What is the Tesla Solar Roof? You’ve probably heard a lot about this brand-new building-integrated PV technology.

Unlike traditional solar panels, which are attached to the roof using rails and clamps, Tesla Solar Roof tiles replace traditional roofing material – such as shingles – with photovoltaic cells that produce energy from solar irradiance.

Together with our partner, Three Tree Roofing, we have installed the first Tesla Solar Roof in Washington State, on a beautiful home in Snohomish with an equally gorgeous view overlooking the fields and mountains and with steep roof pitches of 18, 34, and 51 degrees.

The homeowner needed to replace his aging concrete tile roof and also wanted to go solar, making this home the perfect candidate for a Tesla Solar Roof. After removing and recycling the old tile roof, Three Tree Roofing installed half-inch CDX plywood to the entire roof area. New fascia and barge boards were installed, along with replacing some rotting soffit lumber. This project used around 30 pallets of material – significantly more material than a normal roof – and required product delivery in stages. The customer was understanding throughout the entire job and helped facilitate the storage of materials.

After the physical roofing material was laid down, Artisan started their part of the project, hooking up the electrical system to activate the tiles into producing solar power. Getting the power off the roof in a non-intrusive way was the biggest logistical challenge. Great care is needed to hide wiring and preserve the sleek look of the product.

The completed roof now produces up to 25 kW of solar through the PV system with building-integrated solar tiles on both the main home and detached garage consisting of (428) 14 cell, 59 solar roof tiles, with 47% (1,880 SF) of the roof tiles being photovoltaic. The remaining 53% of the Tesla roof tiles are aesthetically identical to the photovoltaic tiles but produce no power. The system uses (3) 7.6kW Tesla inverters and includes (2) Tesla PowerWalls storing 27 kWh (42 A) of backup power. The estimated annual solar production for this system is 18,000 kWh.