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Two years ago, when SolarCity
SCTY, -3.75% acquired Silevo, a solar panel manufacturing startup, Musk — whose cousin owns SolarCity — had spoken about manufacturing
cool-looking panels. Later that year, when he announced the setting up of a ‘gigafactory’ to make batteries for Tesla, he emphasized the importance of looks and aesthetics of the factory. On Wednesday, discussing the proposed Tesla and SolarCity merger, he again
spent a lot of time on aesthetics. He said that SolarCity was working toward improving efficiency and aesthetics of rooftop panels, and that while they will get there on their own, “
that journey will be accelerated as part of Tesla as well.”
does the way solar panels look play a large role in a consumer’s decision to go solar? For many people, the answer is yes. The sight of bulky black or blue solar panels with metalframes holding them up does put some people off.
California-based Lumeta Solar found upon
surveying over 500 prospective customers in 13 states that 12.4% of people say it’s extremely important, 20% very important and 30% moderately important; only 21% say it’s slightly important and 16% say it’s not at all important when they decide whether or not to purchase solar panels.
Meanwhile, in a
survey on the New York-based environment and sustainability website TreeHugger, about 30% of respondents, when asked if it makes sense to prevent homeowners from installing solar systems for aesthetic reasons, say, “No, but they should be installed with aesthetics and design in mind.”
While upfront costs and financing are on top of the list when people consider converting their house to solar energy, consumers also take aesthetics into consideration, experts say.
“It is quite an important part of the process, especially if the panels are in front of the house,” said Vikram Aggarwal, CEO of
EnergySage, an Expedia-like portal that lets consumers compare and choose from various solar power systems. “Very often, customers who are keen on solar hold back because of the aesthetics.”
At times, customers even choose looks over efficiency. For instance, if the energy requirements of the house require, say 19 panels, and 16 of them can form a rectangular shape and the other panels need to be placed elsewhere and won’t clearly form a rectangular shape on the roof, customers are willing to let go of a few panels and give up on that additional energy generation in order to ensure the panels look good on a roof, Aggarwal said.
Furthermore, even if consumers don’t mind the appearance and want to go solar for its other benefits, several homeowners associations and landmark/historical buildings in states such as Nebraska, Colorado and California
don’t permit their members to put up solar panels on their roofs because they believe they harm the appearance and uniformity in the neighborhood.
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What a disappointment. Maybe next time. 
