Solutions
Solar-ready roofing
Reroof and array in one mobilisation, so you never pay to remove a five-year-old system to replace shingles under it.
- Class 4 architectural shingle
- $6.40 to $9.20 per sq ft
- Standing seam metal
- $14.00 to $21.00 per sq ft
- Combined saving
- $2,400 to $4,100
Solar-ready roofingHow we think about it
Solar-ready roofing, in plain terms
If your covering has fewer than eight years of service life left, putting an array on it is a scheduling decision you will regret. Removing and reinstalling a 7 kW array to reroof underneath runs $1,800 to $3,200 (sample), plus the production you lose while it sits on the driveway.
Doing both at once is cheaper than doing them two years apart. One mobilisation, one set of scaffolding, one permit cycle, and the mounting feet get flashed into fresh underlayment by the people who laid it. Boulder County hail means impact-rated Class 4 shingles are worth the premium here, and several insurers discount the policy for them.
We also fix the things a reroof is the only chance to fix: ventilation that never worked, valley detailing, and the penetration layout that decides whether your array is a clean rectangle or an awkward stagger around three plumbing vents.
On the quote, not in a change order
What is included
- Tear-off, deck inspection and sheathing repair where needed
- Ice and water shield at eaves and valleys to Boulder County detail
- Class 4 impact-rated architectural shingles, or standing seam metal with clamp mounting
- Ridge and soffit ventilation corrected and balanced
- Plumbing vent relocation where it unlocks a clean array layout
- Array mounting feet flashed into new underlayment by the roofing crew
- Combined permit and a single inspection sequence
- One warranty conversation: roofing and solar under one contractor
Start to finish
How the work runs
- 01
Roof assessment
Covering type, remaining life, deck condition, ventilation and the penetration map.
- 02
Combined design
The array layout is drawn before the roof is torn off, so vents and flashing land where the modules are not.
- 03
Reroof
One to three days depending on squares and pitch. Mounting feet and flashing go in as part of the roof, not after it.
- 04
Array
Rails, modules, conduit and inverter follow immediately, usually the same week.
Why it is worth doing
Three things you get that a cheaper quote will not give you
- 01
Never pay twice
No removal and reinstall bill in year five, and no lost production while the array sits on the ground.
- 02
Better flashing
Feet bedded into new underlayment by the roofers, not retrofitted through a weathered shingle.
- 03
Hail-appropriate
Class 4 impact rating is the sensible default on the Front Range, and it often earns an insurance discount.
Asked on nearly every visit
Questions about this work
More on the questions page, or call the shop and ask a person.
On standing seam, yes. Seam clamps grip the rib and carry the rails with zero roof penetrations, which is the cleanest array mounting available.
Both are workable. Tile needs tile-replacement flashings and slows the install by a day or two; wood shake usually fails the fire and insurance conversation in Boulder County before it gets to solar.
The covered area actually weathers more slowly, since it is shaded from UV and hail. The risk is entirely in the flashing detail, which is why we prefer to install both.
Two documents, one contractor. The shingle manufacturer warrants the covering, we warrant the workmanship on both trades for ten years, and there is nobody to point at if water appears.
Usually bought together
What else this touches
Rooftop solarArrays between 5 and 12 kW DC, sized from twelve months of your own kWh rather than from your roof area.
Monitoring and maintenanceModule-level production watched against the model, so a 9 percent shortfall gets a phone call rather than a shrug.
Energy auditsBlower door, thermal scan, combustion safety and a room-by-room Manual J load, in one visit, with the numbers written down.
Start with the test, not the quote
Three to four hours on site, a written report in five business days, and a recommendation that might well be to spend less than you planned.