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“I think it would appeal more to people that would like to go to solar…”
HOUSTON (KTRK) — Here’s a bright idea that could change the way Houstonians think about powering their homes. A new kind of solar-powered shingle helping homeowners save money long term is now on the market in our area.
On a home in Magnolia, the Fitch family is banking on the sun to save them money.
Terry Fitch said, “We finally decided that we’re going to retire here. So we’d really like to cut our bills back for retirement age.”
They’re having installed a brand new solar shingle, a roof that is solar panels/panels that are the roof. It’s so new that only two houses in the Houston area have these new shingles. Texas is one of 12 states where the maker, Dow Chemical, offers them.
“It’s very low profile. It integrates into the existing composition shingles,” said Jason Brinkmann, with Brinkmann Quality Roofing Surfaces. “Over the life of this system, it actually pays for itself and puts money back into your pocket.”
Brinkman’s company is installing them at the Fitch home and last week he put them on the first home too, in Humble.
John Janik with Electronic Power Design said, “We were anxious to put it on because we wanted to learn about it.”
Janik paid for them on his sister-in-law’s house in part because he owns an electrical design company and he thinks this is another opportunity to deliver power in new ways. He might put it on his home too.
“We put it on her house and my wife loves it,” he said. “So we passed that test.”
It’s a new low-profile way to harness the sun’s power and make a roof more than just a roof.
Fitch said, “I think this is much more appealing. I think it would appeal more to people that would like to go to solar.”
It’s not for everyone, because the solar panels are about 10 times the cost of a regular shingle, but over time you will make money back.
Click (HERE) to view video and to comment
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Categories: Horse News
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
Excellent !
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Good for you! My first exposure to the “concept” of solar shingles was from a Popular Science article 30+ years ago. A young man (I think he was in Jr. High) received recognition for his science project – generating increased power from the sun by wiring his homemade solar shingles in series. I know it took affordable photovoltaics to make it practical, but if companies like DOW hadn’t been buying and holding (essentially burying) technology until they could reap maximum profits, the international petrochemical and traditional energy cartels would have much less “power” over people’s lives, worldwide.
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Please let us know how it works out.
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As they come down in price, more homes will have these solar shingles installed.
Eventually we can all have our own source of power generation and forget about fossil fuels entirely. It is definitely the way to go to preserve our planet! ~ Margo
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This is an exciting innovation. I hope that this works out well for you, and I will look forward to hearing what your experience is.
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For clarity, and it took a while to register with me, the roof does not cost 10X the price of a shingled roof. One solar shingle costs 10 times as much as one asphalt shingle but as is evident the entire roof is not solar…that closure was a bit of a misrepresentation.
The figures work like this:
Say the solar system costs 30 grand…
The feds give you a 10 grand tax break for going green…
Value of the house goes up the price of the system…30 grand
At current elec. rates and generating 5.5KW cash savings over 25 years is equal to 35 grand.
It’s a win/win…when you look at it from a global perspective.
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Every new idea that makes it to the public helps lower our electric bills. They have developed a thin film that can be painted on glass that cuts the cost of manufacturing. This will also help to bring electricity to a lot of third world countries whose populations don’t have electric hookups at all. Its to costly to bring in the poles, never mind the the rough country to go through.
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