There Are Benefits to Roof Replacement with Your Solar Installation
Your roof may not be leaking, and your house may look great from the street level. But years of California sunshine will wear down even the best-built roof. Exposure to weather inevitably breaks down every roof, and catching it too late leads to major headaches for homeowners. Many people don’t realize that the sun actually wears down a roof more quickly than wind or rain, which means that houses in the Golden State of California might have an even shorter lifespan on their roofs than expected. Most roofs need to be replaced every fifteen to thirty years. That means timing is very important. When you apply for a solar installation with ESP, we’ll take a look at your roof and determine how much time it has left.
Replacing a roof is a major renovation project, which means it can be a significant, often unexpected expense. If you haven’t budgeted for a roof replacement, the thought of suddenly coming up with thousands of dollars for a renovation project might provoke anxiety. That said, there are many benefits to replacing your roof, especially when you learn how and why you should replace it along with a solar installation project. We’ll go through some of the reasons replacing your roof with solar panels can actually be a good thing, and why replacing it with ESP saves you money and helps you avoid stress:
Reasons to Consider Roof Replacement
While putting on a roof is a big project, it’s worth reflecting on the many benefits. If you’re weighing the cost of the project, consider a few of these lesser-known perks:
Save Money on Your Heating and Cooling
Many homeowners don’t realize that an old roof is just as likely to start leaking air as it is water. This occurs when warm or cool air from a home’s interior heating and cooling system escapes through the roof. Air leaking can add up to major expenses over the course of a year – you’re spending money to heat or cool the outdoors! According to HouseLogic, air leaks can cost homeowners up to an added 30% of the energy exerted by their heating and cooling systems. Not only does replacing your roof improve the energy efficiency of your house, but it also improves the effectiveness of your AC unit, which is a priceless upgrade when temperatures spike in the summer.
Stay Safe
Replacing your roof helps prevent health hazards like mold and mildew. Moisture tends to dwell on roof surfaces, and pathogens can fester in your roof tiles, especially in coastal climates. In some cases, mold can spread through your roof and cause damage to your walls, or in rare cases, cause health issues like dizziness, memory loss, and asthma attacks.
There’s also the safety concern of an aging roof, which poses an immediate threat to your loved ones — along with your furniture and belongings! Especially in earthquake-prone California, it’s vital that you replace your roof at the recommended intervals. A new roof helps ensure that your house remains secure and safe from collapse.
Improve Your Property Value
Solar panels have been shown to improve a home’s property value. According to a Berkeley Lab study, replacing a roof with solar panels raised a house’s property value by an average of $15,000.
A solar roof replacement can increase the house’s value even further. Not only does it improve a home’s curb appeal, but it also improves energy efficiency within the house. VisExterior cites a statistic from Remodeling Magazine’s 2017 report, which found that a new roof can add thousands, or even tens of thousands of dollars to a home’s value. Combining your roof replacement with your solar installation can bump up your property value to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars in one renovation project.
Lower Home Insurance Premiums
According to ESP’s in-house roofing expert Jeremiah Blackburn, replacing a roof can “future-proof” against unexpected issues with homeowner’s insurance. Not only can it protect you from possible issues with your coverage, it might also lower your premium. According to Clovered, replacing your roof may qualify you for a discount on your homeowner’s insurance. Whether you get a discount and what that discount will look like depends on how old your roof is and what materials it’s made from, as well as your plan itself. Still, it’s worth double-checking your plan, as you might find yourself with a lower premium.
Replacing Your Roof with Energy Service Partners
Now that we’ve established the benefits of replacing your roof, let’s look at the ways ESP can make your roof and solar cheaper, easier, and a more rewarding experience:
Financing
One of the biggest concerns for many families is the cost of replacing a roof. If you haven’t budgeted for the project, odds are you’ll need to take out some kind of loan to pay for your roof replacement. One of the most cost-efficient forms of financing is tying your roof replacement to your solar loan.
That’s because you can take advantage of ESP’s solar financing options, which have very competitive interest rates. If you want a roof financed on its own, you’re going to pay more for the roof itself, and it’s going to be a higher overall interest rate.
Cost and Value
Many homeowners realize that when they ask a contractor for a quote, they’re going to be charged a markup. What they might not realize is that when a company like ESP gets a quote from a contractor, we’re able to negotiate a lower price for the same work. “The advantage of using our roofing is we’re vetting [each roofer we send out], and we’ve already negotiated pricing,” Blackburn explains. That’s because ESP has long-standing relationships with some of the most reputable, consistent contractors in the business, and we’re pushing volume that drives prices down.
Speaking of cost, many homeowners are curious about “solar shingle” products being advertised by some companies. The truth is, these are a “hyper-premium” product that will never be as cost-effective as a roof replacement with traditional solar panels. Unless you’re planning to build a brand-new house from the ground up, replacing your roof with solar the old-fashioned way is much better for your wallet.
ESP’s Dedicated Roofing Department
Our dedicated roofing department makes us unique among solar installers. The team is headed by Blackburn, a seasoned pro who has been working in the roofing business for 15 years. One of his top priorities at ESP is ensuring that we provide a personalized response to our homeowner’s roofing needs. Working with an industry expert has many benefits, from quality control, to industry connections with a network of roofers, to individual attention from our team.
When you go to a retail roofer, the transaction may end when the roof is complete. What’s worse, there’s no guarantee that the roofer will still be in business years down the line if you have an issue with your roof. Blackburn explains that if an ESP customer has an issue with a roof we install, part of our contract includes a clause in which we address that issue. “If a customer has a roof leak, for example,” he says, “and that roofer’s out of business, you call ESP, and we send out another roofer.” Our dedicated roofing department is here to address any roofing questions you may have as they come up on a day-to-day basis.
Blackburn summarized the benefits of replacing your roof with ESP. “I’m giving you way better financing, a better price on the roof, save you the hassle of having to go look for the roof yourself, save you the expense of removing and reinstalling the solar later on, and you’re doing it all together with solar, and it’s done,” he said. “You don’t have to worry about this headache down the line.” One of the best parts of replacing your roof with ESP is the peace of mind of knowing that you won’t be dealing with an unexpected roof replacement in the future.
