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Tesla Solar Roof

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Tesla and SolarCity developed a solar roof system that integrates the solar cells and modules inside the structure of the roof rather than just panels on a roof.

They are is using a high-efficiency solar cell manufactured by Panasonic and covered with a “color louver film”, which allows cells to blend into the roof while exposing them to the sun above, and finally a tempered glass on top for durability.

The company says that the “typical homeowner can expect to pay $21.85 per square foot for a Solar Roof” and started taking orders for the US on May 10 with an online price estimate calculator powered by data from Google Sunroof project

It comes with a lifetime of the house warranty and 30-year power generation guaranteed. After the electricity production, Tesla estimates that its solar roof will be cheaper than regular tile roofs or virtually pay for itself through electricity savings.

The product is offered in 4 different styles: Textured Glass Tile, Slate Glass Tile, Tuscan Glass Tile, and Smooth Glass Tile.

Smooth glass tile roof 

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Tuscan glass tile roof 

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Slate glass tile roof 

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Textured glass tile roof 

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The new product was unveiled on October 28, 2016, at a joint event with Tesla and SolarCity in Los Angeles.

In May 2017, Tesla started taking orders with a $1,000 deposit for the first versions of its solar roof tiles and the product was sold out “well into 2018” within the first few weeks.

Tesla solar roof products are perfect for homeowners who want solar and need a new roof relatively soon, but a regular solar panel installation is still a good solution for people who don’t need a new roof. Solar and energy storage prices are highly dependent on your market (electricity cost, gov incentives, etc.) and your property. We suggest getting quotes from more than one installer to make sure you get the best energy solution for your place. UnderstandSolar is a great free service to link you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates for free.

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Tesla Solar Roof delays result in Panasonic looking for other buyers for cells produced at Gigafactory 2, says report

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Tesla made a deal with Panasonic to produce solar cells for its solar roof tiles at Gigafactory 2 in Buffalo, but now we learn that the slow rollout and production ramp-up of Tesla’s new solar products is resulting in Panasonic seeking new buyers for the solar cells produced at Gigafactory 2.
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Watch a Tesla Solar Roof being dismantled in first responder training video

There are only a handful of Tesla Solar Roof installations out there at this point, but they are slowly ramping up production and installations, which means that first responders need to be ready to know how to approach this new kind of roof in case of emergency.

A training video showing how to do just that gives us a rare and interesting look at Tesla’s solar roof tiles.
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Tesla patent reveals secret behind its solar roof tile’s camouflage capacity

The idea behind Tesla’s solar roof tiles was driven by Elon Musk seeing a need for more differentiation in solar products, which he thought would be driven by aesthetics.

Integrating solar cells into roofing material wasn’t in any way a new idea, but Tesla’s solar roof tiles innovated by making the solar cells undetectable from a street view while still capturing sunlight.

Now a new patent obtained by Tesla and released last week shows how the company made it happen.
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A first look at the ‘Tesla house of the future’ with solar roof and Powerwall batteries

After its acquisition of SolarCity, Tesla started building an energy product offering that covers everything from energy production, with its solar products, to energy storage, with its Powerwall, to energy consumption, with its electric vehicles.

A perfect customer for the company would own all of those products.

Tri Huynh is one of those perfect new Tesla customers. He owns a Model 3 and just got one of the very first Tesla solar roof installations and 3 Powerwalls installed at his house in the Bay Area.
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Panasonic is ‘getting ready’ to start producing cells for solar roof at Tesla Gigafactory 2

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SolarCity’s solar cell and module factory in Buffalo, now renamed Tesla Gigafactory 2 since the automaker bought the solar company, has suffered several delays.

But since Tesla brought in Panasonic to take over some of the manufacturing efforts, the plant seems to be moving quicker.

Now, the Japanese electronics giant confirmed that they are looking to move to solar cell production in the coming months and employ 300 workers by the end of the year.
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