I am thinking about solar shingles when I need to replace my roof (probably 5-10 years from now), but there are several things preventing me from doing it.

1) My area has heavy cloud cover 9 months out of the year, and partial cloud cover the other 3 months.
2) The price is going to be highly variable. If I end up needing power from the grid, it is going to be charged as a secondary source which will more then double the price. However, if I end up producing more energy then I use, I will be adding power to the grid and the electric company will end up writing me a check.
3) Solar isn't as popular in my area because our energy is already 90% hydroelectric and nuclear. In fact, only like 3% actually comes from "dirty" power like coal or petroleum. So finding contractors who do it is difficult. Would be a lot easier and cheaper for me to install a geothermal heat pump (assuming I have enough space in my yard) and cut natural gas for my furnace and water heater.
4) During the winter, my roof regularly has about 4-6 inches of snow on it, and I don't want to have to go out there and clean it off.

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After 16 years, I have decided my signature will NOT be about my job! But I still don't know what to put here so...yea...

Do you have mo ey to put solar panels on your roof?

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