Message

William,

You asked?

Have you done any cement mission tile roof installations? I've taken panels off these roofs (I'm not sure why the customer wanted this done), but by chance we've only installed on flat cement tiles.

Reply:

Cement tile roofs are a great product for homeowners; they look nice, keep the home cooler in the summer and do not wear out, even under intense direct sunlight. The problem with installing solar on an existing tile roof is that there is no way to determine the condition of the under-layment. The under-layment is what keeps the rain out of the house. If you feel certain the under-layment is in good condition TileTrac’s work well and they show on their website www.tiletrac.com how to install the product.

My advise for you and the homeowner is to remove the tile roof on the exposure where the solar will be placed. (The roofing contractor should do this) Install 4” FastJack mounts onto the roof and then have the roofer flash them and apply a layer of composition shingle roofing. The solar can be installed, tiles placed around the array creating a nice skylight effect. This looks nice, will keep the home cooler in the summer (under the shade of the panels) and will not wear out under years of direct sunlight.

If the customer desires to have the existing tiles replaced above the new under-layment and beneath the solar panels then I would recommend the following:

For flat tile the 6” FastJacks work well and for curved Spanish tile the 7.5” are better. For Spanish tile roofs you should supply the roofer with two lead (flexible) flashings per mount so they can be doubled up to create a leak-proof solution. Walking on tiles can be like walking on eggshells. After the roof is completed I would also ask the roofer to leave an un-tiled pathway on the area where you need to carry the solar equipment onto the roof.

Taking these extra steps is wise not only for reducing contractor liability but more importantly in the long run it increases the ROI for the customer. The cost of removing and replacing solar panels to allow for re-roofing needs to be avoided.

I hope this helps.

Graham Owen

GO Solar Company