[MassHistPres] solar panels in historic districts
Garrett Laws
copperandslate at gmail.com
Mon Sep 5 09:41:34 EDT 2011
Dennis / Willa,
Google images has a great picture or the underside of a slate roof that is
simply roof rafters and battens (entered as "slate roof & battens) where the
tops of the slates are visible and have been trimmed on the top corners.
There is nothing to impede visual sight lines from interior space to the
underside of the roof material. The battens also provide an airspace to keep
the temperature lower and thus maximize efficiency of the material.
The most aspect of Sunslates (for me) is that the finished installation
looks like a slate roof. Atlantis energy (manufacturer of Sunslates)
recently introduced colored backing for the Sunslates, five mimic the color
of slate and tile and four or five others...don't. The link below wil get
you to their color option page.
http://atlantisenergy.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Custom-color-cells.pdf
Garrett
Copper & Slate
On Sunday, September 4, 2011, Dennis De Witt <djd184 at verizon.net> wrote:
> Willa
>
> Subject to correction, as I understand it, one reason for the sleepers was
that they provide a wiring chase above a layer of ice and water shield.
More to the point, these "shingles" are really artificial (tempered glass)
slates. Historically roof slates were attached to spaced nailers (battens)
which provided no secondary protection at all. I have been in attics under
old functioning slate roofs where you could see part of the lower surfaces
of the slates and daylight coming in (up) through numerous harmless chinks.
>
> Dennis
>
>
> On Sep 2, 2011, at 1:18 PM, Willa Bandler wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 1 Sep 2011, Dennis De Witt wrote:
>>
>>> Solar photovoltaic shingles can be put on in a way that is minimally
objectionable.
>>
>> Possibly. But solar shingles require separate connections (=separate
places for leaks to occur) in every single shingle. The raised hot water
solar collectors you deplore stand off the roof and thus protect whatever
original material is there, and have minimal roof penetration requirements.
I find it interesting that you would prefer a solution that looks better but
is potentially worse for the future preservation of the building; one
complaint I hear a *lot* about HDCs is that they care about preserving
appearances rather than preserving actual history.
>>
>> I don't agree with those who compare ugly solar panels (mailboxes,
basketball hoops, etc) to vinyl siding and window replacement. The first
category is a matter of taste, while the second does actual material harm to
the thing we claim to be trying to save. I don't see how totally removable
things that make people's lives better are a threat to preservation just
because some of us happen not to like them and would rather they be put on
the back of the house. (For the record, I don't like the way some solar
panels look either, but if the front of the house faces South, putting them
on the back of the house isn't really an option.)
>>
>> -Willa
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--
Cheers,
Garrett
The Copper & Slate Company, Inc.
Fine Roofing and Exterior Finish Carpentry
238B Calvary Street, Waltham, MA 02453
(781) 893-1916
What we do:
http://picasaweb.google.com/copperandslate
Where we've worked over the years:
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=206210316541901083869.00049065ef8543e1ef9c3&ll=42.40115,-71.126862&spn=0.125241,0.289421&t=h&z=12
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