Solar panels and clay tile roofs

[OCR1]

I'm new to the energy section of this forum and just getting up to speed on Tesla's energy products. I've wanted solar for my home for years but I could never find an installer that would install panels on a clay tile roof. I guess they consider the tiles too fragile and don't want the liability if they crack them during the installation.

Has anyone found a solution for this, either with Teslas solar products or any brand of panels? I think the solar roof tiles look great but there is really nothing wrong with my roof so it's tough to justify installing a brand new roof just to get solar.

My electric bill runs around $210 per month, which includes charging two Model 3's. So I don't think I would need a particularly large array of panels to cover my costs. Just looking for any ideas if anyone else has encountered this problem and found a solution.

Thanks,

 

[mblakele]

These might help:

Tesla Solar Panels on a Red Tile Roof

Solar panels over clay tile

 

[OCR1]

These might help:

Tesla Solar Panels on a Red Tile Roof

Solar panels over clay tile

Thanks. I did see both of those threads and unfortunately both led to the conclusion that it can't be done, or at least nobody on the thread has successfully done it. I was hoping that maybe I was missing something.

 

[Ampster]

I did see both of those threads and unfortunately both led to the conclusion that it can't be done, or at least nobody on the thread has successfully done it.

One of the poster's on the first thread said he and his neighbors replaced the tile with regular shingles under the panels and then replaced the tiles up to the solar panels. That may not be the answer you were looking for but I did a similar thing with Hydronic panels and that way they did not protrude much above the existing tiles. In the case of PV panels, one would want to have some space for ventilation. The important thing to remember is the tiles are not the final defense against leaks. It is actually the membrane under the tiles. As far as flashing is concerned, it is easier to install Flashfoot or similar connectors on a shingle roof.

 

[destructure00]

Tesla did it on my roof. Some kind of mounting bracket apparently works fine with the tiles. They did break a bunch during installation, hence the bare spots, but came back a week or so later to replace them.

 

[FamilyT3sla]

Tesla did it on my roof. Some kind of mounting bracket apparently works fine with the tiles. They did break a bunch during installation, hence the bare spots, but came back a week or so later to replace them.

View attachment 510095

View attachment 510097

Thanks for posting the pics. The Mrs. has been wanting to see the install on a tile roof. Tesla could not provide any pictures of completed installs. Tesla is coming out this week for the assessment. Also good to know they may break some tiles.

 

[destructure00]

Thanks for posting the pics. The Mrs. has been wanting to see the install on a tile roof. Tesla could not provide any pictures of completed installs. Tesla is coming out this week for the assessment. Also good to know they may break some tiles.

One of the crew was a bit bigger than the others. I guess he broke most of them and they kicked him off the roof after awhile. Took everything inside not to laugh when they told me about it.

 

[bob_p]

A few months ago, we had 44 panels installed on our concrete tile roof. When we had Tesla make a proposal, they were planning to order a a pallet of replacement tiles because they expected to break many tiles during the installation.

We went with a 3rd party installer that had a crew experienced with concrete roof tile installation - and they were able to do the installation (4 groups of panels) without breaking a single tile.

The installation was more expensive, and required using special brackets. The installers would remove a single tile, attach the bracket directly to the stud in the roof, and then reinstall the tile over the bracket. Installation on the roof took a week - much longer than installation would have taken if we'd had a shingle roof.

Of course, concrete tiles are much sturdier than clay tiles. It's likely many tiles will be broken either due to the installers walking on the tiles, or during the tile removal/replacement process. So you should expect installation to take longer, cost more, and the installers will probably replace a lot of tiles.

We were concerned initially about how the black solar panels would look on our red spanish tile roof - but now that the installation is finished, it looks fine.

Another item to consider - our installers avoided running any exposed conduit on the roof. Under each group of solar panels, the wiring was punched through into the attic below. Conduit was run through the attic and then exited the attic under the eave and then going straight down the outside wall (with the conduit painted the wall color). Not only does this look much cleaner, it also eliminated the addition complexity of running the conduit across the tile roof and then around and over the gutter.

