ColdFusion - Tesla's Solar Tiles - My Thoughts

Starting point is 00:00:00 You are watching Cold Fusion TV. Hi, welcome to another Cold Fusion video. Earlier this year I did a video titled The Truth About Solar. It highlighted breakthroughs in solar technology over recent months. The video's conclusion stated that in order for solar to be a competitive form of energy generation, all the breakthroughs listed in the video didn't even have to come to market. The fact that so many milestones were occurring with increasing frequency meant that solar could become viable within the next decade.

Starting point is 00:00:35 within the next decade. In the past week, we've had yet another announcement in the realms of solar technology by who else but Elon Musk. In a presentation to the press, he unveiled two things. Solar roof tiles and an updated version of the Tesla power wall, a battery that powers homes. And he showed off the solar powered roof tiles that eliminate the need for traditional panels

Starting point is 00:00:57 and a longer lasting home battery, which Tesla calls the power wall. The press have been absolutely loving this and have had a few people asked me to do a video about this, So I'll take a quick look at both and share my thoughts. Let's start with the solar roof tiles. So what are they? Here's the basic idea.

Starting point is 00:01:13 Instead of putting ugly solar panel units on top of your roof to generate power, why not make the entire surface of your roof generate power by making each and every roof tile a miniature solar panel? The result would be fully integrated and arguably better looking than a standard roof. This solar energy from the roof can be used immediately or stored for use at night by using the Tesla power wall. So right off the bat, I'm going to say this, solar roof tiles are nothing new. They're actually cold solar shingles and have been around for over a decade.

Starting point is 00:01:43 What's happening now is just a phase shift in the technology. Often what's needed for such technology is a revolutionary kick. Someone to come along and make it actually appealing to the consumer. Think of it like the electric car. That technology had been around for 100 years, but nobody had gotten the product of the electric car right until the Tesla Model S came around. The Model S was a good performer, good looking, and practical. Basically, it was something that people actually wanted.

Starting point is 00:02:10 Now bring that concept back to solar roofs, and Tesla and Solar City want to do the same thing. So here's the basic pitch that was set at the press conference. Compared to standard tiles, these tiles look better, are better insulators, last longer, are more durable, and costs less when energy savings are factored in. Okay, so this all sounds great, but I really think we have to wait for the technical D-toucher. before we can call this a real game changer. But still, the concept seems pretty sound.

Starting point is 00:02:36 In terms of market scope, there's about 80 to 100 million new roofs installed globally every year, so there's a huge market for this kind of thing. There's a few cool things about the tiles. Firstly, they're designed to have a dual appearance, so from the ground they look like normal tiles, that is, opaque, but from the perspective of the sun,

Starting point is 00:02:55 they look transparent, allowing sunlight to hit the integrated solar cell. Second of all, Elon has been a bit of the same Elon has tweeted that the panels can keep themselves clean by using heating elements, much like the real windshield of a car. Thirdly, the tiles are actually much more durable withstanding high-force impacts that should at least double the lifespan of the tiles in comparison to normal roofs, according to Musk. And as a guess, I doubt there will be thousands of wires connecting each panel, it would make sense

Starting point is 00:03:23 for each panel to be connected by some kind of clip-on system. The fact that the solar tiles look great is actually critical for mainstream success. If the roof performed well but looked as dinkiest previous efforts from other companies, the adoption rate would be low. With Tesla, it's no longer a choice between style and being environmentally friendly. Now both can be done simultaneously. To further this, the push of the Tesla brand is more likely to make for mainstream adaptation.

Starting point is 00:03:50 Alright, so that's enough about the roof. Now onto some stuff about the Tesla Powerwall too. Compared to the original Powerwall, it has double the energy storage at 14 kilowatt hours and 7 kilowatts of peak power. Musk claims that you can power a four bedroom house all day with one of these and if you add in a solar roof you can power that house indefinitely. In Australia where I live we've been taking the solar battery storage thing fully on board. Some housing construction companies are already including the power wall in newly built

Starting point is 00:04:21 houses. This makes complete sense for our climate and I'm sure other sunny countries will do similar things in the future. So in conclusion, basically the proposed idea of these new roof tiles and battery is to move a step closer to the seamlessly fully integrated off-the-grid house that looks great but with very little hassle. The aim is to make solar attractive, exciting and desirable. Now of course, these are the very early stages in a long road to fully sustainable housing,

Starting point is 00:04:51 and really this is the baby phase of this technology, the worst it will ever be. Things will only get more efficient, cheaper and more viable as time goes on. I think in the grand scheme of things it's some really cool stuff. So anyway, in summary, that's a few of my thoughts on the new Tesla roof and the power wall too. If you want to know more about the state of the art of solar, or more about the power wall, I'll leave a link to both of my videos on both of those topics below. Thanks for watching guys, this has been to Go-Go-Go, you've been watching Cold Fusion. Give this video a thumbs up if you liked it.

Starting point is 00:05:22 Subscribe if you just stumbled across this channel. And I'll see you again soon for the next video. Cheers, guys. Have a good one. Old fusion. It's new thinking.

ColdFusion - Tesla's Solar Tiles - My Thoughts

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