Rooftop solar

How it is used

A typical example of distributed generation and self-consumption. Rooftop solar is installed, sized to the building's load and often combined with net metering or a battery. Common phrases: rooftop solar system, rooftop PV, commercial and industrial (C&I) rooftop projects.

Example sentences

1. Our rooftop solar system covers about 35 percent of the factory's electricity use.

2. Before we installed rooftop solar, an engineer checked whether the roof could carry the extra weight.

Common collocations

• install rooftop solar
• rooftop solar system
• rooftop PV
• commercial rooftop project

Related terms

• solar panelA flat, framed unit made of many solar cells that turns sunlight directly into electricity. Many panels connected together form a solar array.
• net meteringA billing system in which electricity that a customer's solar panels send to the grid is subtracted from the electricity they take from it, so they pay only for the difference.
• inverterA device that converts the direct current (DC) produced by solar panels or batteries into alternating current (AC) that buildings can use or that can be fed into the grid.
• distribution networkThe lower-voltage part of the power system that takes electricity from substations and delivers it through local lines and cables to homes and businesses.
• kilowatt peakThe power output of a solar system under standard test conditions, used to state the size of a PV installation. It is written kWp; larger plants use MWp.

More terms: Solar Energy

• photovoltaic
• solar farm
• solar cell
• irradiance
• energy yield