Transcript +

"Jay: Weddle and Sons, both Energy One, and Tesla, have worked closely with the town to go through all the issues.From fire marshal questions to urban forest interface issues because we just changed the codes here. So, it's had a really smooth process and having a local rep like Energy One here has been, I think, really valuable for the project.

Fortunately in my roles I've applied over my career, I’ve had energy under my portfolio at different companies. And so, I've been following renewable things for quite a while and been looking at the Tesla Solar Roof for probably five years. And then got a hold of a local Tesla rep here, Energy One, almost a little over two years ago, to start talking about this project.

Lily Ames: So energy one is a mechanical, electrical, plumbing, design, and installation company. So, we start from the very beginning of either contacted directly by owner or from architects, at the, you know, the infancy of the project. And it's not always solar or backup power, but if it is, that's where I step in. I've been doing solar and backup power design for about five years now. So, we were approached by Tesla very early on to start distributing their products so we were the very first certified installers in Teetown county, and we've been doing it from the beginning. Matt Heflin: Along with the great partnership we’ve had with Energy 1, Dubbe Molder is the local architecture firm that is working with Jay & Anu on their remodel. Because of this, Weddle and Sons has been in constant contact with them to make sure we honor the changes that will be made to the interior because they can directly impact the roof. We’ve really enjoyed working with them and Energy One in bringing this project to life.

Jay & Anu’s Solar Roof is 12.5 kW with 3 power-walls to provide ample back up energy if he were to need it. Snow is an enormous concern in Wyoming, especially in this area. Because Solar Roof is composed of tempered glass tiles, the low friction makes snow easily slide off or slowly melt when using snow fencing - which is an available add-on for solar roof. This eliminates concerns of ice damming which can cause leaks if snow sits on the roof for too long. Having a Solar Roof can actually be a huge advantage in a place like Jackson which has several feet of snow-fall each year.

Jay: So this roof will be able to take advantage of the 26% credit that's still available this year but it starts to drop next year, which makes the cost more palatable. The other thing that helps with the cost side of the comparison is we changed the regulations here. So I can't replace this roof with a cedar shingle roof again. I have to use fire resistant materials which almost doubles the replacement cost in itself. So comparing that roof to the cost of the tesla roof, there's not too much different after you take the energy credit. So from a capital standpoint and if you have to replace your roof, everybody should be putting a solar roof in, if you have to put in either a new house roof on or replace a roof anyway, it makes a lot of sense."