Peel-and-stick solar is here

by Josh Loposer
May 13th 2008 @ 3:06PM

Filed under: Gadgets and Tech, Home, Alternative Energy

Honestly, I never found mounting the actual panels on the roof to be the intimidating part of installing a solar setup. Connecting the panels to the inverter and the grid always seemed like the more technical part of the process to me. Still, Lumeta's light-weight, adhesive photovoltaics make it easier than ever to slap solar panels up on your roof -- and that's good for all kinds of reasons.

Over the last few months, solar companies have seen a declining interest due to the high costs associated with equipment and installation. By cutting down on the time and costs of solar installation, Lumeta's parent company, DRI, is hoping to switch on a larger section of public. The Power-Ply 380 panels can be installed in a matter of minutes and DRI estimates that their peel-and-stick system reduces hardware costs by 70%.

Another advantage to Lumeta's design is the fact that their panels are covered with teflon instead of glass, making them lightweight enough to be installed on carports and sheds. That's good, since the Power-Ply 380 is designed to go on flat rooftops only -- and not that many of us have flat roofs.

The peel and stick panels are also nice because they don't create some of the leaking problems associated with traditional panels. Since the panels don't require drilling, there's no more need to deal with those troublesome holes in your roof. Likewise, the thin panels allow water to flow over and around them easily, instead of "ponding."

[via Earth2Tech]