 

[JLFORBES]

I'm new to the energy section of this forum and just getting up to speed on Tesla's energy products. I've wanted solar for my home for years but I could never find an installer that would install panels on a clay tile roof. I guess they consider the tiles too fragile and don't want the liability if they crack them during the installation.

Has anyone found a solution for this, either with Teslas solar products or any brand of panels? I think the solar roof tiles look great but there is really nothing wrong with my roof so it's tough to justify installing a brand new roof just to get solar.

My electric bill runs around $210 per month, which includes charging two Model 3's. So I don't think I would need a particularly large array of panels to cover my costs. Just looking for any ideas if anyone else has encountered this problem and found a solution.

Thanks,

I'm in Florida and I had 26 panels installed on my clay barrel roof tiles. Tesla themselves said they wouldnt do it but they referred me to a local installer that was Tesla certified. I had them installed as well as two PowerWall2 batteries installed

 

[OCR1]

Thanks for all the replies, very helpful! I have a local solar company analyzing my home now and am waiting for them to get back to me with some numbers.

I am also looking at the solar roof. When I plugged in my address the estimate came back around $30K after tax incentives. I was expecting it to be much higher, but I think it only included one powerwall.

 

[bob_p]

Before committing to a contract, make sure they have inspected the roof and attic, and have included the increased cost for the tile roof installation.

It took them a week to install the 44 panels on our concrete tile roof...

 

[AlexP]

I'm in Florida and I had 26 panels installed on my clay barrel roof tiles. Tesla themselves said they wouldnt do it but they referred me to a local installer that was Tesla certified. I had them installed as well as two PowerWall2 batteries installed

Do you have the contact info for the installer? Tesla does not want to install on Clay tiles in South Florida.

 

[Ormond]

I’m in Florida too. My concrete barrel tile roof is over 20 years old, and I cannot find matching tiles. I cannot decide on how to proceed. I live in a sunny area by the ocean.

 

[cridinger82]

We live in South Florida and on the 23rd of this month have 36 panels being installed on a concrete tile roof. The roof is under 2 years old and they stated that they use a special tile i think under the panels that have the brackets being attached to them. They don't match but you never see them supposedly... My neighbor down the street who has the same model home as us had Tesla install the same system 2 years earlier and it looks great still and i haven't heard of any complaints regarding the install on their tile roof as well. They do order a few to replace broken ones, but concrete tile is way sturdier then clay for standing on at least.

 

[JLFORBES]

Do you have the contact info for the installer? Tesla does not want to install on Clay tiles in South Florida.

.
Sure. I used ProSolar. Their number is (888) 462-5005. They were great to work with and they really cared about their work.

 

[cridinger82]

i actually got a quote from ProSolar. They were in the running with Tesla. I just couldn't pass up the price from Tesla. I was willing to do some project managing and deal with the city and their code... Plus a 3rd party installer right now would probably be waiting till next year to get powerwalls.

 

[365gtb4]

If It were me I'd have the clay tiles removes in the area where the solar panel go. I also would leave an access walkway to the panels.

 

[JLFORBES]

Sorry, here is their ProSolar Florida website ProSolar Florida - Residential and Commercial Solar Energy Systems

 

[bob_p]

Our 44 solar panels were installed on our concrete tile roof last year by a Tesla-approved 3rd party installer, along with 4 PowerWalls.

We contacted Tesla first about installing the system, and they indicated the installation would be more expensive because they would likely break many tiles and would need to order a palette of extra roof tiles.

We went with the 3rd party installer, who was able to do the installation without breaking a single tile.

Special mounting brackets designed for tile roofs were used that required lifting up individual tiles to attach the bracket to the roof, and when the tile was placed back onto the roof, the bracket exited through the gap between the adjacent tiles.

We were also able to run the cabling through the attic to avoid having exposed conduit running along the roof.

The installation did take considerably longer - but once done, it looks great!

 

[AlexP]

If It were me I'd have the clay tiles removes in the area where the solar panel go. I also would leave an access walkway to the panels.

I tried that route. The price of the removal plus installing shingles in the area would have been anywhere between 15 and 20K. At that price it would be better to with the Solar Roof instead of the Solar Panels

Regards,
Alex