Why Deck Attachments are trending in residential rooftop solar mounting

The most commom method for installing solar roof attachments onto residential pitched roofs is to secure an L-foot flashing to the roof by installing a lag srew into a roof rafter. Rafters are structurally sound, after all, and mounting to them means fewer mounts, which can mean fewer holes and less work.

But, locating those rafters isn’t easy, and neither is hitting them dead square, especially with a lag bolt. Rafther attaching can mean just as many extra holes that then need repaired. The number one solar PV system rooftop leak is from pilot holes not being properly flashed or caulked.

Deck(sheathing)attachment means more overall penetrations, but it can be a more leak-proof approach in total. Also, more attachments doesn’t necessarily mean more time.

“Deck mounting is an evolutionary step in residential rooftop solar installation,” says Roland with SunModo.”Solar installers find that deck mounts are faster to install because they don’t have to locate the roof rafter. With a deck mount roof attachment system, the roof attachments are simply laid out and installed on the roof without the worry of locating the rafter, splitting rafter or missing the rafter altogether.

SunModo’s Nano Mount can attach to rafters or straight to deck without the need to lift shingles to install traditional large metal flashings. It forms a watertight seal by compressing its integrated sealing gasket tightly against the asphalt roof shingle and is installed by using four self drilling wood screws and sealing washers. Similary, SunModo’s TopTile Mount can mount directly into roof decking above roof tiles.