Christine Ceravolo has been a Green Sun Energy Services client since April of 2016, when the roof and the solar array were bought on the same day. The roof was finished on 9 June 2016 and the array a fortnight later.
Two layers off, 3,000 square feet on
This roof had been covered over once already, so two layers of old shingle came off down to the sheathing rather than one. Deck protection went over the exposed sheathing, then a GAF Timberline HDZ system carrying a 50-year warranty, aluminum drip edge along 270 feet of rakes, eaves and valleys, and a ridge vent along the peak.
32 panels and 8.32 kW
Thirty-two black-framed Hanwha 260 watt panels came to 8.32 kW on QuickMount flashed mounts, finished on 25 June 2016, each with its own Enphase M215 microinverter. JCP&L is the utility and the first year was designed for about 9,912 kWh, close to 1,190 kWh for every kilowatt installed.
What 8.32 kW took in roof space in 2016
It took thirty-two panels to reach 8.32 kW on this roof. A panel of the same physical size today is rated around 440 watts, so the same 8.32 kW would take about nineteen of them — roughly forty percent less roof for the identical output. The consequence is not that a system produces more than it used to; it is that a roof which fitted a modest array in 2016 will fit a substantially larger one now. A household reroofing today has more headroom on the same square footage than this one had.
Why the roof went first
An array is bolted to a roof for twenty-five years and more, so shingles at the end of their life underneath one become a second job with a date already on them — panels off, roof on, panels back. On a roof already carrying two layers, that job was not hypothetical. Sixteen days of sequencing settled it, and thirty-two panels went down onto a deck that had been stripped, seen and covered properly.
Project Facts
- Location
- Freehold, NJ
- Services
- Roofing Installation, Solar Panel Installation
- Client since
- April 2016
Solar
- Panels
- Hyundai Model # HIS-S260BK
- Panels
- 32
- System size
- 8.32 kW
- Inverter
- EnPhase M215-60-2LL-S22-IG Micro-Single
- Mounting system
- QuickMount
- Estimated first-year production
- 9,912 kWh
- Share of the home's electricity
- 96%
- Electric utility
- JCP&L
Roof
- System
- GAF Timberline Lifetime Roofing System
- Area replaced
- 3,000 sq ft
- Warranty
- 50 years
Questions from Freehold homeowners
RoofingHow long should an asphalt shingle roof last in Freehold, NJ?
There is no single guaranteed service life. Longevity depends on the shingles, the installation, ventilation, weather exposure and maintenance. New Jersey roofs face summer heat, freezing temperatures, snow, ice, heavy rain, wind, humidity and, in some areas, coastal salt. A properly installed architectural roofing system should be judged against the manufacturer's warranty and installation requirements rather than a generic life-expectancy number.
SolarAre panels designed for New Jersey snow loads?
Yes. Rooftop installations must account for the applicable structural and environmental loads, snow among them, and the code specifically requires the roof and the photovoltaic system to support the applicable gravity and snow loads.
RoofingCan a skylight leak even if the shingles are in good condition?
Yes. Leak sources can include the skylight flashing, failed seals, improper prior installation, condensation and roof-to-skylight transitions. The source should be diagnosed rather than assuming the shingles are responsible.