With much higher volume manufacturing, prices for solar panels have come down tremendously over the past 20 years — from about $1,000 each to less than $200. But solar panels are still very time consuming to install on a roof in a way that will last 25+ years without leaks. The majority of this rooftop work is on the flashings, roof hooks, and special roof mount components.

A few companies specialize in manufacturing solar roof mounts. As a solar contractor I like to try out new products in an effort to reduce my installation costs while still maintaining high quality installations. One of the leading roof mount companies is SolarRoofHook, with offices in Livermore, California and Rock Hill, South Carolina.