Tesla to Begin Taking Orders for Solar Roof Shingles in April, Install Later This Year

via Tesla

via Tesla

Solar roofs are an obviously popular choice for those interested in conserving energy, but traditional panels are extremely clunky and expensive.  Tesla and CEO Elon Musk announced last year that they have solved that issue, which the impending release of Tesla Solar Roof, which look like a traditional roof shingle.

Tesla obviously knows what they’re doing in the realm of energy usage, as their high powered electric vehicles are also extremely efficient.  After harnessing what they already know about electric efficiency and also acquiring SolarCity for over $2 billion, Tesla claims that their solar roofs will cost less than a traditional roof when combined with utility bill savings.  In combination with Tesla’s new Powerwall 2, which stores energy for use at night, the roof is expected to be able to power lights, sockets and refrigerator of a 4 bedroom house for a full day, but can be scaled to any size. Power output of each Powerwall is 7kWh.

The Solar Roof shingles are going to be available in 4 different styles: Tuscan glass tile, slate glass tile, textured glass tile, and smooth glass tile.  Those interested in the roof are able to put their name on a waiting list on Tesla’s website. Elon Musk also recently announced on Twitter that the company would begin taking orders in April.  The first installations are to begin later in the year.

As far as durability goes, Musk shared a video in his presentation announcing the new solar roof, which showed a weight being dropped on a terra cotta, clay, slate, and tesla glass tile.  The 3 traditional roof systems shattered under the weight, but the Tesla glass was only slightly dented.

The solar roof is made up of 3 layers: a high efficiency solar cell, covered by a color louver film, which is then covered by tempered glass.  The color louver film creates the look of the tiles.

You can watch the video of the announcement below, which has some additional information about the roofs, starting at 7:25:

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