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We get asked the same questions about solar roofing every week, so we wrote the answers down. Start with the basics if this is new to you. If you already have a roof on the drawing board, skip to the checklists.
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Key terms
- BIPV (building-integrated photovoltaics)
- Solar that replaces a normal building material and does that material's job too. On a roof, that means it keeps the weather out and makes electricity.
- Roof-integrated photovoltaics
- BIPV on the roof. The solar is part of the roof covering, not something attached above it.
- Solar roof
- What most people call a roof with integrated solar. Some panels generate power and some don't, and they're made to look like one roof.
- Standing-seam roof
- A metal roof built from long panels joined at raised vertical seams. The joints sit up out of the way of running water.
- Active panel
- A roof panel with solar cells in it.
- Passive panel
- A matching roof panel with no cells. It goes where solar isn't worth it or won't fit: edges, shaded spots, around vents and chimneys.
- Rack-mounted solar
- The familiar kind. Solar modules fixed to mounting hardware above a finished roof.