Solar Panels on Slate Roofs

Why slate needs more care

Slate is thin, brittle and fixed with nails rather than hung on a nib. Anchors have to be placed carefully and the slate dressed or replaced around them. A rushed job on slate shows up as cracked slates and, eventually, water ingress.

The Birmingham context

Much of the older housing here is interwar and post-war semis, Victorian terraces in the inner ring, and a big stock of 1960s-80s estates, with concrete interlocking tile on the post-war stock, clay plain tile and slate on the older terraces. The post-war semis around Birmingham typically give a clean, generously sized rear slope, which is often the better array position even where the front faces closer to south.

Fixing detail

Anchors fix to the rafters, with the slate above dressed over the bracket or replaced with a lead soaker. Done properly there is no reliance on sealant to keep the water out.

Age and condition

Old slate can be sound for decades more or can be at the end of its life with failing nails. A survey should include a genuine assessment of that, because it changes the sequencing of the whole job.