Author: Lacy Cook — Are you interested in going solar, but need work done on your roof? Good news: Uprise now offers in-house roofing services, thanks to our innovative partnership with experienced roofer TJ Bobbitt, who’s been in the roofing game for nearly 30 years. We believe our blend of roofing and solar sets us apart, and think you’ll agree.
The Natural Synergy of Roofing and Solar
TJ, who’s lived in the Washington DC area his entire life, has 28 years of experience in commercial and residential roofing. In the last 10 to 15 years, he noticed solar increase in popularity.
“I’ve started conversations with solar installers so many times as we were working on the adjacent roof,” he says. “Hearing that going solar would save you money and the idea of clean energy was very motivating. As a roofer, I realized solar and roofing go hand in hand.”
Around 2.3 million single-family detached houses will need roof replacements every year until 2030, according to the Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy, citing National Renewable Energy Laboratory research. If even some of those houses went solar around the same time as their roof replacement, the United States could leap toward decarbonization goals.
Solar For All Beginnings
TJ met Uprise founder Chris Sewell through DC’s Solar for All program in 2021 when they worked on a project together.
“Match made in heaven,” TJ says. “Because I offer high quality workmanship and products, it’s easy to notice when another company has the same morals.”
TJ and Chris worked together on several more Solar for All projects throughout the years, and noticed a unique opportunity to bring their solar and roofing businesses together. From a roofing perspective, TJ’s handled repairs on roofs with solar panels where the roof really should have been replaced before the panels were installed. By blending a solar company dedicated to a high level of workmanship, and a roofing company with the very same goals, the two owners knew they could offer customers more than either could on their own.
“We decided to join forces so future customers can get quality products and workmanship on both the solar and roofing side,” TJ says. “It’s a win-win with everyone involved.”
“Over the years, I’ve come to rely almost exclusively on TJ because of his eye for detail and commitment to doing the right thing for the customer,” Chris says. “It matched Uprise’s obsession with quality and making customers happy. We thought bringing our companies together was a natural next step to increasing efficiency and quality, and helping grow our work together.”
Is My Roof Suitable For Solar?
If you’re wondering if solar will work for your roof, we wrote a whole blog post on the topic! Long story short, solar is great on the flat roofs so prevalent throughout DC, and also on shingle and standing seam metal roofs.
Roof age is another consideration besides roofing material. For example, shingle roofs last between 12 and 30 years, depending on the type of shingles used, so if you’re 20 years into a shingle roof, you may want to reconsider a reroof before going solar.
How Solar Can Benefit Your Roof
One unsung benefit of solar panels is that they protect the part of your roof they cover. Rain and snow hit your solar panels instead of directly hitting your roof — same with sunshine. Instead of consistent sunlight striking your roof and slowly wearing down your roofing material, your solar array will absorb that sun and transform it into usable clean electricity instead.
And according to research from the University of California, San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering, solar panels may actually help cool your home. The researchers drew on thermal imaging to discover a building ceiling beneath solar panels was five degrees cooler than a building ceiling beneath an exposed roof. One of the researchers described solar panels as “roof shades.”
If you want to go solar but aren’t sure about the age or condition of your roof, don’t worry. In our initial site survey, we’ll assess your roof condition. Whether your roof is flat or pitched (with shingles), if your roof needs work, TJ offers services to get your roof in great shape before you go solar.
Check out these before and after pictures from an Uprise solar and roofing project below. In the first picture, you can see the roof in a not so great condition the date of Uprise’s initial site survey. In the second picture, you can see how TJ worked his magic to redo the roof and get it in excellent condition before the solar installation.
Case Study: Honest Roofing In Action
Uprise customers Kevin and Jennie Hollister needed some roof work done before they went solar. They’d obtained an assessment from another roofer, but then Chris connected them with TJ. Kevin says, “He was a very, very cool guy. And the price was a lot less, so we said, sure, let’s do it.”
Not only did TJ do a great job on a new white coating for the Hollisters’ flat roof, he helped their neighbors out. The neighbors had a dangling piece of material they worried would fall and cause damage. Jennie says they’d received an estimate of $500 to fix the issue. But when TJ was out working on the Hollisters’ roof, they told him about the issue and he realized he could fix it easily with a screw.
“He just went over and that was the end of that,” Jennie says.
“I saw him 10 minutes later and he said, yeah, I did it,” Kevin says. “So he was cool.”
And their neighbors were able to save $500!
Benefit From Uprise’s Roofing and Solar Partnership For Your Clean Energy Project
Think you might need roof repairs or even a new roof before you go solar? TJ can help! Let your sales team member know you may be interested in roofing services as well as solar. And if you’re at the very beginning of your solar journey, reach out to us to explore your options. Schedule a free consultation online or call us at (202) 750-5718.
“I believe we have set the standard with this merger,” TJ says. “You’ll soon notice that more and more solar companies will follow suit. Because we are trendsetters!”