Making Your Own Electricity:
Onsite Photovoltaic Systems

1 CEU is available to BuildingGreen members. Log in or join to earn the credit.


SolarRoof Membrane is a building-integrated PV roofing that marries Uni-Solar’s peel-and-stick PV product with a low-slope PVC commercial roofing membrane.

In 1980, after living without electricity for five years, I bought a photovoltaic (PV) module for $275. Once the 33-watt Arco panel was hooked up to a 12-volt car battery, my kerosene bill dropped significantly. For a few hours each night, I was able to listen to a radio and operate a tiny 12-volt fluorescent light.

Twenty-nine years later, I still live off the grid. The old Arco module has required no maintenance other than occasional snow removal, and has produced electricity every day without fail for all those years. I now have 16 PV modules on my roof; when the sun shines brightly, the solar array produces about 840 watts.

...

This page is visible only to BuildingGreen members

Read it now with a FREE 30-day trial membership to BuildingGreen Suite

Already a member? Log in here