starting to sell these.

Finally starting? No. Solar-panel shingles have been around for a while (see this example), but the technology is steadily being improved.