Young Man's Wallet

Sunday, August 20, 2006

Solar Power Roofing

My buddy Al is a roofer and we keep talking about putting a solar powered roof onto the house my wife and I build at some point in the future. I love the idea - but I expect that it would be pretty expensive. With the rising cost of energy and the falling cost of solar silicon, it makes a lot of sense.

From what I've read so far, Atlantis Energy's sunslates are the ones to go with. The slates produce about 1kW per 100 square feet (one "square") and cost about $12,000 per 100 square feet. This equals $12 per watt, and the commonly agreed upon "tipping point" price of solar power is $1 per watt. I also believe tht there are also federal tax rebates for this type of project.
Traditional roofs are abuot 1/20 the price, around $500-$600 per 100 square feet.

This is expensive, but we'd like to also video tape and photograph the project to publish as a guide.

In addition to the solar power, I'd also like to install a wind mill, a micro-hydro-turbine, and a diesel generator for use with biodiesel. Of course all of our appliances and systems would be energy star compliant. I'd also like to build a geo-thermal foundation, which leverages the natural heating and cooling properties of the earth to make a comfortable living environment.

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