Solar in Disguise

At least two companies are making headlines with a new approach to designing solar panels that makes them indistinguishable from common construction materials. These new designs will not only appeal to homeowners interested in maintaining the aesthetic of their existing home, but could also enable historic buildings — where traditional collectors are often disallowed —to reduce their carbon footprint.

Dyaqua, a family-run Italian company, started taking sample orders for their “invisible” solar panels on Indiegogo in preparation for wide-scale production. The panels are not really invisible, but are constructed using a special polymeric compound that is opaque to the eye yet allows enough light in to power a photovoltaic module mounted underneath. They blend with the original architecture, and can be made to resemble concrete, slate, stone, terracotta and even wood so they can be installed on roofs as well as walls, floors and even driveways. Although they are only about 25 percent as efficient as traditional panels, the fact that they can cover virtually any surface more than compensates for the lower efficiency.

Tesla also announced their new solar roofing product, which only sacrifices about 2 percent in terms of efficiency. The quartz glass tiles look as good as or better than existing materials and last two to three times longer. They will be available in four styles, each of which achieves a different aesthetic, and will be able to generate adequate energy to power a household when used in combination with their Powerwall 2.0 battery units. The first installations will begin in the summer of 2017.