Installing Solar Panels on the Roof

The first question typically asked about solar panels is this: “Do they go on the roof?” To keep it simple, the answer is no. They can be mounted on many different structures. However, the reason they’re usually on the roof is because of myriad benefits to using the roof as the structure supporting your solar panel array.  

To begin with, if you have a slanted roof that has one side facing south, you have the ideal location for installing a solar panel array. Best performance is achieved on a south facing slope with at least a thirty degree angle. In addition, raising the solar panels above the ground give the added benefit of fewer possible shadows (make this judgment yourself- if you have an enormous tree covering your roof, it’s probably not the best location for a solar panel).  

Safety of the solar array is also a benefit of raising it up to the roof. Although trees may still damage it, it’s not a great surface for birds to land on and most cats, dogs, and neighbourhood rodents will ot make it onto the array. If they do, it will be a lot less often.  

Lastly, most roofs have a lot of space. Photo-voltaic cells, the kind that produce pure electricity, tend to be larger than the solar panels used to heat water. Thus, a roof is an ideal location if installing solar cells for pure electricity generation rather than for heating water- very few roofs lack the space to create an electrical PV array. 

If installing on the roof, it’s best to find a roof location that can be accessed easily from the ground. By doing this, you will make the cleaning and maintenance jobs easier. Fortunately, a solar array pretty much takes care of itself, so you won’t be doing this often, but you will occasionally need to clean it and may end up with some broken pieces.  

If anyone is considering adding a solar panels installation to the design of a new building, there is very little extra cost involved and the payback time will be only a year or so, considering the savings that can be gained from this eco-friendly power source. 

Flat roofs present a unique problem. A frame will need to be constructed that supports the panels at a 30 degree angle. They will also need to be insulated from behind. As the project becomes more complicated or more intimidating, I recommend consulting a professional installer. Always check the person’s references- particularly with the financial incentives to be a “green power” business right now.  

In the end, this will only take a matter of hours to be up and running once all the parts have been assembled, so this basic advice should serve as motivation. You really can have a solar array up on your house in a weekend- and then you can start saving- both money and the environment.