Solar tiles aesthetically & technically optimally used | Single-family house in Bern

Built

2022

Total Energy Generated

9,000 kWh

The roof of a house is not only a durable protection against wind and weather. As part of the dream home, it also acts as an eye-catcher and rounds off the architectural design of the entire property. This is what the owners of this home thought, too, who took the opportunity to upgrade their house aesthetically and in terms of energy technology as part of a roof extension to gain living space. Conventional solar panels were out of the question for them. The visual appearance of the house and the most ecological building style possible were the top priorities for the owners. At the same time, optimal energy generation was to be achieved by covering as much of the roof surface as possible with solar tiles. A clear case for the products from SunStyle.

What considerations had to be taken into account during the conversion?

The focus of the conversion was on the one hand to increase the living space as much as possible and on the other hand to optimise the energy performance of the entire building facade. The framework for this was provided by the guidelines of the building regulations of the city of Bern. The roof area was to be optimally used for energy generation in order to exploit the existing potential of solar energy as much as possible. The building is located on a hillside and in the immediate surroundings of a popular local recreation area. Due to this exposed situation, it was obvious that the roof should also be aesthetically pleasing. The materials used should also be as sustainable and resource-conserving as possible.

In short: The entire house was to shine in new splendour as a showcase project.

How were the set objectives achieved?

In collaboration with the architect Sascha Schär from the architectural office N11 in Zweisimmen, a concept for the ecological conversion with a Cradle to Cradle approach was created. The largest possible living space could be gained through a steep roof pitch combined with a maximum height of the knee wall. These measures also complied with the legal guidelines of the city of Bern.
In order to present passers-by, who use the public staircase behind the house, with a stylish house that is in line with the townscape, a fully integrated solar roof was installed.

In order to fully optimise the energy production, the roof dimensions were adapted to the specifications and grid dimensions of SunStyle in order to cover the maximum area with solar tiles. The SunStyle system was combined with the Smart Energy Ecosystem from Solar Edge. With its performance optimisers, this counteracts the problems caused by the partial and temporary shading of the roof surfaces. Specifically, the horizon situation on the slope and the chimney in the roof area made this necessary here. Intelligent control of the individual solar tiles prevents a negative impact of the shading on individual photovoltaic modules on the entire roof. The smart energy manager from Smartfox completes the energy concept. With it, integrated power consumers such as the heat pump are supplied with in-house energy as far as possible. The heat pump switches on when excess energy is produced on the roof. This leads to higher self-consumption of solar power. And this reduces the amortisation period of the invested funds, as less “expensive” electricity has to be purchased from the public grid. The house is therefore smartgrid-ready and optimally equipped for the future.

Why were SunStyle solar tiles chosen?

The result was very satisfying for the customers. The SunStyle solar tiles clearly enhance the house. The look is modern and fits ideally into the neighbourhood. This fulfils the requirements of creating an aesthetic, state-of-the-art roof that also complies with all ecological standards.