Friday 4 August 2017

Tesla begins solar roof installations – Elon Musk goes first!

Tesla has begun installing its solar roof in the US - CEO Elon Musk is one of the first customers.

Other employees have also had the technology put onto their homes - Tesla hopes this will help work out any kinks in the sales and installation process before taking it to a wider public audience.

The company began taking $1,000 (£761) deposits for its glass roof tiles earlier this year - it says they are virtually indistinguishable from high-end roofing but allow light to pass through onto a solar cell embedded below the surface.

Tesla claims the product, which takes around a week to install, is more than three times stronger than standard roofing tiles and has backed this up with a warranty lasting the lifetime of the house they are installed on.

The company believes the solar tiles are more attractive and affordable than a traditional roof and solar panel combination or even a traditional roof on its own.

Mr Musk suggests initial sales will be limited by manufacturing capacity but as production ramps up into 2018, sales will begin in the UK and other locations around the world.

Referring to his solar roof as well as Tesla’s Chief Technology Officer JB Straubel, he said: "I have them on my house, JB has them on his house.

"This is version one. I think this roof is going to look really knock-out as we just keep iterating."